Talk:Sarah E. Goode

Sarah E. Goode
Sarah E. Goode (1855-1905) – The folding bed

[1 ]Sarah Elisabeth Goode is an African American inventor born in the year 1855, in Ohio. Her parents were Oliver and Harriet Jacobs. In 1870, shortly after the American civil war, the family moved to Chicago. Finding a school for black children like Sarah, was very rare, and therefore, she lacked a formal education. Black children would learn skills from members of their family as a means to educate themselves. Sarah’s dad was a furniture maker, so she learnt carpentry and the art of furniture making. In 1880, Sarah got married to her carpenter husband, Archibald Goode, in Chicago and adopted his last name. The couple had six children, however, only three survived infant mortality.

[2 ]Sarah’s husband helped her to open up a furniture store in Chicago. The middle-class, black community in Chicago were their most frequent customers, where most of their living situations involved staying in small houses. [3 ]Many of them survived with minimal furniture as it was a challenge to find a way to fit all necessary furniture. Sarah and her husband saw this to be a problem for their clients and set out to find a solution. Sarah designed a folding bed that could be opened to be slept on for the night, and then folded to transform itself into a wall cabinet during the day. She ensured that the design was stable to distribute the weight of the household stationaries evenly. Her solution eliminated the problem of having a lack of space and now clients only had to purchase one item instead of two. The solution also allowed them to choose whether they wanted to place the folding bed in the kitchen or in the bedroom.

[4 ]Sarah’s invention was very popular and when the demand for it increased seemingly, she decided to have it patented. Sarah’s trademark patent got approved on the 14th of July 1885 and the black community within Chicago still celebrates her invention.

[5 ]The folding bed invention is still used in compact spaces today like apartments. They have been modified to be more comfortable than older models, are convenient for travelling and can turn an inconvenient space into a guest room.

Sarah’s invention has impacted society positively by saving a lot of space, being multipurpose, making a room feel clearer by allowing one to fold their beds away, and making cleaning more convenient. This invention also caters for growing families, people who move often and people who are on a budget. Sarah’s simple solution continues to effectively eliminate numerous problems that people face.

Wiki Education assignment: Women Scientists and Wikipedia
— Assignment last updated by Alice4104 (talk) 21:37, 2 May 2023 (UTC)

Updating Sarah E. Goode Article
Hello all! I am updating Sarah's article with some new information that I have found on her. My research has revealed that she was actually the fourth, not first or second, African American woman to receive a US patent. So I have added information about previous patent holders and corrected the previously known information about her being first or second. I will be adding some information about her family life, furniture store, and expositions she was involved in, as well as some other minor details. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

- Collector786 Collector786 (talk) 01:29, 26 May 2023 (UTC)