Thomas Jennings
Thomas L. Jennings (1791-1859) invented “dry scouring” in the early 19th century, a method for cleaning clothes that was a precursor to modern dry cleaning.
Jennings was born to a free Black family in New York City, where he apprenticed as a tailor and then operated his own business. His idea for dry scouring came from experimenting with cleaning techniques until he discovered a way to clean clothes without the damage caused by water soaking.
His patent for dry scouring in 1821 is considered the first patent granted to a Black inventor in the U.S. Unfortunately, the scouring method was one of the “X-patents,” a group of the earliest patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that were lost in a fire while in temporary storage at a hotel.
Jennings used some of his earnings from the invention to fund the abolitionist movement. Through his successful business, he also bought the freedom of his wife, founded the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, and supported the Freedom Journal, the first Black-owned newspaper in the U.S.
