William Shakespeare (inventor)

William Shakespeare Jr. (September 21, 1869 – June 25, 1950) was an American inventor.

Shakespeare was born to William Shakespeare, Sr. and Lydia A. Markley in Kalamazoo, Michigan, in 1869.

He invented the level-winding fishing reel. Shakespeare also founded and was one of the key people of Shakespeare Fishing Tackle, which he founded in 1897, as a fisherman aiming to improve the fishing-reel mechanism.

He was a traveling salesman of patent medicines.

In addition to numerous fishing-tackle innovations, Shakespeare also received patents for camera equipment and a carburetor.