A List of Inventions by Canadian Inventors that Changed the World
The world is a dynamic and changing place as it is driven by the needs of its inhabitants. As it has been said, Need is the Mother of Invention. As such, I have compiled a partial list of Canadian inventors whose inventions have changed our way of living on a day to day basis.
Imagine a world without zippers, McIntosh apples (that is, the edible one), basketball, green garbage bags, insulin, electric light bulbs, instant replays and hundreds of more items and processes.
We have all benefited from the creativity, ingenuity, courage, and strength of the inventors of our past, present and future who have, and will, shape the world that we live in. It is their ability to dream, to create, to forge and to carry out their passion that unites them. And we, as a society, have reaped the benefits of this.
A deep hearted “Thank you” for the inventors from around the world.
Lacrosse: The Official Canadian Summer Sport
Great ideas and great inventions:
Early Times to 1899
Date Unknown Lacrosse
First Nations People
The official Canadian game of summer
1796 McIntosh Apple
John McIntosh
An edible fruit
1833 Screw Propeller
John Patch
Ship's propeller
1838 Newsprint
Charles Fenerty
1842 Compound Steam Engine
Benjamin Franklin Tibbetts
1846 Kerosene
Doctor Abraham Gesner
1851 Andromonon
Thomas Turnbull
Three-wheeled vehicle
1854 Odometer
Samuel McKeen
1856 Potato Digger
Alexander Anderson
1857 Railway Sleeper Car
Samuel Sharp
1857 Undersea Telegraph Cable
Fredrick Newton Gisborne
1858 Air Conditioned Railway Coach
Invented by Henry Ruttan
1859 Automatic Foghorn
Robert Foulis
Steam foghorn
1862 Green Ink
Thomas Sterry Hunt
Currency ink
1869 Half-tone Engraving
Georges Edouard Desbarats and William Augustus Leggo
1869 Rotary Railroad Snowplow
J.E. Elliott
1874 Electric Light Bulb
Invented by Henry Woodward who sold his patent to Thomas Edison
1876 Automatic Machinery Lubricator
Elijah McCoy (the “Real McCoy” was coined after him)
Lubricating cup
1876 Telephone
Alexander Graham Bell
1878 Standard Time
Sir Sanford Fleming
1878 Telephone Handset
Cyril Duquet
1879 Rubber Shoe Heels
Elijah McCoy (Patent)
1882 Electric Cooking Range
Thomas Ahearn
1882 Separable Baggage Check Tags
John Mitchell Lyons
1883 Electric Streetcar
John Joseph Wright
1889 Gramophone
Alexander Graham Bell and Emile Berliner
1890 Electric Car Heater
Thomas Ahearn
1890 Bromine
Herbert Henry Dow
The process to extract bromine
1891 Basketball
James Naismith
1892 Acetylene
Thomas L. Wilson
Production process
1892 Calcium Carbide
Thomas Leopold Willson
Production process
1892 Light Bulb Leads
Reginald A. Fessenden
Nckel and iron alloy
1896 Superphosphate Fertilizer
Thomas L. Wilson
1897 Lawn Sprinkler
Elijah McCoy
More Canadian Inventors:
Then
Alexander Graham Bell and his phone
Now
Wireless Phone and Bluetooth Accessory
From 1900 to 1994
1900 Creed Telegraph System
Fredrick Creed
Pocess to convert Morse Code to text
1900 Wireless Radio
Reginald A. Fessenden
1903 Portable Film Developing System
Arthur Williams McCurdy invented in 1890 and then sold the patent to George Eastman
1904 Acetylene Buoy
Thomas L. Wilson
1904 Radio-Transmitted Voice
Reginald A. Fessenden
1907 Canada Dry Ginger Ale
John A. McLaughlin
A carbonated beverage
1908 Hydrofoil Boat
Alexander Graham Bell and Casey Baldwin
1908 Marquis Wheat
Sir Charles E. Saunders
1908 Robertson Screw
Peter L. Robertson
1909 Bowling – 5 Pin
T.E. Ryan
A sport
1910 Chocolate Nut Bar
Arthur Ganong
First nickel bar
1913 Railway Car Brake
George B. Dorey
1913 Zipper
Gideon Sundback
1915 Gas Mask
Cluny Macpherson
1915 Helium from Natural Gas
Sir John Cunningham McLennan
Process to Extract
1919 Fathometer
Reginald A. Fessenden
An early form of sonar
1922 Insulin
Fredrick Banting, J. J. Macleod, Charles Best and James Collip
