when did jan ernst matzeliger invent the shoe manufacturing machine
Instead of taking 15 minutes to last a shoe, a sole could be attached in one minute. The efficiency of the machine resulted in mass productionâa single machine could last 700 shoes in a day, compared to 50 by a hand lasterâand lower prices. Jan Matzeliger obtained a patent for his invention in 1883. Tragically, he developed tuberculosis not long after and died at the age 37. He left his stock holdings to his friends and to the First Church of Christ in Lynn, Massachusetts. 1  Famous African American Inventors of the 19th- and Early 20th-Centuries. 2  The History of Shoes and Footwear. 3  Everything About The History of Shoes. 4  Classic Sweet and Spicy Festival Turkey Legs. 5  The Textile Revolution.