Five Incredible Inventions Louisiana Has Given to the World
A while back we talked about "10 Inventions Louisiana Has Given to the World" but, we really only scratched the surface of the awesomeness that has come out of The Boot. Let's look at some more things you might not even know were invented by Louisianians.
Top Louisiana Inventions
Sure, we all know about Tabasco, fried turkey, Jazz, and Tony's but, were you aware that Louisiana brought the world the Binocular Microscope?
That's right.
John Riddell from Tulane University gets credit for inventing the binocular microscope in 1852 and changing the scientific community forever. If you missed the list of the first "10 Inventions Louisiana Has Given to the World", check it out HERE.
Now let's take a look at five more inventions Louisiana has given to the world.
Cotton Candy
While dentist William Morrison and confectioner John C. Wharton are credited with inventing and introducing the sugary treat known as "Fairy Floss", it was New Orleanian Joseph Lascaux, also a dentist, who is credited with inventing the treat as we know it today, Cotton Candy.
Pretty interesting that not one, but two dentists came up with this delicious, tooth-rotting delicacy.
A pretty slick way to make sure you keep a good stable of clientele, right?
Speaking of tooth decay...
Here we have another dentist from New Orleans to thank for a fantastic invention.
Levi Spear Parmly is given credit for inventing the first inception of dental floss.
From Wikipedia -
"In 1819, he recommended running a waxen silk thread 'through the interstices of the teeth, between their necks and the arches of the gum, to dislodge that irritating matter which no brush can remove and which is the real source of disease.'"
The cinema may have been invented in Paris, but the very first movie theater in the U.S. opened in New Orleans.
America's first indoor, seated movie theater opened on July 26, 1896, on Canal Street in New Orleans.
Vitascope Hall sat 400 people and was opened by William T. "Pop" Rock & Walter J. Wainwright.
Take that Hollywood...
Have you ever wondered why the WWII Museum is in New Orleans? Mr. Higgins is why.
Basically, Louisiana won World War II. More specifically, the Higgins Boat, invented by Andrew Higgins in New Orleans, won World War II.
Dwight Eisenhower is quoted as saying "Andrew Higgins is the man who won the war for us".
The First Opera In America
On record, the first opera ever performed in America happened in New Orleans. The performance was André Grétry's Sylvain in May 1796, before the Louisiana Purchase has even happened.
Now, the first opera known to have been performed in America happened in Charleston, South Carolina in 1735, however apparently there's no record of it, therefore New Orleans gets the square.
LOOK: Things from the year you were born that don't exist anymore
Gallery Credit: Stacey Marcus
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