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Alonzo Philips of
Springfield, Massachusetts patented the friction match consisting of
phosphorus, chalk, and glue. His
creations were called Locofocos. Phillips' work followed that of English
pharmacist John Walker who in 1827 produced yard-long lightable sticks that can
be considered the real precursor of today's match.
Phillips described the
process in Specification of Letters Patent No. 68:
"I take one ounce of glue and
dissolve it by the aid of water and heat in the usual manner; to this glue I
add four ounces of finely-pulverized chalk or Spanish white, stirring it in so
as to form a thick paste. I then put in one ounce of phosphorus, keeping the
materials at such degree of heat as will suffice to melt the phosphorus and
incorporate the whole together. Into this composition the matches are dipped
after being previously dipped in sulfur in the usual manner."
Philips grouped the
matches in slabs and put them between two pieces of paper to avoid accidental
ignition. In 1855 Carl Lundstrom of
Sweden produced the first red phosphorus "safety" matches.
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Re: October 24, 1836: Alonzo Philips Patents Friction Matches
