Ezra Warner

Ezra J. Warner of Waterbury, Connecticut was an American inventor, who patented his design of a can opener in 1858. Crudely shaped bayonet and sickle combo, his design was widely accepted by the U.S. military during the period of the American Civil War.

Can openers were needed because early cans were very difficult to open. With the idea of preserving food in metal cans, soldiers and explorers would carry them. Hungry soldiers attacked those cans with bayonets and rifle fire to open them. Piercing the lid required a blow from a sharp object, such as a hammer and chisel, and then a person would saw around the edge. Opening a can was messy and could even be dangerous.

The bayonet part of Ezra Warner's can opener was pressed into the can, and a metal guard kept it from penetrating too far into the can. The other part was the sickle, which was forced into the can and sawed around the edge. However, Warner’s can opener was not a tool for domestic use, because it could be dangerous. Grocers opened the cans before they left the store. The first widespread domestic can opener was patented by William Lyman.

External links

* [http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/telephone/sfeature/ The American Experience]