The Man Who Invented Dry Cleaning

As we begin Black History Month, we celebrate Thomas Jennings, the first African-American to receive a US patent for his invention of the ‘dry scouring’ process which trail-blazed the way for modern day dry cleaning methods.

From the National Inventors Hall of Fame:

Jennings, a skilled tailor and successful businessman in New York City, was disappointed in conventional methods of cleaning, so he experimented until he found a successful method that did not harm clothes. In 1820, he applied for a patent and it was granted in 1821. Under the Patent Act of 1793, an individual had to sign an oath declaring that he was a citizen of the United States. Jennings, being a freeman, was a citizen and so was awarded the patent.

With the success of his business and patent, he became a leader in the abolitionist and civil rights movement in New York City. He was a founder and trustee of the Abyssinian Baptist Church, assistant secretary for the First Annual Convention of the People of Color in Philadelphia in 1831, and helped organize the Legal Rights Association in 1855, raising challenges to discrimination, and funding and organizing legal defenses for court cases.

When Jennings died, Frederick Douglass wrote about his death. He noted the importance of the patent Jennings received and that the patent recognized him as a "citizen of the United States," a designation at the time that shocked many.

Thank you Thomas Jennings for your major contributions to the dry cleaning profession, and our society!