Simms ‘Motor Scout’ Armoured Quadricycle, ca. 1899
This post was originally published on this sitePopular at the turn of the 19th to 20th century, quadricycles were four-wheeled bicycle-like vehicles powered by humans […]
inventions
On May 20, 1873: Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis Invented Blue Jeans
This post was originally published on this siteOn May 20, 1873, San Francisco businessman Levi Strauss and Reno, Nevada, tailor Jacob Davis are given a […]
Movie Camera in Police Car Puts Evidence on Film, 1939
This post was originally published on this siteMounted on the dashboard of his patrol car, with its lens pointing forward through the windshield, a motion-picture […]
Electric Glove for Police Stuns Victims With 1,500 Volts, 1935
This post was originally published on this siteMore punch than can be found in a box-glove is contained in a new electric glove invented by […]
The World’s First Effective Bulletproof Vest, 1901
This post was originally published on this siteJan Szczepanik (June 13, 1872 – April 18, 1926) was a Polish inventor, with several hundred patents and […]
Test Lip-Stick on Guinea Pig, 1939
This post was originally published on this siteIn the photo below, Max Factor, Hollywood make-up specialist (left) and Dr. J. R. Pratt, chemist, were testing […]
Marybel, the Doll That Gets Well by Madame Alexander, 1959
This post was originally published on this siteThe daughter of Russian immigrants, Beatrice Alexander was born in Brooklyn, New York on March 9, 1895. She […]
“Blow Up to Be the Size You Want!” – Vintage Inflatable Bra Ads From the 1950s and 1960s
This post was originally published on this siteWhat was a woman to do if she wanted to boost her cleavage in the days before Wonderbra […]
Plumbers Used Alligators to Open Clogged Pipes, 1938
This post was originally published on this siteAlligators kept as specimens at the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries aquarium in Washington, D.C, were being tried out […]
In 1908, a Doctor Used X-Rays to Highlight the Damaging Effects of Tight Corsets on a Woman’s Body
This post was originally published on this siteLudovic O’Followell, a French doctor who in 1905 and 1908 published books on the effects of the corset […]
Gas Mask Designed for Typists, 1935
This post was originally published on this siteA type of gas mask, which slips over the head of an office typist in the event of […]
15 Vintage Photographs of Bugle Megaphones From the Mid-20 Century
This post was originally published on this siteBugle megaphones were used on military garrisons to help amplify the sound of the bugle. Used in a […]
Airmen Test Asbestos Suits, 1938
This post was originally published on this siteClaimed to provide considerable protection against the danger of flames from an airplane afire in mid-air, asbestos flying […]
Slide Down Ropes to Safety in New Life Saving Device, 1932
This post was originally published on this siteThat life saving equipment need not be elaborate and expensive effectively to remove people from a burning building […]
Egg-Shaped Wheels Pull Through Mud Without Chains, 1949
This post was originally published on this siteWheels with “corners” on them may seem useless, but a New York inventor believes such “flat” wheels may […]
Violin With Horn for Sounding Box Directs Tone Toward Audience, 1924
This post was originally published on this siteBuilt on the same principle as a violin and played in the same manner, a musical instrument with […]
These Elephants’ Feet Were Turned Into Useful Jars in Germany, 1924
This post was originally published on this siteWaste-paper baskets, tobacco jars and receptacles for various uses made out of elephants’ feet have appeared in German […]
This Small Device From 1929 Will Help You Pick a Cinder Out of Your Eye
This post was originally published on this siteWas this a really big problem at the time? Big enough that people needed to carry around portable […]
Mattress Doubles as Life Raft, 1939
This post was originally published on this siteTaken into the wilds on fishing and boating trips, a new “unsinkable” mattress provides safety as well as […]
Chariot of 1938 Ben Hur Drawn by Four Motorcycles
This post was originally published on this siteFor the Ben Hur of the motor age, no four-horse team would do. Instead, the charioteer–stunting in a […]
Singer Can Hear Voice as Audience Hears It, 1934
This post was originally published on this siteSo that would-be singers may hear themselves as others hear them, a Los Angeles voice teacher and former […]
“I’ll Do It Myself!” – Josephine Cochran, the Inventor of the Automatic Dishwasher
This post was originally published on this siteJosephine Cochrane (1839–1913) was an American inventor who was the inventor of the first commercially successful automatic dishwasher, […]
Steel Barrel Tested in 200-Foot Drop, 1933
This post was originally published on this siteAn eighteen-story plunge in Detroit, Michigan, tested the strength of a new-type beer barrel in 1933. Made of […]
Swimming Taught by Telephone, 1934
This post was originally published on this siteBy means of a special headset and transmitter, a San Francisco coach is teaching swimming via telephone in […]
Black Spray of Carbon, 1947
This post was originally published on this siteIn 1947, black spray of carbon is blown into the face of this industrial worker to test the […]