The History of Roller Skates

History of Roller Skates

Who invented roller skates ? To the best of our knowledge Joseph Merlin of Huy, Belgium was the inventor of roller skates. In the logs of roller skate history, and from The Big Book of Questions and Answers by Resnick, Grambo and Tallarico, roller skates inventor, Mr. Merlin introduced his invention by roller-skating into a ballroom playing a violin. That was in 1759. Unfortunately, he didn't know how to stop and crashed into a full-length mirror, breaking his violin.

The following are exerts from the article, An Overview of the Evolution of Dry Land Skating or Roller Skates, written by Mary Bellis and featured on About.com, where Bellis claims an unknown Dutchman was the person who invented roller stakes. With so many unknown Dutchman it not sure if we will ever know the true history of roller skates, or exactly who invented roller skates.

Article Excerpt on The History of Roller Skates:

Early 1700s - In Holland, an unknown Dutchman decided to go ice skating in the summer, ice skating was the widespread method used in the Netherlands to travel the numerous frozen canals in winter. The unknown inventor accomplished dry land skating by nailing wooden spools to strips of wood and attaching them to his shoes. 'Skeelers' was the nickname given to the new dry-land skaters.

1760 - A London instrument maker and inventor, Joseph Merlin, attended a masquerade party wearing one of his new inventions, metal-wheeled boots. Joseph desiring to make a grand entrance added to the pizzazz of rolling in while playing the violin. Lining the huge ballroom was a very expensive wall-length mirror. The fiddling skater stood no chance of stopping and crashed solidly into the mirrored wall, as his roller skates crashed into society.

The article also mentions the inventor of roller skates as we know them now:

1863 - American, James Plimpton found a way to make a very useable pair of skates. Plimpton's skates had two parallel sets of wheels, one pair under the ball of the foot and the other pair under the heel. The four wheels were made of boxwood and were mounted on rubber springs. Plimpton's design was the first dry-land skate that could maneuver in a smooth curve. This configuration is considered the birth of the modern four-wheeled roller skates, which allowed for turns and the ability to skate backwards.

1884 - The invention of pin ball-bearing wheels made rolling easier and skates lighter.

History of Rollerblades:

1979 - Scott Olson and Brennan Olson, brothers and hockey players who lived in Minneapolis, Minnesota, found an antique pair of roller skates. It was one of the early skates that used the 'in-line' wheels rather than the four-wheeled parallel design of James Plimpton. Intrigued by the in-line design, the brothers began redesigning roller skates, taking design elements from the found skates and using modern materials. They used polyurethane wheels, attached the skates to ice hockey boots, and added a rubber toe-brake to their new design.

1983 - Scott Olson, the inventor of inline skates, founded Rollerblade , Inc. and the term 'rollerblading' became the new name for the sport of in-line skating because, at that time, Rollerblade, Inc. was the only manufacturer of in-line skates. The first mass-produced roller blades , while innovative had some design flaws: they were difficult to put on and adjust, prone to collecting dirt and moisture in the ball-bearings, the wheels were easily damaged and the brakes came from the old roller skate toe-brake and were not very effective. The Olson brothers sold Rollerblade, Inc. and the new owners had the money to really improve the design. The first massively successful Rollerblade skate was the Lightning TRS. In this pair of skates the flaws had vanished, fiberglass was used to produce the frames, the wheels were better protected, the skates were easier to put on and adjust and stronger brakes were placed at the rear. With the success of the Lightning TRS, other in-line skate companies appeared: Ultra Wheels, Oxygen, K2 and others.

1989 - Rollerblade, Inc. produced the Macro and Aeroblades models, the first skates fastened with three buckles instead of long laces that needed threading.

1990 - Rollerblade, Inc. switched to a glass-reinforced thermoplastic resin (durethan polyamide) for their skates, replacing the polyurethane compounds previously used. This decreased the average weight of skates by nearly fifty percent.

1993 - Rollerblade, Inc. developed ABT or 'Active Brake Technology'. A fiberglass post attached at one end to the top of the boot and at the other end to a rubber-brake, behind the back wheel. The skater had to straighten one leg to stop, driving the post into the brake, which then hit the ground. Skaters had been tilting their foot back to make contact with the ground, before ABT. The new brake design increased safety.

Bellis' full article can be viewed at: http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa050997.htm

We'll take the liberty to add on to the history. In the modern era of the 21 st Century:

1993 - Bert Lovitt and Warren Winslow, two inventors working together, invent an all terrain skate that uses 2 angled wheels.

1997 - Lovitt & Winslow file their first Patent Application for their skate invention

1999 - Lovitt & Winslow incorporate a new company to manufacture and market their new skates and call the new company, LandRoller.

2005 - LandRoller is revolutionizing skating with a radical design that cranks up performance to take skaters to places - and surfaces - never before imaginable. LandRoller has perfected a new and superior skate using patented, Angled Wheel Technology™. LandRoller breaks away from inlines with two large, side-mounted, out-of-line wheels angled so they roll astride the centerline of the boot and maintain a low center of gravity. The result: Greater stability, better maneuverability, longer glide time, a smoother, chatter-free ride, easier braking and the ability to skate many more surfaces. Get ready to 'Get Out of Line!'