Extraction and Production Process
1922 Variable Pitch Aircraft Propeller
Walter Rupert Turnbull
1925 AC Radio Tube
Edward Samuels Rogers
1925 Snowblower
Arthur Sicard
1925 Wirephoto
Edward Samuels Rogers
1927 Television System
Reginald A. Fessenden
Television system (patent)
1927 Quartz Clock
Warren Marrison
1928 Electric Organ
Morse Robb
1930 Baby Pablum
Drs. Alan Brown, Theodore Drake, Frederick Tisdall
Perfect baby cereal
1930 Road Lines
John D. Millar
1931 Plexiglas
William Chalmers
Polymerized Methyl Methacrylate
1934 Television Camera
F. C. P. Henroteau
1937 Electron Microscope
Eli Franklin Burton, Cecil Hall, James Hillier, Albert Prebus
1940 Paint Roller
Norman Breakey of Toronto
1941 Anti-Gravity Suite
Wilbur Rounding Franks
High altitude suit for jet pilots
1942 Walkie Talkie
Donald L. Hings
1945 Music Synthesizer
Hugh Le Caine
1949 Avro Jetliner
James Floyd
Commercial jetliner design (North America)
Test flight: August 10, 1949
1950 Garbage Bag
Harry Wasylyk
Green polyethylene bag
1950 Heart Pacemaker
Dr. John A. Hopps
1953 Synthetic Sucrose
Dr. Raymond Lemieux
1955 In Game Replays
George Retzlaff and CBC Hockey Night in Canada
Instant replay in sporting events
1957 Analytical Plotter
Uno Vilho Helava
3D map-making system
1957 Automatic Postal Sorter
Maurice Levy
200,000 letters per hour
1957 Poutine
Fernand Lachance
A classic culinary delight (French fries, cheese curds, gravy)
1957 Tuck-Away-Handle Beer Carton
Steve Pasjac
1958 R-Theta Navigation System
J.E.G. Wright
1958 Snowmobile
Joseph-Armand Bombardier
1959 Jolly Jumper
Olivia Poole
Baby's jumping delight
1960 Bone Marrow Compatibility Test
Barbara Bain
Process
1960 Goalie Mask
Jaques Plante
1962 Instant Mashed Potatoes
Edward A. Asselbergs
Dehydrated potato flakes
1964 Plunge and Push Bra
Louise Poirier at Wonderbra
Revolutionary bra
1965 Stereo-orthography Map Making System
T.J. Blachut and Stanley Collins
1966 Rotary Blow Molding Machine
Gustave Côté
Plastic bottle maker
1967 Agrifoam Crop Cold Protector
D. Siminovitch & J. W. Butler
1968 IMax Movie System
Grahame Ferguson, Roman Kroitor, and Robert Kerr
1970 SlickLicker
Richard Sewell
For cleaning oil spills (patent)
1971 Prosthetic Hand
Helmut Lucas
Electric prosthetic
1971 UV-degradable Plastics
Dr. James Guillet
1972 Computerized Braille
Roland Galarneau
1972 Polypump Liquid Dispenser
Harold Humphrey
1974 Safety Paint
Neil Harpham
Highly reflective paint
1974 Tone-to-Pulse Converter
Michael Cowpland
1979 Trivial Pursuit
Chris Haney and Scott Abbott
Memory and history board game
1983 Film Colourization
Wilson Markle
1984 Abdomizer
Dennis Colonello
Informercial exercise
1986 Able Walker
Norm Rolston
A walker (patent)
1986 Silicon Chip Blood Analyzer
Imants Lauks
1989 CPR Mannequin
Dianne Croteau
1991 Access Bar
Dr. Larry Wang
Fat burning bar (patent)
1994 JAVA
James Gosling
Software programming language
Beth100
Copyright 2009
More intriguing facts about Canada
- Canada: Random and Cool Canadian Facts About This Country
The topic of Canada is as broad as is the country is vast and diverse. Canada is world renowned for its friendliness, cultural diversity, peaceful nature, sprawling lands, fresh air and natural beauty. There is much to discover about this great count
For more information on individual inventors, you can check some of them out by clicking on the following links:
- Reginald Fessenden
Reginald Fessenden,inventor of radio, celebrates 100 years in December 2006, who invented radio? - Warren Marrison - Quartz Clock
An easy-to-understand introduction to quartz watches and clocks, with photos and diagrams showing what's inside and how it works. - Black History Canada - Elijah McCoy
A young black man, Elijah McCoy didn't let discrimination deter abilities. Educated in Scotland as an engineer, his lubrication devices enhanced the Industrial Revolution
