The Enslaved Inventor Who Changed Cotton — And Had His Idea Stolen

Black history facts you didn’t learn in school.

📅 In 1857, an enslaved man named Ned invented a new kind of cotton scraper — a tool that made plantation work faster and easier.

But enslaved people weren’t allowed to own patents. His master, Oscar Stewart, tried to patent Ned’s invention under his own name. The patent office denied him — because Stewart wasn’t the inventor.

That didn’t stop him. Stewart sold the cotton scraper anyway, profiting off an idea that wasn’t his.

💔 The twisted part? His ads bragged the tool was the invention of a “Negro slave.” He used Ned’s genius not to uplift him, but to argue that slavery was “good” for Black people — a system that supposedly “guided” their talents.

Ned’s name is nearly lost to history. But his story proves the truth: even in chains, Black creativity thrived. It was exploitation — not lack of brilliance — that kept it hidden.

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