Hiram Stevens Maxim, a prolific inventor, held over 140 patents, including those for the light bulb and machine gun. However, his story is often overshadowed by Thomas Edison's, who is credited with inventing the light bulb. Maxim's life was marked by eccentricity and controversy, including a feud with Edison and a history of bigamy charges. Despite this, Maxim's invention of the machine gun became his lasting legacy. [... more]

Walter Hunt, a prolific inventor from the 19th century, created a wide range of innovative products, including the safety pin and a firearm that laid the groundwork for modern firearms technology. His story highlights the often-overlooked contributions of inventors and the importance of their legacies in shaping American history. [... more]

On this episode of Our American Stories Walter Hunt is known as the Yankee mechanical genius His hundreds of inventions include a saw a steamer ink stands a nail-making machine a rifle a revolver bullets bicycles a shirt collar a boot heel and a ceiling-walking circus device Hunt's most successful invention was designed in just three hours to settle a debt to one of the many draftsmen he tasked with drawing up his patents Here's Ashley Hlebinsky with the story Support the show https www ouramericanstories com donate See omnystudio com listener for privacy information [... more]