| Mr. Samuel Leeds Allen S. L. Allen Co. Samuel Leeds Allen has been awarded almost 300 patents for farming machinery, including the fertilizer drill, seed drill, potato digger, cultivator, furrower, pulverizer, grass edger and numerous other farm implements. He was also a pioneer employer in that he was one of the first to provide death and disability insurance and a retirement plan for his employees. In fact, it was out of concern for his employees that his best-known and most successful invention came about. Because the production of farm equipment was seasonal, many of Allen's employees were laid off during the winter. He wanted to invent a product that could be sold during the winter so that he could provide his employees with year-round work. His passion for sledding led him to develop a series of sleds and sled improvements. Allen invented the Flexible Flyer, a sled with flexible runners that could be steered with ease, accuracy and safety, without shifting body weight. Curiously, when it first came out in 1889, this legendary piece of Americana did not sell. He was urged by his salespeople to sell his patent to an established sled manufacturer, but he refused. Years later, when leisure outdoor sports became more popular, sales of the Flexible Flyer finally took off. In 1915, about 250,000 were sold and with very few changes, continued to be a best seller for over one hundred years. Flexible Flyer sleds have become synonymous with snow, happy children and wintertime fun. The most famous brand of sled ever made, it has been commemorated on holiday greeting cards, TV, in the movies and even has a place in the Smithsonian Institution. |
