Black Inventors Who Changed The World: Garrett Morgan Garrett Augustus Morgan Sr. was a trailblazing inventor who was born Paris, Kentucky in 1877. His father, Sydney Morgan, was a former slave and the son of Confederate General John H. Morgan. In his early teens, Garrett moved to Cincinnati to work as a handyman. Four years later, he married and settled in Cleveland, where he remained till his death. He went to work for the Root and McBride Company for $5 a week and taught himself how to fix sewing machines. Before long, he'd become their only Black machine adjuster. Garrett was the first Black man to have a car in Cleveland, and he used his status to better his community. He helped organize the Cleveland Association for Colored Men, the first Black country club, and newspaper company. Morgan's fascination with sewing machines led to his invention of the