the first practical and widely used sewing machine was invented by barthélemy thimonnier, a french tailor, in 1829. his machine sewed straight seams using chain stitch like saint's model, and in 1830, he signed a contract with auguste ferrand, a mining engineer, who made the requisite drawings and submitted a patent application. the patent for his machine was issued on 17 july 1830, and in the same year, he opened (with partners) the first machine-based clothing manufacturing company in the world to create army uniforms for the french army. however, the factory was burned down, reportedly by workers fearful of losing their livelihood following the issuing of the patent.