Garrett Morgan was an African American inventor, entrepreneur and political leader. During his lifetime, he made many popular inventions, the most notable ones being the smoke hood and the traffic signal. He also devised a line of hair-care products. Born in Claysville, Harrison County, Kentucky, to a freed chattel slave father, Morgan attended Branch Elementary School. After dropping out after the sixth grade, he moved to Cincinnati in search of employment. He initially worked as a handyman and later repaired sewing machines in a factory where he created a belt fastener as his first invention. In 1908, Morgan co-founded the Cleveland Association of Colored Men, a group with the goal of improving socio-economic conditions within the African American community. He was married twice and fathered three kids. After his death in 1963, many elementary schools were named after him. He is still remembered as one of the most popular African American inventors of all time.