John Stenhouse
The first original gas mask was invented in 1854 by a Scottish chemist named John Stenhouse. He created the gas mask so he could remove the chemical gases while he was performing experiments. John Stenhouse was born in Glasgow in 1809. He studied at the University of Strathclyde, University of Aberdeen, and the University of Glasgow where he got his degree for chemistry. Later on in his life, he worked as a Scottish chemist. He was also a fist-class scientist. He was unlucky in health, but he persisted with his research, and made a breakthrough with his discovery that wood charcoal had a disinfecting property when used with air filters. This was applied to gas masks, which saved the lives of many. This saved many lives because the Charcoal absorbs and holds a large amount of poisonous gases, which prevents the harmful gases from reaching the user. The gas mask saved countless lives, especially in war. John Stenhouse exhibited his “Charcoal air-filter” (AKA Gas Mask), for the first time at a meeting of the society of 1854. He did not copyright the idea, but he gave it to the public. Some manufactures saw commercial possibilities in the mask, judging from what George Wilson said. George Wilson was a professor at the University of Edinburgh. He said “many deaths have occurred among those employed to explore large drains and sewers of London from exposure to the drainage gases. I believe that these fatal results will soon stop after this respirator is brought into use.