Mary Anderson (inventor)

<!-- |The following block of text by User:Icagiannos seems to be added to the wrong place (the top of the lead) and should be merged into appropriate sections Early Life Mary Anderson (Female) was born on Burton Hill Plantation in Greene Country, Alabama on February 19th, 1866. Her father John C. died when she was four years old. Her mother, Rebecca Anderson, and her sister, Fannie, continued to live on his estate and later moved to Birmingham to build the Fairmont Apartment building. She moved out at 27 years old to work on a vineyard in Fresno, California. She then went back to Birmingham in 1900 to help take care of her aunt. Her aunt had brought several trunks that were secretive back to their apartment and so after she died, the trunks were opened and revealed.There was a collection of jewelry and gold, which allowed for her family to become rich and financially comfortable. Invention \ ca\ 1 “Anderson, Mary.” Encyclopedia of Alabama, 7 July 2023, encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/mary-anderson/. 3 the car, so that it could be pushed in order to move the wipers, and remove drops of rain off the windshield.2 Anderson’s device was the first device that actually worked for this problem. In addition, when she invented this, cars were not very popular and many people laughed at her for this idea. Others thought that the wipers moving across the windshield would distract drivers, however, 10 years later tons of people had their own cars with windshield wipers. Thus, she created a very important invention and should be more widely recognized for her hard work and creative mind. 3 Legacy and Invention Overtime The innovation of windshield wipers also has had a huge impact on society up until present day. People still use windshield wipers to save them from not seeing while they're driving through rain or snow storms. Today, all cars have windshield wipers and they are a vital part of a car. Windshield wipers have continued to develop and improve over time but all cars still have them. Furthermore, windshield wipers are now used on cars all around the world and will continue to be used for a while. 4 People will be driving cars for a very long time and as long as people are driving, windshield wipers will be used. 537 words 4 “2. Social Factors.” Brittany Tse, blogs.oregonstate.edu/brittanytse/mary-andersons-invention-windshield-wipers/2-social-factors/. Accessed 10 Aug. 2023. 3 “Mary Anderson.” Lemelson, lemelson.mit.edu/resources/mary-anderson. Accessed 10 Aug. 2023. 2 Steve BrachmannSteve Brachmann is a graduate of the University at Buffalo School of Law. “The Evolution of Wind Shield Wipers - a Patent History - Ipwatchdog.Com: Patents & Intellectual Property Law.” IPWatchdog.Com | Patents & Intellectual Property Law, 16 Dec. 2017, ipwatchdog.com/2014/11/09/the-evolution-of-wind-shield-wipers-a-patent-history/id=52085/. 4 References “Anderson, Mary.” Encyclopedia of Alabama, 7 July 2023, encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/mary-anderson/. “Mary Anderson.” Lemelson, lemelson.mit.edu/resources/mary-anderson. Accessed 10 Aug. 2023. “2. Social Factors.” Brittany Tse, blogs.oregonstate.edu/brittanytse/mary-andersons-invention-windshield-wipers/2-social-f actors/. Accessed 10 Aug. 2023. Steve BrachmannSteve Brachmann is a graduate of the University at Buffalo School of Law. “The Evolution of Wind Shield Wipers - a Patent History - Ipwatchdog.Com: Patents & Intellectual Property Law.” IPWatchdog.Com | Patents & Intellectual Property Law, 16 Dec. 2017, ipwatchdog.com/2014/11/09/the-evolution-of-wind-shield-wipers-a-patent-history/id=52 085/. Mary Anderson was born on February 19, 1866 in Greene County, Alabama. Along with her widowed mother and sister, she moved to Birmingham, Alabama, in 1889. It was here that she became a real estate developer soon after, building the Fairmont Apartment Building. For a brief period after Anderson and her family established themselves in Birmingham, she left home in 1893 at age 27 to run a cattle ranch and vineyard in Fresno, California, but returned to Birmingham in 1900. Upon a visit to New York City in the early 1900s, she was traveling by streetcar during a snowy storm, and noticed that the trip was taking much longer than normal because the driver had to keep stopping to clean the windows with his hands. Sitting in the streetcar, Anderson thought to herself, is there a better way to clean the windshield and speed up travel through inclement weather conditions?

When she went back home to Birmingham, she created her plans for a device consisting of a “lever inside the vehicle that controlled a spring-loaded arm with a rubber blade”. The arm would function as a lever that was easily controllable from inside the car by the driver. Anderson also added an additional seasonable feature to her design, making it so that the device could be removed from the car when the winter was over and they were no longer needed. She filed for a patent on June 18, 1903, which was then awarded to her on November 10, 1903, and was awarded patent number 743,801 for her swinging lever windshield cleaner device. Although her device was functionally successful, and showed great promise, Anderson was denied by several different manufacturers and other production companies, as they were not able to see the value in the product.

Mary Anderson’s story as an innovator ended after she earned her patent. The patent expired in 1920, and since no one wanted to manufacture the device, she never made any money off of her invention. At that time, cars were not very popular yet, which is why manufacturers did not think they would profit off of the device. The first cars designed with windshield wipers built into the standard models were Cadillac vehicles, built in 1922. This was just two years after Mary Anderson’s original windshield wiper patent expired in 1920.

