7. Granville T. Woods, Inventor
Granville T. Woods was such a prolific inventor that he was often referred to by his contemporaries as the “Black Edison.” He worked extensively with electricity and is credited with either inventing or at least improving the third rail in subway lines. He also developed safety and networking mechanisms for rail systems. Sadly, he had to spend all of the money he earned fighting for legal recognition of his own inventions, as his business partners routinely stole his ideas to pass of their own, knowing that judges and juries would be unlikely to believe a black man capable of such inventions.
