Kenner, Mary
1912-2006 · Contribution: 1957
Adjustable sanitary belt; bathroom tissue holder
Portraits are AI-generated interpretations, not photographs.
Impact on the world
Her sanitary belt design improved menstrual hygiene products of the era, though manufacturers initially declined to produce it once they learned the inventor was Black.
Life & background
An inventor who developed an adjustable sanitary belt and held five patents across her lifetime, more than any other African-American woman of her era, despite facing significant racial barriers to commercializing her inventions.
Sources
- BlackPast.org; Lemelson-MIT; U.S. patent record
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