On September 10, 1846, Elias Howe was awarded the first U.S. patent for a sewing machine. The details of the machine, including a technical explanation of its functioning, can be found in his patent #4,750.
Did he really invent it?
The first photograph of his sewing machine.
Apparently, no.
As other famous inventions, the invention of the sewing machine is rather controversial: patents for sewing mechanisms were filed by Fredrick Wiesenthal in 1755, by Thomas Saint in 1790, by Barthélemy Thimonnier in 1830, and by John J. Greenough in 1842.
But he was indeed the first to get a U.S. patent for a fully-working sewing machine.
How did it work?
Animation showing how a lockstitch is created.
The first models were operated by hand: the right hand produced the needle movement, while the left hand was controlling its position and its addressing. Subsequently, the movement was achieved by the oscillation of a pedal placed under the table in which the machine was inserted. The pedal, connected to the machine by a strap, produced the movement; this way both hands remained free and thus available for tissue addressing.
The machines used a lockstitch design, which is still the most common used mechanical stitch to these days.
Bonus fact
In 1851, Elias Howe received a patent for an "automatic, continuous clothing closure" (perhaps a zipper prototype?), but he dind't even try to market it, given the success of his sewing machine.
You can read the full story here.
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