Do you know who Walter Hunt was? I am guessing you probably do not recognize the name, but he made a significant contribution that we all have used.

In 1849 he invented the safety pin. He received his patent, but later sold it to satisfy a debt. He received $400 for his patent ending his claim to fame.

The article I read had pictures. The safety pin from the time of his patent remained virtually the same as it looks today.

I do remember some decorative safety pins from my diaper days. There were some that were bunnies, some ducks, and some that looked like other pets.

I also recall some safety pins with the little spring on the bottom being covered up so as not to snag clothes. Really if I was going to use a safety pin, I liked that kind the best since it did not ruin your clothes.

Few things remain untouched like the safety pin. That makes the safety pin 176 years old.

It seems that Mr. Hunt contributed a significant number of other inventions – some successful and some not.

He made an early commercial sewing machine that was not successful, however part of his invention was later used in another model. There was a patent dispute, but he lost because he never filed the paperwork for his invention of the “eye-pointed needle”.

Other inventions of Hunt included a forerunner of the Winchester repeating rifle, a knife sharpener, a streetcar bell, a hard-coal-burning stove, artificial stone, and road sweeping equipment.

Never in my studies did I run across the name Walter Hunt! He was a New York native born in 1796. He went to college to learn masonry.

His first invention was a bell operated by your foot that was used on stagecoaches to eliminate collisions.

Although he was a prolific inventor, the biography that I read said nothing of his use of his degree in masonry – unless you consider his invention of artificial stone.

The article I read also mentioned the invention of a fire engine. Another accomplishment was the forerunner of the modern fountain pen. If you are reading this and are on the younger side, you will not even know what that was. Although they were good to use, there were drawbacks.

I remember when I was in seventh grade, I used a fountain pen to

copy an essay for a contest. I made so many mistakes that I scrapped the idea of entering the contest. I could not get a clean copy. When I got to school the teacher said that even if we were not entering the contest we had to turn in an essay.

I went home and retrieved my essay from the garbage. If I had to turn one in, I was going to enter it in the contest. As it turned out I won a cash prize for my essay and got to read it in front of the group that sponsored the contest.

When I read that he invented a paper collar for a shirt I was intrigued. I read more about that. It was first used for stage productions. It kept the shirts from getting dirty. After each performance the collar was changed keeping the shirt clean.

At one point there were forty factories producing the paper collars; however, it was after he died so he did not reap the benefits.

Hunt was inducted into the Inventors Hall of Fame posthumously in 2006 for his invention of the safety pin.

Things like this fascinate me. I am a lifelong learner. Occasionally, I stumble across something I know nothing about and must investigate.

I looked him up on eBay, too. They offer all kinds of Hunt memorabilia at significantly higher prices than the originals were offered.

Now all of you know where that common, ordinary safety pin that you have tucked away for an emergency closing device came from.

The moral of this piece is be careful what you throw away, it could be worth a lot of money in the future.

Ann Swanson writes from her home in Russell.Contact her at hickoryheights1@verizon.net.