Haley MacMillan

Mary Anderson was the inventor of the first ever windshield wiper. She got a patent for her invention in 1903 and by 1916 it became common to have windshield wipers on majority of the cars. After a visit to New York she noticed that the streetcar drivers had to open the windows of their cars in order to see out during stormy weather. She thought of a swinging arm device with a rubber blade that was operated inside the car from the driver using a lever. Mary Anderson grew up in Alabama. She was born in Greene County in 1866. In 1889 she moved to Birmingham, Alabama with her sister and widowed mother. In Birmingham she built the Fairmont Apartments on Highland Avenue.  Later she moved to Fresno, California where she operated a cattle ranch and vineyard until 1898.  If Mary Anderson were still around it would be such an honor to be able to interview her as she has caused so many other inventions to branch from this one idea.