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Patent holder profile

Alexander Miles and the elevator patent record

Miles's 1887 elevator patent moves the backlog into public-safety and building infrastructure while keeping impact claims source-controlled.

Why this belongs on CultureUp

Miles is a public-record memory story.

Miles belongs in Backlog 3 because elevator systems are public infrastructure memory, not only mechanical trivia.

Backlog priority 5 / chronology not finalStatus: source_reviewedSource grade: B+

Patent: 371207: Elevator
Issue date: 1887-10-11
Place: Duluth, Minnesota
Record strength: Medium-high patent-record strength for the elevator row, with broader safety impact still needing source expansion.
Identity evidence: Publishable with caveat; biography and public-safety impact should stay separated from the patent row.
Backlog priority: 5 / not chronological rank
Chronology caution: Backlog priority 5 is not chronological rank.
Identity caution: Do not promote unsourced absolute safety-first claims.
Why this record matters: The record places Black technical memory inside buildings, movement, and safety infrastructure.

What the public record supports

U.S. Patent No. 371207, issued October 11, 1887.
Elevator invention category.
Backlog priority and chronology caveat.

What remains open

Impact and commercialization need stronger sources.
Biography remains source-expansion work.

Article profile

Read the person, place, invention, and record separately.

CultureUp keeps each layer visible so a patent record does not get stretched into claims the source trail cannot support.

The patent record

Google Patents mirrors U.S. Patent No. 371207 for an elevator issued October 11, 1887.

The person in the record

The person record remains patent-first until more public biography is attached.

Place attached to the claim

Duluth is the current place anchor for this backlog profile.

The invention

The invention belongs to elevator systems and public-safety infrastructure.

Business, labor, and use

The patent supports technical recognition but not all adoption, assignment, or commercial results.

What the record cannot prove

The patent cannot prove complete biography, absolute impact, or market adoption.

Patent records

Grant trail

Grant rank and unique-holder rank are shown separately so repeat patentees do not distort the chronological sequence.

Backlog priority 5Not chronological rankutility patentmedium high

371207: Elevator

Alexander Miles / 1887-10-11

Backlog priority row, not a chronological rank. The patent supports an elevator-systems profile while biography and impact claims remain source-separated.

Residence: Duluth, Minnesota
Category: elevator systems / public safety
Source status: medium high
Backlog status: indexable_profile_candidate
Primary sources: 1 mapped

Source trail

Claims stay tied to source limits.

Patent record

Patent text, case-file context, or patent-image trails that can support inventor, title, number, date, place, and claim language.

patent text mirrorpatent text with identity caveat

US371207A - Elevator

Google Patents / 1887 patent record

Supports: Shows Alexander Miles connected to an elevator patent issued October 11, 1887.
Limit: The patent record supports the elevator invention row. It does not prove full biography, every elevator-safety effect, commercialization, or absolute priority.
Last checked: 2026-06-09
Source URL: https://patents.google.com/patent/US371207A/en