History's Best Selling Tech of 1906

Extra! Extra! Step right up to inspect the definitive collection of first-rate tech releases from 1906. Discover the genuine articles of American ingenuity that captured the public's fancy and won nationwide acclaim during this historic era.

1. Willis Carrier's Air Conditioner

   Released in 1906 by Willis Carrier

   On January 2, 1906, the world was quietly changed forever with the granting of U.S. Patent No. 808,897 to a young engineer named Willis Haviland Carrier. This patent, for an "Apparatus for Treating Air," was the first to protect the design of a modern air conditioning system capable of controlling both temperature and humidity. While Carrier had developed the initial concept in 1902 to solve a problem at a printing plant, this date marks the official legal recognition and protection of his invention. It was the crucial step that allowed for the commercialization and eventual widespread adoption of a technology that would redefine industry, architecture, and human comfort, particularly in the planet's warmer climates.