On April 8, 1861, Elisha Graves Otis passed away. Otis was a Vermont native, born in Halifax.

In 1853, Otis sold his first elevators. He developed a worldwide market for elevators, thanks to his invention of a safety brake. This device would stop an elevator from free-falling if the support cable broke.

He founded what would become the Otis Elevator Company, the largest elevator company in the world. Otis single-handedly changed the public’s perception of elevator safety, which had tremendous impact upon the development of skyscrapers.

Image courtesy the Public Domain.