2 Quotes & Sayings By Henry Blake Fuller
Henry Blake Fuller was a prolific author and a pioneer of the self-made man. He was a Civil War veteran, a newspaperman, a business executive, and an inventor who patented over 200 inventions. Although he was born in Virginia, he moved with his family to Michigan at an early age. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 1878 and began working as an editor for the Flint Journal as well as serving as the treasurer for the Citizens Council (a group of investors dedicated to protecting dividends)
A year later he became treasurer for the Flint City Railway Co., which increased his knowledge of railroads and helped him realize his first invention: a brake on railroad cars to prevent cars from leaving the tracks. He also worked as an engineer and eventually became President of the Flint Fire Insurance Company; this allowed him to pursue his other inventions on an equal footing with his more established competitors.