Air Brakes, Traffic Light, Tape Measure, Pipe Wrench

George Westinghouse was born in New York in 1846. He joined the army during the Civil War. He left the army in 1864 and then he joined the navy. He invented the Airbrake system for trains in 1864. The system was made up of a tank, valve, and piping. The shoes must be operated at the same time. Steam posted drives brake shoes against the wheel. He built a demonstration model. He took some really wealthy people on a train with the air brake to demonstrate it. A horse-drawn wagon was on the train tracks. The brakes saved the day.

Before cars, there were horse-drawn wagons. Confusion of which side of the street to travel on. People started getting run over by the 1700s. J. P. Night was born in England in 1828. He was a talented railroad traffic manager. He improved passenger trips. 1100 people were killed in traffic accidents in London in 1868. He invented the Traffic Light in 1868. It created order by making rules. Three light colors control traffic: green, red, and yellow. Computers were linked to the lights in the 1950s. They save many lives everywhere.

The folding ruler was invented in 1851. Alvin J. Fellows was born in Connecticut. A spring tape measurer was invented in England. Used for surveying, Fellows improved this measurer. He invented the tape measurer in 1868. Some heavy-duty ones were made for construction. They were lined up with demarcations. Improved models sold to Stanley in the 1920s. 

Daniel Stillson was born in New Hampshire in 1826. He developed the pipe wrench in 1869. Designed to grip pipes, Stillson sold his patent and made $800,000 in his lifetime. It helped build the Alaskan pipeline.