At the risk of using a ‘groan-able’ pun Straton Electrical says that this list of famous North American Electricians of colour may shock you into reality:
There are several notable African American electricians and inventors who made significant contributions to the field:
Granville T. Woods (1856 – 1910) was a prolific African American inventor known as the “Black Edison” who held over 60 patents, many related to electricity and transportation. Some of his key inventions included an improved telephone transmitter, a system for trains to communicate with each other, and the “troller” which was an early precursor to the modern trolley system. He faced discrimination throughout his career but was hailed as the “greatest electrician in the world” for his impactful innovations. Granville T. Woods was born in 1856 in Columbus, Ohio to free African American parents. He received little formal education as a child, but was self-taught and developed expertise in electrical and mechanical engineering through hands-on work experience. Woods held over 50 patents in his lifetime, making him one of the most prolific African American inventors after the Civil War. His most important invention was the “Synchronous Multiplex Railway Telegraph” in 1887, which allowed communication between moving trains and train depots, improving railway safety and efficiency. Other notable inventions by Woods included an improved telephone transmitter, a “troller” device for electric streetcars, and improvements to air brake systems. He competed with Thomas Edison at times, even defeating Edison in a lawsuit over the multiplex telegraph patent. Woods established his own company, the Woods Electric Co., and moved his operations to New York City in 1892 where he continued to innovate. He was known as the “Black Edison” for his technical prowess and ingenuity. Granville T. Woods died in 1910 in New York City at the age of 54. He left behind a legacy as one of the most accomplished African American inventors and engineers of his era, making important contributions to the development of electrical and transportation technologies.
Charles Vernon Stewart (1910 – 2006) was the first African American admitted to and graduated from the Greer College trade school for electricians in the early 1900s. He helped establish the Taylor Electric Company and was a pioneer in paving the way for African Americans to enter the electrical trade field, which was previously reserved only for white workers. Born in 1910 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Stewart was raised in Omaha, Nebraska and Chicago, Illinois. Despite the electrical trade being widely considered a “white man’s job” at the time, Stewart’s stepfather Sam Taylor helped educate him and other Black individuals in electrical work through an underground self-education movement. In 1922, Stewart became the first African American admitted to Greer College, a trade school for electricians, and five years later he became the first Black graduate of the school. Stewart faced significant discrimination, as Black electricians in Illinois were not allowed to join the local union and often had their work sabotaged by competing white electricians. In response, Stewart organized a group of Black electricians and successfully appealed to the government to grant them a charter, which gave them legal rights to practice as electricians and protected them from vandalism. In 1934, Stewart and his stepfather were among the first three percent of Black electricians to join the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 134 after Congress forced the local union to desegregate. Stewart went on to become a successful business owner, operating the Taylor Electric Company that he had helped establish with his stepfather
Alexander Miles (1838 – 1918) was an African American inventor who patented an electric mechanism to improve the safety and efficiency of elevator doors in 1887. His invention helped make elevators safer and more reliable. He was granted U.S. patent 371,207 for this innovation on October 11, 1887. Miles was born on May 18, 1838 in Circleville, Ohio to Michael and Mary Miles. He moved to Waukesha, Wisconsin in his early adulthood and worked as a barber throughout the 1860s. In 1870, while living in Winona, Minnesota, he met his future wife Candace J. Dunlap from New York City. After the birth of their daughter Grace, the family moved to Duluth, Minnesota where Miles opened a successful barbershop in the St. Louis Hotel. He became the first Black member of the Duluth Chamber of Commerce and built a three-story brownstone building known as the “Miles Block”. It was during elevator rides in his own buildings that Miles witnessed the dangers of manually operated elevator shaft doors. He designed a flexible belt attached to the elevator cage that touched drums positioned along the shaft, allowing the doors to automatically open and close at each floor through a system of levers and rollers. This invention greatly improved the safety and efficiency of elevators. In 1899, Miles moved to Chicago and founded The United Brotherhood, a life insurance company for Black customers. He later relocated to Seattle, Washington where he worked as a barber in a hotel. Miles died on May 7, 1918 and was considered the wealthiest Black person in the Pacific Northwest area, largely due to income from his elevator door patent. He was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2007.
