Josef Madersperger (October 6, 1768 in Kufstein – October 2, 1850 in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

) was a tailor. He is one of the

inventors An invention is a unique or novelty (patent), novel machine, device, Method_(patent), method, composition, idea, or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It m ...

of the

sewing machine Diagram of a modern sewing machine Animation of a modern sewing machine as it stitches A sewing machine is a machine used to sew fabric and materials together with thread. Sewing machines were invented during the first Industrial Revolutio ...

Biography

Madersperger was born in 1768 in Kufstein, western Austria. In 1790, he relocated to

with his father because his parents' house in Tirol burned down. In 1807, he began development of the sewing machine, spending all his savings and leisure time on it. In 1814, he presented his first sewing machine, which imitated a human hand. Madersperger did not commercialize the 1815 granted privilege which expired after three years. By 1823, he was registered as a "former" middle-class tailor. In 1839, after several unsuccessful attempts to improve the sewing machine, he built a machine that imitated the weaving process using the chain stitch. Madersperger was out of money, so he could not set up a factory. He donated the prototype to the Imperial–royal Polytechnical Institute (the predecessor of the TU Wien). In 1841, he received a bronze medal from the Austrian Trade Association ( Österreichischer Gewerbeverein). Madersperger died on 2 October 1850, spending only three months with his wife in Vienna's

almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the poor of a locality, for those who had held ce ...

. He is buried in a common grave at the St. Marx Cemetery. Vienna's tailors' guild erected a crucifix made of cast iron, and continues to maintain the grave. In 1933, a public memorial to Madersperger was placed in the Resselpark at Karlsplatz. Streets in Vienna,

Linz Linz (Pronunciation: , ; ) is the capital of Upper Austria and List of cities and towns in Austria, third-largest city in Austria. Located on the river Danube, the city is in the far north of Austria, south of the border with the Czech Repub ...

and

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

were named after him. The almshouse was replaced around 1955–1957 by a community-subsidized tenement building which the lodgers call ''Madersperger-Hof''. A memorial tablet commemorates Madersperger.

External links

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Bezirksmuseum Landstraße - Josef Madersperger, being a ''Landstraßer'' against his will

A Video about three unsuccessful inventors from Vienna (the stories about Siegfried Marcus do not claim to be historically accurate). {{DEFAULTSORT:Madersperger, Josef Austrian inventors Businesspeople from the Austrian Empire People from Kufstein Businesspeople from Vienna 1768 births 1850 deaths Austrian tailors 18th-century tailors 18th-century Austrian businesspeople 19th-century tailors