The History of the Portable Vacuum Cleaner

Today's modern vacuum cleaners evolved over more than 100 years of inventions.

Cleaning floors without a vacuum cleaner seems unthinkable today, but people had no other way a century ago. The vacuum cleaner evolved slowly until machines similar to today's portable models emerged.

Early Rug Cleaning

Generations ago, cleaning rugs required beating out the dirt or brushing them, which left considerable dust and grime in the home. The invention of a street sweeper in England in 1840 paved the way for development of the modern vacuum.

True Beginning

In 1876 in Michigan, Melville Reuben Bissell invented a carpet sweeper using rotary brushes and a canister to catch the dirt. These and similar portable, light machines grew in popularity in the United States and Europe through the 1930s, although they did not use suction.

Getting Modern

At the turn of the 20th century, Herbert Booth debuted his "Puffin Billy," which used suction tubes, but was so big only its hose fit into a building and horse-drawn wagons pulled it down the streets of London. Smaller machines arrived as many inventors experimented with the idea. Names still associated with vacuum companies, including Bissell, Hoover and Kirby, were among the inventors. Innovations through the years led to today's lightweight, portable vacuums with many extra features.

References

• Encyclopedia.com: How Products Are Made -- Vacuum Cleaner Background
• The Great Idea Finder: Vacuum Cleaner