Joseph Lee

Joseph Lee (July 4, 1848 June 11, 1908) was an American baker and inventor. He successfully managed a hotel in Needham, Massachusetts for about a decade and later managed restaurants near Boston, ran a resort in Squantum, and ran a successful catering company. Lee was also an innovator, creating machines that successfully automated the process of kneading bread and making breadcrumbs. In recognition of these successes, he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2019.

Biography Joseph Lee was born in Charleston, South Carolina on July 4, 1848 to Susan and Henry Lee, who were both enslaved, and grew up in South Carolina, also enslaved. He began baking as a child, working in a bakery in Beaufort, South Carolina. He was a blacksmith for a time during the American Civil War. Lee further developed his cooking skills and knowledge as a steward in the United States Coast Survey, where he worked for eleven years.

Lee left the Coastal Survey

By 1886 he was a wealthy inhabitant of Newton. The hotel was well-regarded and those who stayed in it included prominent members of society including presidents Benjamin Harrison, Chester A. Arthur, and Grover Cleveland, as well as the judge Walbridge A. Field, and Lady Henry Somerset. Lee became a well-regarded member of Massachusetts society, serving on several hotel associations and attending social events in Boston. Lee also advocated for civil rights, attending the 1890 Convention of Colored Men.

The National Bread Company eventually held the bread kneader's rights, and The Goodell Company those to the breadcrumber. Lee fell ill with pulmonary tuberculosis and died on June 11, 1908, in his home.

Legacy In 2019 Lee was inducted into the American National Inventors Hall of Fame.