Inventor, born in Dutch Guiana. The child of a black mother and white father, he emigrated to the USA c.1872. Although uneducated, he invented a shoe-making machine (1891) and shoe-nailing machine (1896) which revolutionized the shoe industry. His inventions formed the basis of the United Shoe Machinery Corporation.
Jan was not very social in this new world. Jan was eventually recommended by his employer to head on over to Lynn, Massachusetts, the shoe making capital. He had previous experience with the shoe stitching machine. But back when Jan was working, shoes had to be made separately part by part. Lasting had to be done by hand, in which the shoe is placed on a wooden model foot and hand sewn together. The complicated movement and positions used by lasters made it difficult to imitate by machine. The whole shoe making industry relied on the lasters and very few let the technique out.
Jan however, was very curious about how a machine would be able to imitate a laster’s hand motion. He was not at all pleased about how lasters bullied the shoe making companies and made the entire industry rely on them. Many workers ran out of work because the lasters were holding up the assembly line. Jan accepted the challenge and decided to get to work on a working “Lasting Machine”.
Jan didn’t have much materials, or the money needed to make models. Any suspicion might lead to sabotage and ridicule to what would have revolutionized the shoe making industry. His employer was impressed with Jan’s skill with the machines that he promoted him to a technical supervisor, giving him free reign over all parts of the factory to inspect machinery. This gave Jan the chance he needed to learn and draw all the positions and motions that lasters used to make shoes. Jan used his knowledge and what he learned from the lasters to try to envision a machine that could imitate all possible hand motions and positions to last a shoe. Matzeliger was in need of money and real material to further improve his model to working state, but he declined the offer and knew that at least people were interested now. He gave in to two business men who gave him in return for two-thirds of any profit the machine would make.
With his new business partners, Jan was able to make more models of his invention and eventually filed for a patent. His patent contained 7 explanatory drawings and 8 more pages of directions to work, maintain and use the machine. He eventually made the patent board, after demonstrating to the entire council how the machine worked before he was actually granted the patent.
The Lasting machine
Matzeliger’s ‘lasting machine’ could produce as much as 700 pairs of shoes a day, compared to the human lasters who maxed around 50 pairs a day, the machines easily replaced lasters. Demand for the machine was high, and even backed by the two business men, the demand was too much to keep up with. There was not enough money and material to mass produce Matzeliger’s machine. Matzeliger decided to sell his patent out to a larger company who created the Shoe Making Trust, for a large block of stock in the new consolidated company. He left his share of the Lasting Machines Consolidated to the North Congregational Church who had originally shunned him because he was black and Dutch. This share of stock eventually helped save the church from a huge debt, and they dedicated the church to Jan Ernst Matzeliger, and his contribution to the church.
Jan’s invention itself has revolutionized the shoe making industry by removing the stress and burden of the lasters who slowed down the assembly of shoes. With Matzeliger’s machine, thousands of shoes were made daily compared to the mere hundreds. Shoes were now available to everyone and no longer sold for high prices due to supply and demand. Shoes were literally now available for everyone to buy. If it weren’t for Jan Ernst Matzeliger, shoes all over the world could be sold for easily 400 a pair.
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