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The first person to patent a machine for cleaning was David Hess
in the year 1860. Housewives all over America had turned to
using rugs and carpets, a trait brought over by the waves of
immigrants coming from Europe, to cover their bare wood floors
and keep the dust and dirt to a minimum. When they were dirty,
they had to be carried outside, suspended somehow in the air and
then beaten with a metal rod or heavy wooden stick.
A bit later someone invented a small, tennis racket-looking
device called a rug beater for precisely this purpose. Mr. Hess
soon realized that there was probably an easier way to clean
rugs without all the fuss and mess and he invented the Carpet
Sweeper which had a rotating brush combined with a bellows
system that created suction. His amazing invention also used two
water chambers to trap the dust and fine dirt. The only problem
with Mr. Hess’ machine is that there is no proof it was ever
produced.
After Mr. Hess’ invention, there came a period of wilder and
weirder inventions that sought to accomplish the same thing. In
the late 1870’s, Melville Bissell (sound familiar?) marketed a
carpet sweeper that picked up the dirt and dropped it into a pan
behind the rotating brush. In 1899, John Thurman invented a
gasoline-powered vacuum cleaner that is credited as being the
first motorized version. In 1901 Hubert Booth of London invented
the electric vacuum, a device so large that it was parked
outside the house and a 100-foot long hose snaked its way inside
and did the dirty work.
The device was so popular that housewives all over London held
vacuum parties to enjoy the event. It wasn’t until 1908 when
James Spangler, a janitor in Ohio, invented the first portable,
suction cleaner -- the precursor to today’s high tech machines.
He sold his patent to his cousin’s husband, William Hoover (also
familiar?) and the rest, as they say is history.
About the author:
Vacuum Cleaners
Info provides detailed information about industrial,
upright, and bagless vacuum cleaners, as well as vacuum cleaner
bags, parts, and repair, plus reviews of best vacuum cleaners.
Vacuum Cleaners Info is the sister site of Sewing Machines Web.
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