All you closet pyromaniacs and emergency responders take a minute to thank Martha Coston today – in 1859 she was awarded the patent for the first practical day/night flares, from which all subsequent versions have spawned. Martha was only 21 when her husband died before he could see his concept through to completion, so she took the lead, persevered against the “no women allowed” dogma of the time and won a big contract from the U.S. Navy for her “pyrotechnic night signals.” They were extensively used in the Civil War and then by the U.S. Lifesaving Service, forerunner of the Coast Guard, and now reside in every well-prepared person’s kit in some form.

Link About Martha Coston.