Cornelius Coffey (1903-1994) Cornelius Coffey was the first Black American to establish an aeronautical school in the United States. He was also the first African American to have an aerial navigation intersection named after him by the FAA. Born in 1903 in Newport, Arkansas, Coffey’s interest in aviation was sparked by a barnstormer’s airplane ride when he was 13 years old. In 1925, Coffey moved to Chicago and studied auto mechanics. He met John C. Robinson, and together they attempted to enroll in pilot training programs, but were denied due to racial discrimination. Undeterred, Coffey and Robinson built their own airplane powered by a motorcycle engine and taught themselves to fly. Coffey and Robinson sued the Curtiss-Wright School of Aeronautics in 1929 for racial discrimination and were eventually admitted to the aviation mechanics training course. In 1931, Coffey became the first African American certified aircraft mechanic in the U.S. and the first to hold both a pilot’s and mechanic’s license. In 1938, Coffey established the Coffey School of Aeronautics at Harlem Airport in Oaklawn, Illinois, the first black-owned and certified flight school in the country. Many of the original Tuskegee Airmen received their initial training at Coffey’s school. Coffey employed qualified pilots like Clyde Hampton and his wife, Willa Brown, who was the first African American woman to earn a pilot’s license in the U.S. Coffey was a recipient of the Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award from the FAA and had an aerial navigation intersection named after him in 1980, known as the “Coffey Fix”. He designed a carburetor heater that prevented icing and allowed airplanes to fly in all weather conditions. Coffey continued flying until he was 89 years old and died in 1994 in Chicago at the age of 91. His pioneering efforts helped integrate African Americans into the aviation industry and expand opportunities for minorities in flight.
Walter Braithwaite, born in Jamaica, revolutionized engineering at Boeing by developing computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) systems. His mother Ivy Braithwaite was a beautician, seamstress, and embroiderer, while his father Ivanhoe Braithwaite worked as a laborer and salesman. Braithwaite decided at a young age to pursue engineering. He took a correspondence course in Diesel Engineering and apprenticed in a maritime machine shop. After his family moved to England during his teenage years, Braithwaite attended Hackney Technical College in London, earning a certificate in Mechanical Engineering. He later moved to Chicago to complete his Diesel Engineering training. Braithwaite received a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering from the American Institute of Engineering and Technology in 1965. While working at Boeing, he earned a Master of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Washington in 1975 and a Master’s degree in Business Management from MIT as a Boeing Sloan Fellow in 1981. After beginning a Ph.D. at the University of Washington, he completed his doctorate in Technology and Business Processes at Rushmore University. Braithwaite joined Boeing in 1966 as an associate tool engineer. By 1975, he was the senior engineer responsible for developing Boeing’s use of CAD/CAM technology in the design of commercial airplanes. He played a critical role in creating the Initial Graphics Exchange Specification (IGES), enabling data exchange between different CAD/CAM systems. Over his 37-year career at Boeing, Braithwaite held various leadership positions, including Vice President of Information Systems and Architecture, Vice President of Information Systems for the Commercial Airplane Group, and President of Boeing Africa. He was known as a quiet, knowledgeable, and wise leader who created a mentoring program at Boeing. Braithwaite has received numerous honors, including the Joseph Marie Jacquard Memorial Award, Black Engineer of the Year, History Makers Award in Science and Technology, an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of the West Indies, and the Pathfinder Award from the Museum of Flight. The Walt W. Braithwaite Legacy Award is named in his honor. Braithwaite is married to Rita Braithwaite, and they have three daughters. He has volunteered with the YMCA Black Achievers Program and is a member of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity.
Howard P. Grant became the first Black graduate of the University of California Berkeley College of Engineering and the first Black engineer for the city and county of San Francisco. He also founded the Northern California Council of Black Professional Engineers. Grant was born in 1925 in Houston, Texas and later moved to Los Angeles as a child. After serving in the U.S. Air Force, he enrolled at the University of California, Berkeley and in 1948 became the first African American to graduate from the university’s College of Engineering with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering. That same year, Grant became the first African American member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). He then went on to become the first African American civil engineer hired by the City and County of San Francisco, working in the Water Department until 1984. Grant was also the second African American civil engineer to be licensed by the State of California. Throughout his career, he held leadership positions such as President and Treasurer of the California Society of Professional Engineers. Beyond his professional accomplishments, Grant was a dedicated mentor and advocate for increasing diversity in engineering. In 1970, at the request of his colleague Frederick E. Jordan, Grant hosted the first meeting of the Northern California Council of Black Professional Engineers (NCCBPE) at his home. This organization, which Grant served as President from 1970-1973, was dedicated to advancing the careers of African American engineers and inspiring youth to pursue engineering. Grant also served on the boards of other organizations focused on education and community development, including the Engineering Societies Committee for Manpower Training, Big Brothers, Hunter’s Point Boy’s Club, and the San Francisco Urban League Scholarship Committee. He was widely recognized as an inspiration and mentor to minorities in engineering throughout California and the country. Howard P. Grant’s pioneering achievements and tireless efforts to support the next generation of African American engineers have cemented his legacy as a trailblazer and champion for diversity in the field.
These electricians and inventors made groundbreaking contributions that advanced electrical and transportation technologies in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, despite facing significant racial discrimination at the time. Their innovations and pioneering work paved the way for greater diversity and inclusion in the electrical trades.
Video: Famous Electricians of Colour
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