Pictured is my Singer treadle sewing machine dating to about 1901, previously my mother's and my grandmother's. Many inventors modified and improved sewing machines through the 1800s. Elias Howe ...

The design of the first sewing machine actually dates back to the late 18th century, when an English cabinetmaker by the name of Thomas Saint drew up plans for a machine that could stitch leather.

1846: Elias Howe patents the first practical sewing machine and threads his way into the fabric of history. French tailor Barthelemy Thimonnier patented a device in 1830 that mechanized the ...