Invention VS Marketing: Rise of The Sewing Machine
History often tells a black and white story of events, but as most people come to realize as they grow older, reality is not always as we remember.
The patent filed by Elias Howe in 1846 certified the first practical sewing machine.
The patent described a process that used thread from two different sources The top thread passed through a curved needle with an eye at the pointed end. The needle would pierce through the fabric, while another thread contained in a shuttle passed through and caught the first thread forming a locked stitch.
The new invention revolutionized the sewing world. Previously, ever stitch had been done my hand. Now the 250 stitch per minute machine could match five of the best hand sewers and win every time.
A story is told that Elias Howe had failed repeatedly to make his invention, until his wife stepped in and did it for him. Interesting aside, or reality? Elias Howe did file the patent himself.
History, like nostalgia, often color our view of early events, but one thing is evident from the early years of the sewing machine. Elias Howe struggled to bring is invention to market. The lack of financial resources plus the ensuing legal battles over patent rights robbed the inventor of his potential earning.
Almost immediately, the competition launched their own sewing machine products. Men like Isaac Singer and Allen Wilson seized upon Howes design, altered it and marketed their own products.
Quickly, Isaac Singer led the pack. He produced the first profitable sewing machine with a needle that moved up and down. Unlike many of his competitors how used hand crank drive devices, Singer introduced a sewing machine powered by a foot driven treadle device.
Prior to Elias Howe filing his patent, someone else had already produced a working model of a lockstitch machine using two threads like Howes invention, but he never filed a patent. His name was Walter Hunt and the year was 1834 ” twelve years earlier than Howe. Hunt had stopped working on his invention due to social pressures among garment workers fearful of losing their jobs to a machine. Still, Elias Howe later sued Hunt for patent infringement.
The patent wars dragged on and on. One legal battle after another drained Howes energy and resources. He finally won the court battle in 1854, but in a sense the patent battles robbed him of his potential marketing success.
Elias Howe marketed his machine earning an estimated two million dollars by the end of the Civil War.
The best known name in the sewing world quickly became Singer. Even today, it is the best known brand of sewing machines. Isaac Singer produced many machine advancements and profitably marketed his machines for now over 150 years.
It is always inspiring to think back to the days of invention and the challenges that shook their world. Certainly, the invention of the sewing machine has blessed us all richly. Perhaps we should honor all who contributed to this amazing gift to our world ” Walter Hunt, Elias Howe, Isaac Singer. Three cheers for all of them.
