Inventors Weekly
$0.50
Tuesday, May 16, 1882
Vol XCIII, No. 311
Who Was Maria Beasley?
Maria Beasley and Newly Patented Life Raft
- 1847-1904?
- Possibly lived in Pennsylvania
- 15 patents for inventions
- Made $20,000 off of a barrel making machine
- Most women during this time made $3 a day
The Life Raft 1874
More About
Maria Beasley
- 1882
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- 1884, exhibited inventions at Cotton Centennial Exposition
"I want a fire-proof, compact, safe, and readily-launched when needed."
-Maria Beasley about her life raft
I do not remember just exactly how many lives were lost or how many were saved, but all that were saved were saved on life rafts.
Different Types of Life Raft
Coastal life raft
- short term emergency use
- cheap, convenient
- canopy and shield
Ocean life raft
- long term survival (30 days)
- canopies, survival gear, warm floors
Offshore life raft
- bad climates
- don't capsize easily
- buoyancy tubes to keep afloat
Life Raft or Life Boat?
Why have a life raft?
The differences
Safety is important
http://www.slideshare.net/PatCabangis09/liferafts-versus-lifeboats
Life Boat:
- Large, open
- Engine and hull, heavy
- Stored on boats, on deck
- Some have oars and supplies
Life raft:
- compact, storage
- inflatable
- some provide safety (ocean and offshore life rafts)
- Food and shelter are provided
- Unsinkable
- Developed from Beasley's design to present day design over ~100 years
- Small, compact
- Inflates to a large raft
- Resources inside
All is Lost