Sarah Boone Biography (1832–1904)
Sarah Boone Biography (1832–1904)
Who Was Sarah Boone?
Sarah Boone was an African American dressmaker who made her name by inventing the modern-day ironing board. In her patent application, she wrote that the purpose of her invention was "to produce a cheap, simple, convenient and highly effective device, particularly adapted to be used in ironing the sleeves and bodies of ladies' garments." With its approval in 1892, Boone became one of the first African American women to be awarded a patent.
Early Years
Boone was born Sarah Marshall near the town of New Bern in Craven County, North Carolina, in 1832. The daughter of enslaved parents, she earned her freedom at one point; some sources say it came with her 1847 marriage to James Boone, a free African American. The couple went on to have eight children.
Connecticut Dressmaker
Utilizing a network tied to the Underground Railroad, Boone migrated with her husband, children and widowed mother to New Haven, Connecticut, prior to the Civil War.
The family settled into an African American neighborhood near Dixwell Avenue, where Boone worked as a dressmaker and her husband as a bricklayer, until his death in the mid-1870s. According to records, Boone was successful enough to own her own house.
Sarah Boone Biography (1832–1904) https://www.biography.com/inventor/sarah-b...
Who Was Sarah Boone?
Sarah Boone was an African American dressmaker who made her name by inventing the modern-day ironing board. In her patent application, she wrote that the purpose of her invention was "to produce a cheap, simple, convenient and highly effective device, particularly adapted to be used in ironing the sleeves and bodies of ladies' garments." With its approval in 1892, Boone became one of the first African American women to be awarded a patent.
Early Years
Boone was born Sarah Marshall near the town of New Bern in Craven County, North Carolina, in 1832. The daughter of enslaved parents, she earned her freedom at one point; some sources say it came with her 1847 marriage to James Boone, a free African American. The couple went on to have eight children.
Connecticut Dressmaker
Utilizing a network tied to the Underground Railroad, Boone migrated with her husband, children and widowed mother to New Haven, Connecticut, prior to the Civil War.
The family settled into an African American neighborhood near Dixwell Avenue, where Boone worked as a dressmaker and her husband as a bricklayer, until his death in the mid-1870s. According to records, Boone was successful enough to own her own house.
Sarah Boone Biography (1832–1904) https://www.biography.com/inventor/sarah-b...
QUICK FACTS
Sarah Boone
1832 October 29, 1904 New Bern, North Carolina
New Haven, Connecticut
Sarah Marshall