1856-1910

American engineer and inventor who received approximately sixty patents. Considered the most prolific nineteenth-century African American inventor, Woods innovated and improved transportation and communication technology. Most of Woods's inventions were railroad related. His telegraph system relayed messages between moving trains as well as stations to prevent collisions. He also patented an egg incubator, telephone transmitter, and electric car. He later established the Woods Electric Company, selling such inventions as automatic air brakes to George Westinghouse.