Mary Anderson
Personal Information
Born: 1866
Died: 1953
Country of Birth: USA
Nationality: USA
Ethnicity: White
Education
unknown
Professional Life
Field of Study: Inventor
Institution/Corporation: Cadillac
Degrees & Memberships: none
Awards & Achievements
Awards: National Inventors Hall of Fame 2011
Achievements: Windshield wiper
Invented windshield wipers for cars
Born in Alabama at the start of Reconstruction in 1866
1889, moved to Birmingham, AL & built Fairmont Apartments, an oddity for a Black female of the time
1893, moved to Fresno, CA to operate a cattle ranch & vineyard
1902, visited NYC; while riding in a trolley car during a sleet storm observed the driver had difficulty seeing out of the windshield due to falling sleet; he had to stop frequently to wipe the windshield; this observation led to her inventing windshield wipers
Never financially profited from her invention & allowed the patent to expire in 1920
1922, Cadillac became the 1st auto manufacturer to adopt wipers as standard equipment on their vehicles