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The Entrepreneurial Spirit of African American InventorsContents:
Several inventors named in the book: Freedman Thomas Jennings is the earliest identified patent holder of color and an early successful African American entrepreneur in that rarified sphere during the harsh days of slavery. Residing in New York City in the early 1800s, he fought for the abolition of the odious practice and backed his community activism with earnings from his business. The extraordinary, prolific inventor Granville T. Woods, a telegraphic and electrical wizard, solved numerous problems and eased a multitude of the train engineer’s concerns. He went into business to capitalize on his creative genius. One inventor and entrepreneur in particular enjoyed the benefits of his lucrative manufacturing business until changing trends in lifestyles forced him to adjust plans and diversify. Samuel R. Scrotton, a New York-based manufacturer born in Philadelphia, understood the essence of diversification. The fortitude of entrepreneurial giants like Dr. Percy Lavon Julian, Madame C. J. Walker, Dr. Lonnie G. Johnson, and Michael Jackson are well recognized in this work. Successful entrepreneurs and inventors share valuable characteristics like self-confidence, perseverance, and the ability to conceptualize unrealized solutions or opportunities. However, another personality trait has been required for African Americans wishing to become business owners, creative thinkers, or patent holders: a willingness to overcome the additional barriers placed before them because of their race, especially in the era before civil rights. |
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"'OK, I finally obtained my patent. Now what?' In accessible fashion, Pat Sluby describes the extraordinary efforts, failures, and successes of African American innovators over time. As such, this narrative history of how African Americans have commercialized inspires us all."
Charlotte N. Douglass, J.D., |
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"Pat Sluby has done it again. This book is a fascinating and important contribution to understanding the significant contribution that African American inventors as entrepreneurs have played in shaping our evolving economy and our daily lives. Using the same ingenuity, tenacity, and will to succeed that enabled these inventors to create important technical contributions, their struggles to bring their inventions to commercial reality provide an insightful new perspective on the American experience. The struggles of these African American entrepreneurs are set within a wide variety of social, business, economic, cultural and political challenges reflecting societal norms of the time. While being an entrepreneur is difficult at any time, this remarkable book will provide readers with a new vantage point to understand the magnitude of their achievements. A must read for any scholar concerned with these subjects."
Andrew D. Hirsch, M.A., J.D., |
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"Pat Sluby's message is an incredibly instructive one: The brilliant Black inventor with an implementation strategy is akin to the extraordinary minister whose sermon cannot spawn generosity in tidings: talent must be accompanied by advertising and other assertive entrepreneurial behavior."
Maceo Crenshaw Dailey Jr., Director, |
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"In this second volume of her remarkable series on African American invention, former patent examiner Sluby breathes real human life into the patent record. She shows how Black innovators from slavery to modern times overcame incredible odds not only to obtain a U.S. patent but to bring their ideas and dreams to market, thereby helping all Americans achieve a better life."
Arthur P. Mollela, Director, |
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