Side History
Side projects throughout history and the stories of the men and women behind them.
Latest Post
April 13, 2025
Thomas Adams and His Side Project: Inventing Chewing Gum
While experimenting with Mexican chicle in hopes of inventing a rubber substitute, Thomas Adams stumbled upon something entirely unexpected: modern chewing gum. What began as a failed industrial project in his New York workshop turned into a global confectionery revolution that reshaped how people enjoy candy.
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More Side Project Stories
April 06, 2025
Margaret Knight and her side project: The paper bag machine
While folding paper bags by hand in a Massachusetts factory, Margaret Knight invented a machine that revolutionized packaging—despite workplace resistance and a patent battle that tested her resolve.
Adam Howell
April 06, 2025
Martha Coston and her side project: The signal flare
As a young widow raising four children, Martha Coston pioneered a naval flare system that transformed maritime communication, overcame 19th-century gender barriers, and saved countless lives.
Adam Howell
March 30, 2025
Samuel Morse and his side project: The telegraph
Samuel F.B. Morse transformed human communication while pursuing an unrequited artistic dream. His telegraph—conceived amid personal tragedy and developed between canvas stretchers—collapsed distance and time, creating the foundation for our connected world.
Adam Howell
March 23, 2025
Charles Goodyear and his side project: the vulcanization of rubber
While struggling as a failed businessman in the 1830s, Charles Goodyear (1800–1860) became obsessed with fixing rubber's fatal flaw—it melted in summer heat and cracked in winter cold. Despite having no chemistry background, crushing poverty, and repeated imprisonment for debt, his relentless five-year quest led to the accidental discovery of vulcanization…
Adam Howell
March 16, 2025
John Walker and his side project: Matchsticks
In a modest pharmacy in northeastern England, John Walker accidentally revolutionized humanity's relationship with fire. While mixing chemicals after hours, this small-town pharmacist created the first practical friction match—transforming fire-starting from a frustrating daily challenge into a simple action we now take for granted.
Adam Howell
March 09, 2025
Eli Whitney and his side project: The Cotton Gin
Yale graduate Eli Whitney's (1765–1825) modest side project—a simple machine to separate cotton seeds from fiber—sparked an economic revolution that reshaped American industry and society.
Adam Howell
March 02, 2025
Charles Macintosh and his side project: Waterproof fabric
In the rainy streets of early 19th century Glasgow, industrial chemist Charles Macintosh (1766–1843) transformed what others dismissed as worthless waste into the world's first truly effective waterproof fabric.
Adam Howell
February 23, 2025
James Watt and His Side Project: Revolutionizing the Steam Engine
James Watt (1736–1819) transformed a broken model engine into the innovation that would drive the Industrial Revolution. While repairing a miniature Newcomen steam engine at the University of Glasgow in Scotland, Watt identified its fundamental flaw: the cylinder had to be repeatedly heated and cooled…
Adam Howell
February 16, 2025
John Harrison and His Side Project: The Marine Chronometer
In the early 18th century, a humble carpenter with no formal education solved the greatest navigational challenge of his age. John Harrison (1693–1776), working from his rural workshop in Yorkshire, England, created a groundbreaking timepiece that could maintain precise time at sea—the marine chronometer.
Adam Howell