First Patent Act Anniversary
April 10, 2015 marked the 225th year anniversary of the Patent Act of 1790, the first patent statute passed by the federal government of the United States. It was enacted on April 10, 1790, a year after the Constitution was ratified and a new government was organized. President George Washington signed the bill, which laid the foundation of the modern American patent system. The first patent issued was for a process of making potash, an ingredient used in fertilizer.
This date denotes the first time in American history that the law gave inventors rights to their creations. The law was concise, defining the subject matter of a U.S. patent as “any useful art, manufacture, engine, machine, or device, or any improvement thereon not before known or used.” It granted the applicant the "sole and exclusive right and liberty of making, constructing, using and vending to others to be used" of his invention.
