On September 19, 1876 Melville Bissell patented a carpet-sweeper, a mechanical device for the cleaning of carpets.
A very early appearance of the product occurs in 1914 Charlie Chaplin film Laughing Gas, where Chaplin uses it to clean the waiting-room floor of a dentist.
Bissell’s carpet sweepers were probably the biggest invention in cleaning industry since the invention of brooms by early man.
Following Melville’s untimely death in 1889, Anna stepped in and took control of the company, becoming America’s first female corporate CEO.
Today Bissell Inc. is an industry leader, with products sold in more than 60 countries. Still privately owned and still managed by the Bissell family.
