Willis Carrier
Willis Haviland Carrier (November 26, 1876 – October 7, 1950) was an American engineer, best known for inventing modern air conditioning. Carrier invented the first electrical air conditioning unit in 1902. In 1915, he founded Carrier Corporation, a company specializing in the manufacture and distribution of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.
Icemaker
In 1876, German engineer Carl von Linde patented the process of liquefying gas that would later become an important part of basic refrigeration technology (U.S. Patent 1027862). In 1879 and 1891, two African American inventors patented improved refrigerator designs in the United States (Thomas Elkins – U.S. patent #221222 and respectively John Standard – U.S. patent #455891).