Garrett A. Morgan

1877 ~ 1963

Gas Mask and Traffic Signals

Kentucky born, Garrett Morgan received wide recognition for his outstanding contributions to public safety.  Firemen in many cities in the early 1900's wore the safety helmet and gas mask that he invented, and for which he was awarded a gold medal at the Second International Exposition of Safety and Sanitation in New York in 1914.  Two years later, he himself used the mask to rescue men trapped by a gas explosion in a tunnel being constructed under Lake Erie.  Following the disaster which took 21 lives, the City of Cleveland honored him with a gold medal for his heroic efforts.

In 1923, Morgan received a patent for his new concept, a traffic signal to regulate vehicle movement in city areas.  "Stop" and "Go" signs were systematically raised and lowered at intersections to bring order out of chaos and improve traffic safety.  Some years later, after he had sold his design to General Electric Company, Morgan's device was replaced with the light signal in use today.