Day 3: Henry Blair - Seed Man

In 1807....

Thomas Jefferson was president -

Aaron Burr was accused, indicted, and then acquitted of treason -

The Clermont, Robert Fulton's first American steamboat, left New York City for Albany, New York inaugurating the first commercial steamboat service in the world - 

The Cotton Planter

America enacted the Embargo Act of 1807 because France and the UK were getting frisky with American citizens and goods on the high seas during the Napoleonic War -

Henry Blair was born in Glen Ross, MD.

As with many black inventors in the early 1800's, we know very little about his personal life. I suspect this is partly because he was illiterate and could leave no personal record.

What we do know is that he farmed his own land. He created two farm implements.

The Seed Planter was patented in 1834.

This resembled a wheelbarrow. The seed was in the container. As you pushed the contraption the seed would be released and then covered with soil.


The Cotton Planter was patented in 1836.
It was meant to be pulled by draft horses. Two shovel-like blades split the ground. The seeds were sown behind the shovels.

His devices were meant to make the back-breaking labor of farming a bit easier.


There is nothing in any source that I could find that suggested he was enslaved at any point in his life. He is always described as a free man who worked his own lands. 

I have seen some references that suggested he was a successful farmer, but I haven't been able to find enough information to substantiate this claim.

We know he was illiterate because he signed his patents with an "X".

He does have one special claim to fame.

He was the second African American in the United States to file and receive a patent.

A corn planter still in use

So, here is to Henry Blair! A man who was part of the legacy of farming in America...and Zambia! The corn planter in this picture is still in use in Zambia.

That is indeed a living legacy!

Celebrate Black History