Scientists, Inventors, & Physicians

The asterisk (*) symbol next to a name means that the individual was not born in Kentucky.

John Colgan (1840-1916) Developed sweetened chewing gum, and Colgan’s Taffy Tolu.

Frank Talbert Etscorn, III (1945-Present) Developed the nicotine patch in 1980 to help millions quit smoking.

John Fitch* (1743-1798) Formulated the idea of the steamboat and patented it in 1791.

Margaret Ingles (1892-1971) First woman to receive a degree of Mechanical Engineer. Pioneered the development of the air conditioner.
 
Frederick McKinley Jones (1893-1961) Invented play-back movie projectors enabling talking picture shows. He also invented the portable x-ray machine and automatic refrigeration units for trains, ships, and trucks. 

Joel Irvine Lyle (1896-1942) Co-founder of Carrier Engineering Corp. Developed the first air conditioning system.

Ephraim McDowell* (1771-1830) Surgeon and founder of modern abdominal surgery. Performed the first successful removal of an ovarian tumor.

Garrett A. Morgan (1877-1963) Patented the world’s first gas mask and invented a traffic signal that is the basis for our modern system.

Thomas Hunt Morgan (1866-1945) Biologist and Noble Prize winner for his genetic research.

Phillip A. Sharp (1944-Present) Nobel Prize winner for his discovery of the split gene and for advancing the research of cancer and hereditary diseases.

Nathan B. Stubblefield (1860-1928) Successfully verified wireless voice transmission (radio).