alexander miles
Alexander Miles was a 19th‑century African American inventor and businessman best known for improving the safety of elevators by patenting a mechanism for automatically opening and closing elevator doors in 1887.
Who Alexander Miles Was
Alexander Miles was born in Circleville, Ohio, in 1838 and spent part of his early adulthood working as a barber, including operating a barbershop in Waukesha, Wisconsin and later in Duluth, Minnesota. In Duluth he became a successful entrepreneur, opening a barbershop in the St. Louis Hotel and purchasing a real estate office, which helped establish him as a prominent Black businessman in the region.
He later moved several times with his family, including to Montgomery, Alabama, Chicago, Illinois, and Seattle, Washington, working variously as a laborer, insurance entrepreneur, and hotel barber.
His Elevator Invention and Patent
In the late 19th century, elevator doors—both on the shaft and on the car—were often opened and closed manually, and doors left open created a serious risk of people falling into shafts. After witnessing the danger firsthand while riding an elevator with his young daughter, Miles designed a system that linked a flexible belt on the elevator car to drums along the shaft so that shaft doors and cabin doors would automatically open and close at the correct floors.
Miles received U.S. Patent No. 371,207 on October 11, 1887, for this “improved method for opening and closing elevator doors,” a design that significantly improved elevator safety and convenience. His work is widely cited as an important step toward the fully automatic elevator door systems used in modern buildings.
Business Career and Later Life
Beyond inventing, Miles built a broader career as an entrepreneur and community figure. In Duluth he became the first Black member of the Duluth Chamber of Commerce, reflecting his status in local business circles. He also developed property there, including constructing a three‑story building on West Superior Street known as the “Miles Block.”
Around 1899 he moved to Chicago and founded The United Brotherhood, a life insurance company created to provide coverage to Black customers who were often denied fair treatment or coverage by white‑owned insurers. By the early 1900s he relocated to Seattle, where he continued working (including as a barber) and, by some contemporary accounts, was regarded as one of the wealthiest Black individuals in the Pacific Northwest, largely due to his invention and business ventures.
Miles died on May 7, 1918, and in 2007 he was posthumously inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in recognition of his contributions to elevator safety.
Mini “Quick Scoop” Facts
- Full name: Alexander Miles.
- Born: May 18, 1838, Circleville, Ohio.
- Known for: Patent for automatic elevator doors (U.S. 371,207, 1887).
- Occupations: Barber, inventor, real estate owner, insurance entrepreneur.
- Major business: The United Brotherhood life insurance company in Chicago, serving Black clients.
- Died: May 7, 1918.
- Honor: Inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2007.
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.