Who Was the Inventor of the Clothing Dryer?
MICHAEL ALPERT
CLASS
The first clothes dryer was a much simpler apparatus than what most of us use today. What started with humble beginnings in 18th century France has become a daily convenience that many people could not imagine doing without.
1 Initial Design
In France, M. Pochon designed the "ventilator for drying clothes" in 1799. You ran a high risk of burning clothes while using the device. After being wrung by hand, clothes were placed in a metal cylinder full of holes, which was then turned over a fire by hand. Even if you were lucky enough to avoid a few singes, you can bet your clothes usually smelled smokey!
2 A More Modern Version
More than 100 years later, J. Ross More improved drastically on Pochon's concept. More developed gas and electric dryers in 1930, and received a patent of his designs in 1936. After selling his concept to the Hamilton Manufacturing Company, sales of similar dryers escalated quickly. In 1947, various manufacturers were selling more than 60,000 units annually.
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