Profile America — Tuesday, July 31, 1790, Vermonter granted first US patent

Profile America — Tuesday, July 31st. The US Patent Office opened for business on this date in 1790, established to protect the work of young America's inventors. The first patent granted was to Samuel Hopkins of Vermont, for a new method of making fertilizer. The office has been busy ever since. 

Annually, more than 244,000 patents are granted. The Patent and Trademark Office also is a partner in the National Inventors Hall of Fame in Alexandria, Virginia. Among those inducted last year were Bob Silver and Joe Woodland, who invented the optically scanned bar code. Individuals receive 6 percent of patents — the remainder are granted to US and foreign corporations, with slightly more granted to foreign companies. You can find more facts about America from the US Census Bureau, online at www.census.gov.

Profile America is produced by the Center for New Media and Promotions of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look for "Multimedia Gallery" by the "Newsroom" button).

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau. Chase's Calendar of Events 2012, p. 290
www.invent.org/2011induction/1_3_11_induction_woodland.asp 
Statistical Abstract of the United States 2012, t. 778