OTIS, Elisha Graves
(1811–61), American inventor and manufacturer, born
in Halifax, Vt. He was a pioneer in the construction and manufacture
of steam-powered elevators and elevator devices. In 1854, at an
exposition in New York City, he demonstrated his most important
invention, an automatic safety device for stopping an elevator should
the supporting cables break. In 1857 he designed and installed the
first passenger elevators in the U.S.; this achievement heralded
the age of the skyscraper. Shortly before his death he patented
a steam-driven elevator, the basis of the Otis Elevator Co.