Garrett Augustus Morgan (Paris, Kentucky 1877 – Cleveland 1963) self-taught American inventor and social leader against racism. In 1916 he used his improved gas mask design to save victims trapped by an explosion in the Lake Erie tunnel, including his brother Frank. This act of heroism was ignored by the newspapers and authorities. He received numerous requests for his mask from firefighters across the country, but when it was discovered from photographs of the rescue that he was African-American, several assignments from the South were cancelled. After attending a major traffic accident he invented the traffic light and patented it. He worked in social organizations and founded the Cleveland Call & Post Newspaper.
