History 5th Grade

The electromechanical relay. Joseph Henry born in New York in 1797, was interested in science at age 16 so he became a state engineer after college and then he became a science professor in 1826 age 29 then invented the multiple coil magnet in 1831, built the relay in 1835. The revolver. Samual Colt born…

The safety elevator. Ancient civilizations used simple machines to create elevators, but innovated and stalled out in the 1800s. Elisha Otis invented the safety elevator in 1852 while looking for a better, safer way to lift scraps and wood in a factory, the safety mechanism stops the elevator from plummeting all the way down to…

The jackhammer. Mining was important but hazardous and steam engine became integral. Early jackhammers inspired by steam engine, developed by 1806 also Jonathan Couch invented the jackhammer in 1848 and because of the jackhammer Mont Cenis tunnel constructed between Italy and France, the bridge was planned the be done in 25 years but thanks to…

The steel plow. John Deere, born in Vermont in 1804, went to congregationalist college and became a town blacksmith in 1825. Insight: polished needles are easier to use. In 1837 he invented the steel plow. Prairie soil was extremely fertile, stuck to the moldboard, and soil didn’t stick to the polished steel plow. The steam…

The ether. Crawford Long, born in Georgia 1815, spent many years to become a doctor and he moved home to Georgia to practice. Long noted the properties and effects of ether on people and then in 1842 he started using ether as a anesthetic. The fax machine. Alexander Bain invented the fax machine. He was…

The rotary printing process. Richard Hoe born in New York 1812, became president of father’s press manufactory when he was 21 and invented the rotary press in 1843. It led to the card industry, commercialization of valentines day, and magazines began growing popularity during the 1850s. “Yellow journalism” also became popular. The kerosene. Abraham Gesner…

The railroad T-rail is something that turned the American civil war around. Robert Stevens born is New Jersey 1787 worked with his father to build steamships and he improved various steamships but he wanted to work on railroads. His father understood that he didn’t want to work on the steamships so he let him quit.…

The combine harvester. In the world before the combine harvester the Second Great Awakening was happening from 1790 to 1820. Presbyterians couldn’t supply pastors fast enough and Freemasons thought to have murdered a “rat” in 1826, this spark widespread outrage against freemasons. Hiram Moore born in New Hampshire 1801, had a neighbor named Hascall who…

Lesson 25: The sewing machine is an invention that changed history. The sewing machine made it a lot easier to sew, it took hours to sew until the sewing machine got invented. People now had to sew for one and a half hours it was easier the machine would sew for them some people didn’t…

A guy named John Walker invented the match. John Walker used to do surgery but he couldn’t handle the gore so he did chemistry instead, and he became fascinated with fire. One time he was experimenting with a splinter of wood and the splinter of wood accidentally struck against the fire place and it lit…