William Edward Sawyer was an American inventor whose contribution was primarily in the field of electric engineering and electric lighting.

His primary inventions included:

• Telegraph apparatus for cable use (March 31, 1874)
• Automatic and autographic telegraph and circuit (February 2, 1875)
• Electric engineering and lighting apparatus and system (August 14, 1877)
• Device for effecting the static discharge in autographic telegraphy (November 6, 1877)
• Electric switch (June 29, 1880)
• Electrical safety device for elevators (July 6, 1880)

A 1920 article in The New York Times

The New York Times

The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...

described him as best known for pioneering the development of the incandescent light.
In partnership with Albon Man (June 29,1826- February 18, 1905) he founded a company to produce incandescent lamps. From 1879 thorough 1885 the company successfully defended his patents against the interests of the Edison company. Use of the Sawyer-Man 'stopper' lamps allowed Westinghouse to successfully bid for the contract to illuminate the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, a key development in the War of Currents

War of Currents

In the "War of Currents" era in the late 1880s, George Westinghouse and Thomas Edison became adversaries due to Edison's promotion of direct current for electric power distribution over alternating current advocated by several European companies and Westinghouse Electric based out of Pittsburgh,...

. The Sawyer-Man company was eventually purchased by the Westinghouse Corporation and became the Westinghouse lighting division.

See also

• William Edward Sawyer retrieved 2010 Jan 18
• Hiram Maxim Hiram Maxim's account of Sawyer retrieved 2010 Jan 18