Scottron, Samuel
1841-1908 · Contribution: 1868-1893
Adjustable mirror design; extension window cornice; synthetic onyx manufacturing process
Portraits are AI-generated interpretations, not photographs.
Impact on the world
Unlike many inventors of his era who sold their patent rights, Scottron personally learned pattern-making and mechanical engineering to manufacture his own inventions, building successive successful businesses around mirrors, then window cornices, then synthetic onyx.
Life & background
A New York manufacturer, Scottron patented an adjustable mirror design and, determined to manufacture it himself rather than sell the rights, enrolled in night school to study practical mathematics and apprenticed himself to a pattern-maker. He went on to patent and manufacture extension window cornices, and later achieved his greatest financial success manufacturing synthetic onyx. He was also a prolific writer who encouraged other Black inventors toward self-manufacture and mechanical education.
Sources
- MIT Press Reader (300 Years of African-American Invention and Innovation); BlackPast.org; Encyclopedia.com
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