Voices of the Past

Historical Romance Author

Paper Bag Queen: A Female Edison
Friday, April 1, 2022 by eMarie

Margaret E. Knight didn’t start life with a silver spoon in her mouth. In fact, things went from bad to worse, and her story almost didn’t have a happy ending. Ah, but Providence had a way of allowing Margaret’s hard work, tenacity, and wonderful inventions to shine.

Born in Maine on February 14, 1838, Mattie, as some called her, never played with dolls but instead preferred tools and blocks of wood. After the death of her father, she, her mother, and two brothers relocated to New Hampshire. To help support the family, Mattie left school and began work in a cotton mill at age 12.

When she witnessed a co-worker’s severe accident due to equipment failure, Mattie invented a device ensuring its safe operation. Unfortunately, she never patented this safety measure and left the mill due to health issues shortly thereafter.

It’s said that if neighboring boys had problems with their gadgets, they sought help from Mattie. Her mill invention may be one of the reasons.

Mattie received her first patent for a “pneumatic paper-feeder.” She had moved to Springfield, MA three years earlier and worked for Columbia Paper Bag Company. Paper bags that could stand on flat bottoms were handmade and expensive. Mattie built a wooden prototype that cut, folded, and glued brown paper into the shopping bags we’re familiar with today.

To request a patent, however, she needed an iron machine. Charles Annan visited the shop constructing Mattie’s paper bag machine. Imagine Mattie’s surprise when she applied for a patent but instead had to file a patent interference lawsuit. Whether true or not, some records document that Charles contended that Mattie, a woman, wouldn’t have a clue how to make such a machine.

Mattie didn’t shrink from the fight. But their day in court, which cost Mattie about $100.00 per day for 16 days, proved Charles wrong. Not only did she have multiple witnesses testifying to her work, her blueprints, journals, and models detailed her remarkable invention.

Accounts vary, but at the end of her 76 years of life, Mattie had amassed an estate worth approximately $275.00. Paltry in comparison to the approximately 30 patents she’d acquired. These exclude her many unpatented inventions. Though she had received little formal education, her superior intellect earned her many accolades—one which dubbed her “woman Edison.”

In 2006, Margaret E. Knight was inducted into the National Inventor Hall of Fame. A small-scale version of the machine that earned her bag-making patent sits in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C.

If you’ve ever the notion to give up or walk away from a righteous fight, pick up a paper bag and think about what it cost Mattie. Then quash the naysayers. Work hard, stay in the fight, and do the impossible.

Info Sources:
women-inventors.com
invent.org

eMarie is a follower of Jesus Christ. Married for forty years, she enjoys four wonderful children, three outlaws, and four precious grandchildren. She worked in the medical field for over twenty-five years. After completing her B.S.H.S., she became a health educator and received international credentials in childbirth education (I.C.E.A.) and lactation consulting (I.B.C.L.C.). She’s served as a women’s Bible study leader, participates in local and online writers groups and a book club.

More encouraging blogs like this one are posted each Friday at https://www.merryheartink.com. She enjoys chatting with her Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram friends and keeps chickens.

eMarie is the winner of several writing awards including 1^st place in the ACFW 2020 First Impressions; 2st place, 2020 ICAN; 1st place, 2020 ACFW Virginia Crown Award; 1^st place, 2019 ICAN; 2019 ACFW Genesis Finalist; 1st place, 2018 OHCWC Blue Seal Award winner (tie); 2nd place, 2018 Georgia Peach.

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