When was william purvis born

Purvis was born on this date in He was a Black inventor and businessman who received multiple patents in the late s. His relatives, James Forten and Robert Purvis were involved in the abolitionist movement. Purvis's upbringing is credited to his uncle who was working for the Underground Railroad. In his youth, William Purvis worked many low-paying jobs and did many experiments for his inventions. However, despite holding 12 patents on paper bag manufacturing machines, his first business attempt was not successful.

William Purvis never married, instead he lived out the remainder of his days with his sister Annie. In spite of his myriad inventions, Purvis was mostly self-taught, having never obtained higher education. Purvis died on August 10, , in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He also patented three designs for the electric railroad, including his final patent in It used an underground wire and a series of magnets to propel railcars.

Purvis was born in Pennsylvania to Joseph and Sarah Purvis on August 12, , as one of eight children. To this end, he designed a mechanism involving an elastic tube connecting the ink reservoir and the tip.

Where was Purvis born? October 14, Off By idswater. Table of Contents. Category Trending. Enter the email address and password you used to join BlackFacts. William Purvis realized how much of an inconvenience it was to have to carry around a bottle of ink whenever you needed to sign a contract or fill out legal papers.

He therefore decided to do something about it. On January 7, , Purvis received a patent for the fountain pen. In addition to his fountain pen, Purvis, a resident of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, also successfully patented a number of other inventions.