After her innovation was rejected by manufacturers, Mary Anderson went on to continue managing her family’s apartment building in Birmingham, the Fairmont Building. Much like many other talented women in the early 20th century, Anderson’s idea was passed over and not recognized for the success that it could have been. She had entered a market that was dominated by men, and although her device’s lack of success was not entirely due to this, it certainly made the process much more difficult for her. This is why it is even more impressive that she was able to create something so original and functional, and be awarded a patent for a design that was entirely her own. Her invention was ahead of its time, and although her patent expired before she could profit off of her design, it is extremely important to remember Mary Anderson and her contribution to our world today. -->

Mary Elizabeth Anderson (February 19, 1866 – June 27, 1953) was an American real estate developer, rancher, viticulturist, and most notably the inventor of what became known as the windshield wiper. On November 10, 1903 Anderson was granted her first patent for an automatic car window cleaning device controlled from inside the car, called the windshield wiper. Her patent didn't get far as she got no manufacturing firms to agree to make her invention.

Early life
Mary Anderson was born in Burton Hill Plantation, Greene County, Alabama, at the start of Reconstruction in 1866. Her parents were John C. and Rebecca Anderson. Anderson was one of at least two daughters. The other daughter was Fannie, who remained close to Anderson all her life. Their father died in 1870, and the young family was able to live on the proceeds of John’s estate. In 1889 she moved with her widowed mother and sister to the booming town of Birmingham, Alabama. Anderson’s education is unknown. She never married nor had any children.

In Birmingham, Anderson became a real estate developer soon after settling and built the Fairmont Apartments on Highland Avenue. In 1893, Anderson left Birmingham to operate a cattle ranch and vineyard in Fresno, California. In 1898, she returned to Birmingham to help care for an ailing aunt. Anderson and her aunt moved into the Fairmont Apartments with Anderson’s mother, her sister Fannie, and Fannie’s husband G. P. Thornton. Anderson’s ailing aunt brought a trunk with her that contained a collection of gold and jewelry. From that time forward, Anderson’s family lived comfortably.

Her Invention (windshield wipers)
In 1902, she visited to New York City in the winter. Anderson sat in a trolley car on a frosty day. Anderson observed that the trolley car driver struggled to see past the windows because of the falling sleet. The trolley car’s front window was designed for bad-weather visibility, but its multi-pane windshield system worked very poorly. Therefore, to clear the sights, the driver needed to open the window, lean out of the vehicle, or stop the car to go outside in order to wipe the windscreen with his or her hands. Anderson, who was not an engineer but an entrepreneur, identified the problem and its opportunity. She envisioned a windshield wiper blade that the trolley driver could operate from the inside. At that time, it rarely occurred to anyone else to eliminate the problem. It was something drivers simply accepted and dealt with.

When she returned to Alabama, she drew up a sketch for a wiper blade that could be operated from inside a vehicle and wrote up the description. She also hired a designer for a hand-operated device to keep a windshield clear and had a local company produce a working model. Her device consisted of a lever inside the vehicle that controlled a rubber blade on the outside of the windshield. The lever could be operated to cause the spring-loaded arm to move back and forth across the windshield. A counterweight was used to ensure contact between the wiper and the window. The device could be easily removed if desired after the winter was over. Similar devices had been made earlier, but Anderson's was the first windshield clearing device to be effective. Anderson’s simple mechanism and basic design have remained much the same, but unlike today’s windscreen wipers, Anderson’s could be removed when not needed.

She then applied for, and in 1903 was granted, a 17-year patent for a windshield wiper. The patent application was filed on June 18, 1903. On November 10, 1903, the United States Patent Office awarded Anderson patent number 743,801 for her Window Cleaning device.

In 1903 when Anderson applied for the patent, cars were not very popular. Henry Ford’s Model A automobile had not been manufactured yet. Therefore, when Anderson tried to sell the rights to her invention through a noted Canadian firm of Dinning and Eckenstein in 1905, they rejected her application. They argued, "we do not consider it to be of such commercial value as would warrant our undertaking its sale." Furthermore, many could not see the value of her invention and stressed the risk that the driver would be distracted by operating the device and the moving wipers.

By 1913, the automobile manufacturing business had grown exponentially and windshield wipers were standard equipment. In 1922, Cadillac became the first car manufacturer to adopt them as standard equipment. However, Anderson never profited from her invention or was given an recognition. Giving up on partnering with companies to manufacture her invention, the patent expiring in 1920. According to the National Inventors Hall of Fame, her invention was simply ahead of its time, and other companies and entrepreneurs were able to profit off her original ideas.

In 1917, Charlotte Bridgewood patented the “electric storm windshield cleaner,” the first automatic wiper system that used rollers instead of blades. Like Anderson, Bridgewood never made any money from her invention. Sara-Scott Wingo, rector of Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Richmond, Va., and Anderson’s great-great niece suspect Anderson’s invention never went anywhere because Anderson was an independent woman. Wingo said in an interview with NPR News, “She didn't have a father. She didn't have a husband. And the world was kind of run by men back then.”

Later life
By the 1920s, Anderson’s brother-in-law had died, and Anderson was again living in the Fairmont Apartments in Birmingham with her sister Fannie and her mother. She continued to manage the Fairmont Apartments until her death at the age of 87. At the time of her death, she was the oldest member of South Highland Presbyterian Church. She died at her summer home in Monteagle, Tennessee. Her funeral was conducted by Dr. Frank A. Mathes at South Highland and she was buried at Elmwood Cemetery.

Legacy
In 2011 Anderson was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. With minimal mention or recognition until 2011, thankfully Anderson’s sketch provides a glimpse of her entrepreneurial spirit and ambition. Rini Paiva, executive vice president at the National Inventors Hall of Fame said, "She was persistent, she was forward-thinking, and she had the drive to follow up on an idea."