More Canadian inventions can be found in these links:
- 50 great gifts Canada gave the world
Canada has given the world some of its greatest inventions. - Five Canadian Inventions
Canadian inventions and their inventors
© 2009 Beth100
Comments
Beth100 (author) from Canada on May 10, 2012:
Jyle Dupuis -- Thank you for this addition to the list. :)
Beth100 (author) from Canada on April 09, 2012:
Vinaya Ghimire -- Canadians are humble and we are a quiet lot. :) Many people believe that Graham Bell is American. You are not the only one. I hope you enjoyed discovering some great Canadian inventors!
Jyle Dupuis from Henrico, Virginia on April 09, 2012:
Don't forget the United States WWII, Korean War & Vietnam War rifle (1938-1957) "M1 Garand." Invented by John Garand a Canadian born from St-Remi, Quebec. However, he was working for the Springfield Armory when he invented it and never received any royalties or bonuses despite its success.
Vinaya Ghimire from Nepal on April 02, 2012:
I was not aware about Canadian inventors. I always thought Grahame Bell was form the US.
Thanks for sharing the information.
Beth100 (author) from Canada on February 26, 2011:
GNelson -- Happy to be a part of your learning experience. :) This is only a partial list, and hopefully, I'll be able to add to this in the near future.
Beth100 (author) from Canada on February 13, 2011:
ttt -- Not only are the great, but they have made all our lives easier. We're so lucky to have creative geniuses in our lives as they share the products of their creativity with us! Thank you.
GNelson from Florida on February 11, 2011:
Wow, quite a list. I thought edison invented the light bulb. Learn something every day, thanks.
ttt on February 10, 2011:
these inventions are great!!!!!!
Beth100 (author) from Canada on November 04, 2010:
CalgaryGuy -- I've heard of patent squatters and have heard of large corporations purchasing the patents and simply holding them, not bringing them to market until they can profit from previous inventions. I can't help but wonder how many great inventions are in the closet because of profiteering. Thanks for your eye and mind opening comment.
David Watson from Canada on October 31, 2010:
I've been through the process of patents and inventions, and it's brutal! Pretty well anything you can thing up has already been thought of and locked down by people (patent squatters). They sit on it, doing nothing and wait for somebody else to bring a product to market, then they sue them. That's how they make money and it doesn't bode well for inventors and entrepreneurs. It also stifles the progress of new and great products coming to the marketplace. What a shame, but the good news is that laws are coming to turn it all around. Pretty soon it will not be the guy who thought of the idea (and sat on a patent) who is entitled to the profits, but the person who brings the product to market.
Beth100 (author) from Canada on October 26, 2010:
h - I didn't see this comment coming!
h on October 21, 2010:
hhhhhhhhhhhhh
Beth100 (author) from Canada on October 01, 2010:
Tom -- ha ha ha I lived in Montreal for several years, but I hail from the Rockies. I'm a lifelong fan of the Habs and nothing will change my heart in that department. Hmmm...are you a relocated Canadian?? I tried to figure out where southeast of Buffalo is, but I couldn't find much on the map. :) Care to embellish this a bit?
tom hellert from home on September 28, 2010:
B300,
Oh Canada our home and native land true patriot love ....Sounds like your from quebec maybe Montreal-
I am from just South East of Buffalo but I have a not so secret secreti live in buffalo bit i am a card carrying member of THE LEAFS Nation. But I won't hold ypour potential Habfanship cloud my judgement on your interesting writing....
