On This Day In Black History Nov 20 - Garrett Morgan, Patents Traffic Signal

On November 20, 1923, inventor and publisher Garrett Augustus Morgan patented the three position traffic signal. The ingenuity of this signal enabled traffic to do something at intersections other than stop and go forward. The General Electric Corporation bought the rights for the traffic signal from Morgan for $40,000. Morgan was one of America's greatest inventors, also inventing and patented the gas mask. Several men were rescued on July 25, 1916 when Morgan was called to help men who were trapped 250 feet underground below Lake Erie after an explosion.

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