Bold white text reads WE ARE MAKERS against a light gray background with repeated outlines.

HISTORIC UTAH INVENTORS

From the invention of the electric guitar to the creation of synthetic diamonds and television, Utah has been home to some of the world's most innovative minds. Join us on a journey through time as we delve into the fascinating history of Utah's inventors and their groundbreaking contributions to science, technology, and beyond.

Television

Philo T. Farnsworth

Philo T. Farnsworth was born in Beaver, UT in 1906. He invented the first fully electronic television system and transmitted the first image in 1927.

There were battles over the patents for his invention, but eventually Farnsworth received the patent for the television. Farnsworth also held patents for 165 other products and devices, including an air traffic control system, a baby incubator, the gastroscope, and tubes called “fusors” that produced a nuclear fusion reaction.

Patent drawing of a hat with adjustable sunshade panels, dated December 25, 1894.

Life Preserver

Jeanette P. Brown

Artificial Heart

robert jarvik

Robert Jarvik is known for his contributions to developing the first artificial heart. He worked in Willem Kolff’s Department of Artificial Organs Department at the University of Utah, where he created his artificial heart design called the “Jarvik-7.” In 1982, his heart model was implanted into a sick man who lived for another 112 days.

Other team members had created artificial heart model designs that were implanted in animals, but Robert Jarvik experimented by adding a "multilayered diaphragm," which then became the model that received university/federal permission to be implanted in a human. His innovation was considered important to the artificial model's success.

Man driving an early model ice resurfacing machine on an indoor ice rink.

Zamboni

Frank J. Zamboni

You’ve probably heard about the zamboni - or at least seen one smoothing out an ice rink. The inventor behind this machine is Frank Zamboni, born in 1901 in Eureka, Utah.

In the 1920s, Frank and his brother Lawerence had a business that made refrigeration for dairies and ice blocks for transporting food.

In 1940, they opened an ice rink. Night after night workers had to scrape the ice and spray water on it to make it smooth again - a painstaking effort. Frank Zamboni worked on building a machine to tackle this problem, and after nine years of work, the first Zamboni ice machine was born. Ice skaters and stadiums found out about the machine and purchased them to keep their ice smooth.

Photograph By: Unknown author or not provided - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Public Domain

Man in a suit sitting and holding a cane, looking to the side against a plain background.

Electric Guitar

Alvino REy

Alvin Henry McBurney, better known as Alvino Rey, is known as the “father of the pedal steel guitar.” There were many people who worked on electrifying the guitar, but Rey was the first to amplify the pedal steel guitar.

Avin was an engineer at a young age. He built a radio when he was eight, and passed the ham operator test when he was nine, becoming the youngest Amateur Radio Operator in the U.S.

He played the banjo and the guitar and toured with several bands up until his death in 2004.

Black and white patent drawing of a wall-mounted clothes hook, patented September 2, 1890.

Clothing Hook

Rebecca M. Henshaw

Man in lab coat stands beside large, complex industrial machinery with metal components.

Synthetic Diamond

Bill pope, Tracy Hall, and Duane Horton

Bill Pope, Tracy Hall and Duane Horton, as a team of inventors, came up with a way to grow fake diamonds in a lab and ways to use them. They found out that fake diamonds were a great way to make drilling and cutting rock and metals easier and more efficient.

At age 75, Bill Pope founded another company, Diamicron, to use the diamond technology for things like diamond-coated hip joints to replace worn out hip bones.

Today the diamond-coated drill bits are being used by one of Bill's companies to drill for water for communities in Kenya where they need fresh drinking water.

Older man in a diner uniform stands and smiles; three women in uniforms are behind him.

Fry Sauce

Don Carlos Edwards

If you’re outside of Utah, you might not be able to find fry sauce so widely. But fry sauce is a Utah staple.

It all starts with Don Carlos Edwards from Logan. He started his entrepreneurial journey with a food truck on his trailer and sold food at carnivals and fairs. In 1941, Edwards moved to Salt Lake and opened Don Carlos Bar-B-Q. After a successful launch, he opened the first Arctic Circle Drive-in in 1950 with more franchises to follow. It was at a Nevada franchise that the sauce was born - made of ketchup, mayonnaise, garlic, dill pickle sauce and other ingredients.

At first Don Carlos was upset that the franchise owner was creating his own sauce, but after tasting it, he was impressed and sent it out to all the other Arctic Circle restaurants.

Man operates a control panel with a monitor displaying technical data and a wall-mounted phone.

Computer Graphics

Ivan Sutherland

Ivan Sutherland studied at the University of Utah and is the creator of the first computer graphics. In 1963, Ivan Sutherland created Sketchpad, the first program that let users draw and design on a computer. This invention dubbed Sutherland the “father of computer graphics.”

In 1968, Sutherland developed the first virtual reality head mounted display system. The most recent version of that is Google Glass. Sutherland worked with David Evans to pioneer the use of computer graphics for training commercial airline pilots and for planetarium and dome simulation systems.

Black and white photo of a man operating an old-fashioned traffic signal on a city street.

Electric Traffic Light

Lester F. Wire

The world’s first electric traffic light was invented by Lester F. Wire - a Salt Lake City police officer. Before the invention of the traffic light, officers would stand in the intersection to direct traffic, rain or shine. Lester didn’t think this was safe - so he invented the first traffic signal in 1912.

The first traffic light was installed at 200 South and Main Street. His first model was a wooden yellow box that was operated by an officer. Later he designed a metal traffic light. He never filed a patent for his work and therefore never profited from it. A replica of the original electric traffic light is on display at the UDOT Traffic Operations Center.

We hope you've been inspired by the stories of ingenuity and creativity that have shaped the Beehive State. As you continue your journey of discovery, we encourage you to delve even deeper into the rich tapestry of innovation that Utah has to offer. From the pioneers of the past to the visionaries of the future, there's always more to uncover and celebrate. Utah's history of innovation is an ongoing story, and we're excited to see how you'll contribute to it in your own way.

> Week of STEM Homepage

Resources FOR EDUCATORS

Unlock Creativity and Curiosity with These Free Lesson Plans Tied to Inventors!

Utah STEM Action Center
3848 S. West Temple
Suite 105
South Salt Lake, UT 84115

PHONE
801-535-3970

Follow us!

Facebook

Instagram

Linkedin