Marvin Stone
Marvin Stone | |
|---|---|
 Stone during the Civil War | |
| Born | Marvin Chester Stone April 4, 1842 Portage County, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | May 17, 1899 (aged 57) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
Resting place | Green Mount Cemetery, Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Occupation | Inventor |
| Spouse | Jane "Jennie" Platt |
Marvin Chester Stone (April 4, 1842 – May 17, 1899)[1] was an American inventor. He is best known for inventing the modern drinking straw.
Early life
[edit]Stone was born in Portage County, Ohio, in 1842. The son of an inventor, Stone made many useful articles in his boyhood. He was a graduate of Oberlin College, although his course of study was interrupted by his service in the Civil War.[2] During the Civil War, Stone served in the 7th Ohio Regiment.[3] He was injured in the Battle of Lookout Mountain, and sent to Washington D.C. on special duty with the Veteran Reserve Corps.[3]
After college, Stone began a theological course, but abandoned it to go to Washington, D.C. where he was employed as a newspaper correspondent for several years.[2]
Career
[edit]
Stone began his career as an inventor by creating a machine to make paper cigarette holders. Stone secured a contract with the W. Duke Sons & Co. and opened a factory in Washington, D.C.[4] to produce cigarette holders for the company's Cameo brand of cigarettes.[5]
Later, Stone developed the modern drinking straw.[2] Prior to Stone's invention, people used natural rye grass straws, which imparted an undesirable grassy flavor in beverages.[6] To combat the problem, Stone made the first drinking straw prototypes by spiraling a strip of paper around a pencil and gluing it at the ends.[7] Next he experimented with paraffin wax-coated manila paper, so that the straw would not get soggy when used. Stone's straws were 8 ½ inches long[8] and had a diameter just wide enough to prevent things like fruit pips from getting lodged in the tube.[9]
Stone received the patent of the "artificial straw" on January 3, 1888. It was made out of paper.[9][10][11][12][13][14][15] By 1890, Stone's factory was producing more drinking straws than cigarette holders.[7]
Stone invented a number of other items during his career, including a kind of fountain pen[3] and an umbrella.[16]
Personal life
[edit]Stone was married to Jane "Jennie" Platt.
Later life and death
[edit]Stone used the newfound wealth from his straw business for a variety of philanthropic causes.[9] He furnished lodging for his female employees, including a large library, music room, meeting room, and dancing floor.[2] In addition, he and several others built two blocks of tenement houses for African American residents of Washington, D.C.[9]
Stone died at his home on Columbia Road in Washington, D.C., on May 17, 1899, after a long illness. He was buried in Green Mount Cemetery.[2][17]
References
[edit]- ↑ Wilson, Lawrence (1907). Itinerary of the Seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry, 1861-1864: With Roster, Portraits and Biographies. New York and Washington: Neale Publishing Company. pp. 440–441.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Obituary, Marvin Chester Stone". Home Furnishing Review, Volume 15. 1899: 323.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - 1 2 3 "Death of Marvin C. Stone". Evening Star. Washington, D.C. May 18, 1899. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
- ↑ "Untitled Article". Washington, D.C.: National Republican. September 11, 1886. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
- ↑ "A Cigarette Holder Factory". The Weekly Sentinel (Winston-Salem, N.C.). October 21, 1886. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
- ↑ Thompson, Derek (November 22, 2011). "The Amazing History and the Strange Invention of the Bendy Straw". The Atlantic.
- 1 2 Broda-Bahm, Chris. "The Straight Truth About the Flexible Drinking Straw". Smithsonian Museum of American History, Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation.
{{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires|magazine=(help) - ↑ Madrigal, Alexis (June 21, 2018). "Disposable America". The Atlantic.
- 1 2 3 4 Bisset, Colin (September 30, 2013). "How the drinking straw created a fairer America". Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
- ↑ "1888 Heavy-Duty Paper Drinking Straws (Pack of 24)". Archived from the original on August 10, 2021. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
- ↑ "History – StoneStraw". Archived from the original on December 6, 2021. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
- ↑ "A History of Paper Straws".
- ↑ John Kelly (November 4, 2018) [2018-11-03]. "Good to the last drop: The drinking straw was invented in Washington". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.[please check these dates]
- ↑ "A Brief History of the Straw". October 23, 2014.
- ↑ "What Once Was Washington DC, Center of Manufacturing". TheInTowner. July 18, 2015. Archived from the original on October 10, 2023. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
- ↑ "Patents Issued". Washington, D.C.: Evening Star. January 1, 1884. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
- ↑ "Marvin C. Stone". The Baltimore Sun. May 19, 1899. p. 7. Retrieved February 22, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Marvin Stone at Wikimedia Commons
