Olive Dennis
Olive Dennis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | November 20, 1885 Thurlow, Pennsylvania |
| Died | November 5, 1957 (aged 71) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Goucher College Columbia University Cornell University |
| Known for | Railway service improvements |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Engineering |
| Institutions | B&O Railroad |
Olive Wetzel Dennis (November 20, 1885 – November 5, 1957)[1] was an engineer whose design innovations changed the nature of railway travel. Born in Thurlow, Pennsylvania, she grew up in Baltimore.[2]
Career
She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from
Innovations
Among the innovations that Ms. Dennis introduced on passenger trains were seats that could partially recline; stain-resistant upholstery in passenger cars; larger dressing rooms for women, supplied with free paper towels, liquid soap and drinking cups; ceiling lights that could be dimmed at night; individual window vents (which she patented) to allow passengers to bring in fresh air while trapping dust; and, later, air conditioned compartments. Other rail carriers followed suit in the years that followed, and buses and airlines, in turn, had to upgrade their level of comfort in order to compete with the railroads.
Her legacy for these innovations and comforts goes largely unknown outside of the railroad community. Her design patents were signed over to the railroad and her name does not appear in the publicity materials for the Cincinnatian, despite her designing it.[4]
Sources
- Current Biography 1941 yearbook, pp. 220–221
- Sybil E. Hatch, Changing Our World: True Stories of Women Engineers (ASCE Publications, 2006)
- Joy Dorothy Harvey, eds., The Biographical Dictionary of Women in Science (Taylor & Francis, 2000)
References
- ^ "OLIVE DENNIS FUNERAL SET". The Baltimore Sun. 7 November 1957.
- ^ a b "She took the pain out of the train Innovator: One of the first women to earn a Cornell engineering degree, Olive Dennis helped make rail travel less complicated and more comfortable". tribunedigital-baltimoresun. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
- ^ "Cornell Rewind: Phenomenal first women of engineering". Cornell Chronicle. Retrieved 2019-03-23.
- ^ a b c d Giaimo, Cara (2018-04-09). "The 'Lady Engineer' Who Took the Pain Out of the Train". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 2019-03-23.
- ^ Marilyn Bailey Ogilvie, Ed., The Biographical Dictionary of Women in Science, p. 348.
- ^ "The Woman Engineer". www2.theiet.org. Retrieved 2019-07-03.