The Lewis Latimer House Museum Celebrating a Renaissance man

by Naeisha Rose Associate Editor

The Lewis Latimer House Museum in Flushing is a true reflection of the person it honors.

Its mission to be a space for science, tinkering, art and inclusion is emblematic of Lewis Harold Latimer, born Sept. 4, 1848 in Chelsea, Mass., to escaped slaves, George and Rebecca Latimer. He was a self-taught mechanical drafter and engineer who worked for the likes of Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison and Hiram Maxim, people whose innovations he improved upon while becoming an inventor in his own right. He also joined the Union Navy at 15, serving in the Civil War.

raised his daughters there with his wife [Mary Wilson] ... and he added an addition to the house, which was his personal lab.”

Iconic Inventor

His life and legacy were marked with celebrations for his 175th birthday this year at the eponymously named house, Ran Yan, the LLHM executive director, said.

“Latimer bought the house in 1900 and lived there from 1902 until his death in 1928,” Yan told the Chronicle. “He basically

Latimer lived in the white section of Flushing, and as someone who challenged discrimination, he became one of the founding members of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Queens, a church that was racially integrated, according to the city Parks Department and Rutgers University’s School of Arts and Sciences. He also taught English and mechanical drawing to Irish immigrants, who weren’t considered white at the time, Yan added. His home, a two-and-a-half story Victorian, was sold after his death and faced demolition in 1988, when residents formed a “Save the Latimer House Committee,” Yan said. It was headed by his grandchildren, Winifred Latimer Norman and Gerald Norman. The house was saved, and was moved a mile and a half, in 1989.

His grandchildren strived to preserve the house so that his work in making drawings of Bell’s telephone patents, along with his contributions developing longer-lasting carbon filaments and light bulbs, for Maxim and Edison, respectively, while also being the forefather of the air conditioner, would not be lost to history, Yan said.

“He was at the forefront and development of electric lighting in his early age,” she said.

Latimer was also dubbed a “Renaissance man” because he was a passionate artist and poet, as well, the LLHM executive director added.

“We have original artifacts, including paintings and drawings done by Lewis Latimer,” she said. “We also have an original poetry book that his children published for him.”

The museum, located at 34-41 137 St., is typically open on Fridays and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., but is closed at the moment as a new exhibit is being installed. It will reopen in spring 2024, but in the meantime, immersive, educational activities for children and families are being offered via the Mobile Lewis Latimer Lab at schools and at various branches of the Queens Public Library.

“The kids do a circuitry activity ... and they do a scavenger hunt where they learn about ... his history,” Yan said.

“In the new exhibition next year, we have a poetry machine where people can read Lewis Latimer’s poems and also hear them read out loud in different languages,” she continued. “We focus on ... science, technology, engineering, art and math education because Lewis Latimer was such a champion between the connection of science and art.”

To learn more about those programs and others, call (718) 961-8585 or send an email to info@lewislatimerhouse.org.

“He was an incredible trailblazer and he was also very talented, not only inventing but in other aspects in the arts,” Yan said. “I think he embodies a lot of the newer movements in STEAM education before it became a thing ... and the Black is beautiful movement.” Q