Willis Haviland Carrier is credited with the invention of air conditioning. The last name may be familiar to you. The company he founded, Carrier, is still making air conditioners. Click on http://inventors.about.com/library/weekly/aa081797.htm for more information about Carrier.

THE REAL INVENTOR OF AIR CONDITIONING David Crosthwait, inventor and authority on heat transfer, ventilation and air conditioning, was born in Nashville in 1898 and grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. At that time, it was relatively rare for an African American man to achieve an esteemed reputation in the sciences, yet that is exactly what he did. Crosthwait earned a B.S. from Purdue University in 1913 and a masters degree in engineering in 1920. A few years after he finished his degrees, he became Research Engineer, Director of Research Laboratories for C.A. Dunham Company, now Marshall Engineered Products Co., in Marshalltown, Iowa, where he worked from 1925 to 1930. During the 1920s and 30s, Crosthwait invented an improved boiler, a new thermostat control and a new differential vacuum pump, all more effective for the heating systems in larger buildings. He became very well-known for coming up with innovative solutions to heating and ventilation problems, and as such, Crosthwait was commissioned to design the heating system for Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Over the course of his career, Mr. Crosthwait received 39 U.S. and 80 foreign patents relating to the design, installing, testing, and service of HVAC power plants, heating, and ventilating systems. He also authored a manual on heating and cooling with water and guides, standards, and codes that dealt with heating, ventilation, refrigeration, and air conditioning systems. In 1956 the C. A. Dunham Company and the Bush Manufacturing Company merged to form the Dunham-Bush company. Crosthwait served as technical advisor of Dunham-Bush from 1930 to 1971. After retiring from industry in 1971, Mr. Crosthwait taught a course on steam heating theory and control systems at Purdue University during the 1970s. For his achievements, Mr. Crosthwait was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Purdue in 1975, he was named Fellow of the, AAAS, and he served as a member of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers, the American Chemical Society, and the National Society of Professional Engineers.

Willis Haviland Carrier invented the very first system to cool an interior structure, his system was the first truly successful and safe one that started the science of modern air conditioning.

David Crosthwait is not the "real" inventor of air conditioning. The first working air conditioner was invented by Willis Haviland Carrier in 1902 when Crosthwait would have been only four years old. I believe Crosthwait did have a large roll in perfecting central air conditioning for homes, and businesses though.

all hale the brother.

Some cool dude!!! Sorry couldn't resist : )))