Women and Adversity:
Josephine Cochrane
Inventor of the Dishwasher

Josephine Cochrane, Inventor of the Dishwasher

Josephine Cochrane was that rare woman in the 1800s who flaunted her independent spirit. One example is the spelling of her name. She married William Cochran but decided to add an -e to her last name so it was spelled Cochrane. It is printed both ways in various publications. Her in-laws didn’t appreciate this change.

She developed the idea for a dishwasher because when the servants washed her priceless China that dated from the 1600s, they chipped the dishes. In 1886, it is reported that Cochrane said, “If nobody else is going to invent a dishwashing machine, I’ll do it myself.”

William passed away in 1883, leaving Josephine at 45 years old with many debts, which was her motivation to design a dishwasher model in the shed behind her home. It was a hand-operated mechanical appliance and unusual because it used water pressure to get the dishes clean. Previous models others had designed used brushes to get the dishes clean. She unveiled her dishwasher at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The average homemaker was unimpressed, but hotels and restaurants ordered them. Around 1898, Cochrane opened her own factory, Cochran Crescent Washing Machine Company. The company eventually became KitchenAid.

Cochrane was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2006 for patent No. 355,139.

Bio:

• Born Josephine Garis March 8, 1839 in Ashtabula County, Ohio.
• Raised in Valparaiso, Indiana, where she went to private school until the school burned
• Moved to Shelbyville to live with her sister Irene Garis Ransom.
• October 13, 1858 — married William Cochran, who became a prosperous dry goods merchant and Democratic Party politician. However, he was an alcoholic.
• The couple had two children. Son Hallie and daughter Katharine. Halle died when he was 2.
• 1870 — Moved into a mansion and threw parties using her heirloom China dating from the 1600s.
• 1883 — William died, leaving Josephine with many debts.
• December 31, 1885 — applied for a patent
• December 28, 1886 — received a patent
• 1898 — opened her own factory, Cochran’s Crescent Washing Machine Company
• 1917 — posthumous patent for an improved version of the dishwasher
• 2006 — inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for her design for the mechanical dishwashe

• Josephine Cochrane died August 3, 1913 in Chicago at the age of 74.

More Information:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBo1jhXzGLc
https://www.uspto.gov/learning-and-resources/journeys-innovation/historical-stories/ill-do-it-myself
https://online.kidsdiscover.com/quickread/meet-the-woman-who-invented-the-automatic-dishwasher