Beth100 (author) from Canada on September 19, 2010:
Vince - De rien. J'aime écrire sur notre pays. Je suis heureux que vous êtes venu et de lire mon article. Merci.
vince on September 18, 2010:
merci beaucoup
Beth100 (author) from Canada on June 02, 2010:
RickZ -- Thanks for checking out our inventions. I'll be sure to check out yours...maybe we can link each other. :)
Rick Zimmerman from Northeast Ohio on June 02, 2010:
Beth: interesting and seemingly exhaustive list. Good job! If you'd like to see some more cool ideas, check out my hub Inventions I'd Like to See, or just plain old Wisdom. (And don't miss The Cactoose!) Regards, RickZ
Beth100 (author) from Canada on May 07, 2010:
Mythbuster -- We, Canadians, are not only creative and inventive, we're quite humble too! There are even more great inventions in the last 50 years, but that might be for another hub. Thank you! :)
mythbuster from Utopia, Oz, You Decide on May 05, 2010:
1925 Snowblower - also, the snowmobile well, of course! *slaps forehead* Canadian winters. But Jolly Jumper...that surprised me. This is a really cool list. I hadn't known many of the medical inventions - just the Insulin stuff.
Beth100 (author) from Canada on April 06, 2010:
PDH -- Aw, thanks Maita! Can you imagine life without these inventions?!? I'm grateful for creative people who invent gadgets and such for us! Always a pleasure when you drop in Maita! Thanks! :)
Tony -- Yeah, Molson is the most important product from Canada! We rock! But, I didn't list it as "beer" is not a Canadian invention. It has been documents in ancient times in China and Egypt. Thanks for coming by Tony -- I always enjoy it when you do! :)
tony0724 from san diego calif on April 04, 2010:
Beth you forgot Molson Ale by far and away the most Important product to ever come out of Canada !
prettydarkhorse from US on April 04, 2010:
wow, great research Beth and they are all useful! Thank you, maita
Beth100 (author) from Canada on March 24, 2010:
Agvulpes -- lol I bet not! Not only missing out on the royalties, but even the acknowledgement that their forefather was the inventor! oooo, those history books need to be straighted out with respect to details. lol Thanks for the comment - has me wondering and smiling too! :)
Peter from Australia on March 22, 2010:
Beth100, I bet the descendants of Henry Woodward are not too happy now ? I would love to know how much in royalties have been paid out for the light bulb.
A great list of Canadian Inventors :-)
Beth100 (author) from Canada on January 31, 2010:
Low Power Microscope -- Thank you for leaving your positive feedback.
Mtsi -- The "invention" of hockey as being solely Canadian is in question, thus I omitted it from the list. Undoubtedly, it is the sport of Canadians and associated with Canada. Thank you for mentioning it, as I am sure many have wondered why it was not listed.
mtsi1098 on January 31, 2010:
even though you left out ice hockey this was very interesting and I enjoyed the many contributions Canadians have made...thanks
Low Power Microscope on December 25, 2009:
Always a pleasure to come across some work that is useful, thankyou for the information keep the good stuff pouring in
Beth100 (author) from Canada on September 01, 2009:
Lgali - Knowledge and education -- two wonderful swords to live by! Thanks for visiting!
Lgali on September 01, 2009:
very nice list thanks for sharing
Sarah, Jordan, and Bradley on August 01, 2009:
That was very interesting, and we didn't know that some of the stuff was invented in canada.
Good Job!!!!
Beth100 (author) from Canada on July 31, 2009:
Thank you, Euro-pen. I learned a lot myself...lol
BC, thanks! You have a nice weekend too and I'll check in this afternoon!
BadCo on July 31, 2009:
Yet another great hub moi friend, didnt log in because I dont want it showing in my hubtivity, enjoy yer weekend Beth ; )
euro-pen from Europe on July 31, 2009:
Very interesting list. I have to admit that I did not associate most of these inventions with Canada. Thank you for teaching me the importance of Canada for so many useful inventions which are everywhere in our daily life since decades now.
