Invented in America

America have had a pretty bad press of late, maybe it’s a good time to remember that in the mid twentieth century they were at the top  of their inventive game:

The manufacture of clothes washing machines began in America in 1926, the clothes driers did not get into production until 1949. Dishwashers were also invented in 1949. Air conditioners came along earlier , 1945 . Colour televisions came onto the market in 1959. More recent American firsts were microwave ovens in 1972 and video cassette recorders 1977. By 1978 15% of Americans owned a personal computer  and a pioneering 2% owned a mobile phone.  

Plus, earlier on two San Francisco men had invented jeans. THeywere invented in 1873  when the Bavarian dry goods merchant Levi Strauss and Reno tailor Jacob Davis secured the patent for using copper rivets to strengthen  the pockets of miner’s ‘waist overalls’ they made in San Francisco. The  material used was denim, from originally called ‘serge de Nemes’ – just as Jeans comes from Genoa the name given to the material used produced at the Amoskeag mill in New Hampshire.