P b downing mailbox images on metal

Every day, we use our mailbox, checking it for packages and letters and bills. You look at it every single day but did you know a black man invented it? Thanks to Phillip L. Downing (some sources and memes say Paul but so far I have only been able to verify that his name was Phillip), you don‘t have to travel to the post office every day. You can just walk a few steps from your home. But Downing didn&#;t call it a mailbox. He called it a Street Letter Box.

Downing was born in Providence, Rhode Island on March 22, His father, George T. Downing was an abolitionist and business owner. His grandfather, Thomas Downing, was born to emancipated parents in Virginia and also had a successful business in the financial district of Manhattan in Thomas Downing also helped to found the United Anti-Slavery Societies of New York City.

Coming from a family of business owners, it‘s no surprise that Phillip would become an inventor. During the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century, Downing successfully filed five patents with the United States Patent Office. Among his most significant inventions were a street letterbox (U.S. Patent numbers , and ,) and a mechanical device for operating a street railway switches (U.S. Patent number ,), which he invented before the predecessor of today‘s mailbox. On June 17, , the U.S. Patent Office approved Downing’s application for “new and useful Improvements in Street-Railway Switches.&#; His invention allowed the switches to be opened or closed by using a brass arm next to the brake handle on the platform of the car. Then, on October 27, , his two patents for a street letter box also gained approval.

Downing&#;s design resembled old school mailboxes (see image). A tall metal box with a secure, hinged door to drop letters. Until this point, people wanting to send mail had to travel to the nearest post office. This is how the enslaved &#;heard it through the grapevine,“ communication started on slave plantations where info

Born in Providence, Rhode Island on March 22, , Philip Downing would go on to live a life of creation.

The son of well-known abolitionist and business owner George T. Downing and Serena L. deGrasse, Philip Bell Downing grew up around influential leaders from birth.

His grandfather, Thomas Downing, had been born to emancipated parents in Virginia. A successful businessman, Thomas Downing played an important role in founding the United Anti-Slavery Society of the City of New York in the mids. And Phillip was there the whole time soaking up game.

Black creativity is in everything.

One of six children, Philip Downing spent his childhood in several cities. Like all great inventors, he discovered a need and filled it.

Back then, anyone interested in mailing a letter would have to make the long trip to the post office. Philip Downing designed a metal box with four legs, which he patented on October 27, What’s known today as a mailbox, he named a “street letter box” at the time.

Until this point, those wishing to send mail usually had to travel to the post office. Downing’s invention would instead allow for nearby drop-offs and pick-ups for both letter carriers and mailers.

It included a feature that kept bad weather, such as rain and snow, from damaging the mail. It also included a safety feature that made the mail secure until it was picked up by postal employees.

During the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century, Philip Downing successfully filed at least five patents with the United States Patent Office, but none were more widely used than the mailbox.

Philip Downing deserves his own stamp.

More than twenty-five years later, on January 26, , Downing would receive another patent (U.S. Patent number ,), for an envelope moistener. It utilized a roller and a small, attached water tank, to quickly moisten envelopes.

Philip Downing died in Boston on June 8, He was

During the late nineteenth and the early twentieth century, Philip Bell Downing successfully filed at least five patents with the United States Patent Office. Among his most significant inventions were a street letter box (U.S. Patent numbers , and ,) and a mechanical device for operating street railway switches (U.S. Patent number ,). Downing also enjoyed a long career as a clerk with the Custom House in Boston, Massachusetts, retiring in after more than thirty years of service.

Born in Providence, Rhode Island on March 22, , Downing came from a prominent background. His father, George T. Downing, was a well-known abolitionist and business owner, while his mother, Serena L. deGrasse, had family roots in New York City, New York dating back to the mids. Philip Downing’s grandfather, Thomas Downing, had been born to emancipated parents in Virginia. He also had success in business, establishing Downing’s Oyster House in the financial district of Manhattan in It quickly became one of the city’s best-known dining and catering establishments. In addition, Thomas Downing played an important role in founding the United Anti-Slavery Society of the City of New York in the mids.

One of six children, Philip Downing spent his childhood in Providence and Newport, Rhode Island, as well as in Washington, D.C., where his father was manager of the U.S. House of Representatives’ dining room. Census records indicate that Downing moved to Boston around Shortly thereafter, he married Evangeline Howard, and had two children, Antonia Downing and Philip Downing, Jr.

On June 17, , the U.S. Patent Office approved Downing’s application for “new and useful Improvements in Street-Railway Switches.” His invention allowed the switches to be opened or closed by using a brass arm located next to the brake handle on the platform of the car. It also allowed the switches to be changed automatically in some cases.

A little over a year later, on October 27, , his two patents for a street letter bo