Imagine Having A Major Invention Buy Your Freedom - Benjamin Bradley
This episode delves into the compelling story of Benjamin Bradley, the man widely regarded as the original inventor of the steamboat engine. Bradley's narrative is particularly poignant, exploring the difficult choice he faced: selling his groundbreaking invention to achieve personal freedom.
Sources: https://interestingengineering.com/lists/the-a-z-list-of-black-inventors
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WEBVTT
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so what's going on it's your boy Dewan Burino
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let's get into this history this one I have to
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share Benjamin Bradley Benjamin Bradley was born
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a slave probably in 1830 and was taught to read
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and write by his master's children He would show
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a talent for invention and later devised the
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first steam engine for a ship showing a great
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natural talent for invention. His master referred
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him to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis,
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Maryland, to take up a position as an assistant
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in their Department of Natural and Experimental
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Philosophy. He was the first African -American
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to hold any non -menial post at the Naval Academy.
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It was here that. he developed his own design
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for a steam engine. Being a slave, he was not
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able to patent his invention. He did sell the
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rights to it, however, and used the money to
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buy his own freedom. So imagine, having a venture,
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being the times it was, it was the 1800s, we
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had to understand that times were very different
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at that. in that moment so you know things were
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twisted so imagine you came up with an idea and
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the money that you had to from the sale of the
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invention you had to purchase your freedom imagine
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that i'm glad i found that i ain't i never knew
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that how many y 'all knew that Let's keep digging.
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Alright? Peace.
