Presidents Day 2024

Presidents have had a lot to do with patents over the years. Presidents used to sign the patents, and George Washington signed the first patent issued by the U.S. Government on July 31, 1790:

Of course every patent nerd knows that Abraham Lincoln on May 22, 1849, Abraham Lincoln received Patent No. 6469 for a device to lift boats over shoals. He is the only president to have received a patent.

However, a number of presidents have been the subject of patents:

U.S Patent No. D41046, issued July 17, 1917, honors presidents Washington, Lincoln, and Wilson:

President Washington got another shout out a few years early, in U.S. Patent No. 537,666, which issued on April 16, 1895, on a toy bank featuring the future President and a cherry tree:

The presidents from Washington to Grant were featured in U.S. Patent No. D9138, which issued March 14, 1875, on a fan:

The presidents from Washington to Grant also shared the spotlight in U.S. Patent No. D8000 issued January 12, 1875:

On August 3, 1915, U.S. Patent No. 1148885 made the Presidents part of a patented puzzle:

The first 31 presidents made were celebrated in U.S. Patent No. 2,284,256 on a Card Game, issued May 26, 1942:

There are of course many other patents that mention one or more presidents, but those are for a future Presidents Day post.