Gail Borden and his Inventions
Gail Borden - A biography
published in
1866 from A History of American Manufactures from 1608 to 1860...
Borden's meat biscuit
was his first invention,
which preserved meat extracts and drew much praise in several articles
in the Scientific
American periodical.
Borden's meat biscuit patent was
titled
"Preparation of Portable Soup-Bread," issued as U.S. Patent No. 7,066
on 5 Feb 1850.
Military use of the meat biscuit
was also recognized
as highly suitable for meal rations, and was favorably compared in the Scientific American
periodical against the difficulties experienced by other countries
having to preserve meats for their military needs.
Awards were presented
for Borden's meat biscuit at exhibitions both home and abroad. In
England, at the London Great Exhibition, first class medals recognized
Borden's invention, in the company of other American winners
such as
C.H. McCormick for his "Virginia Reaper,” and Charles
Goodyear
for his “India Rubber
Fabrics.”
Borden's condensed milk
was his next great invention,
which launched his very successful diary company supplying his Eagle
brand milk to cities distant from farm supply, and was also recorded in
several Scientific
American articles.
The condensed milk patent gives
Borden's description
of his method in U.S. Patent No. 15,553 issued 19 Aug 1856 - the first
effective commercial process in the U.S. for condensing and
preserving milk.
Borden's fruit juice concentrating
patent shows his continuing interest
in preserving more types of food detailed in U.S. Patent 35,919, issued
22 July 1862, titled "Improvement in Concentrating and Preserving For
Use Cider and Other Juices of Fruits."
Competitors joined
the market as shown
in this Manufacturer
and Builder article from 1878.
A quotation - the epitaph
from Gail Borden's gravestone.
