Anna Sutherland Bissell

Anna Sutherland Bissell (2 December 1846 – 8 November 1934) was a Canadian-American businesswoman who was the first female CEO in the United States. She was CEO of Bissell, known for its carpet sweepers and vacuum cleaners.

Early life, family and education

Anna Bissell was born in River John, Nova Scotia, to William and Eleanor Sutherland. They immigrated to Wisconsin when Anna was a child.

Career By age 16, Bissell was a schoolteacher.

After Bissell married Melville R. Bissell at age 19, they became a joint partner in their crockery and china business. The Bissell Sweeper website recounts that Mrs. Bissell complained to her husband about sawdust that collected in their carpets and was difficult to remove, whereupon he made great improvements to a new invention called the carpet sweeper. When Bissell's husband invented the Bissell carpet sweeper in 1876, she became its top salesperson, traveling from town to town selling the sweeper.thumb

After her husband's death in 1889 and with five children and a grandchild, Bissell took over the business and became the chief executive officer of the Bissell company. She established new guidelines on trademarks and patents and moved Bissell carpet sweepers into the international market. By 1899 it was the world's largest organization of its kind.

In 1919, Bissell also became the chairman of the Bissell company.

A small park on the water in River John, Nova Scotia is dedicated to Bissell.

Her home in Grand Rapids, Michigan, also known as the Bissell House, no longer exists. The site is now occupied by NBC television affiliate station WOOD-TV.