Alfred p southwick biography graphic organizer
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Alfred p southwick biography graphic organizer
Alfred P. Southwick
American dentist
Alfred Porter Southwick (May 18, 1826 – June 11, 1898) was a steam-boat engineer, dentist and inventor from Buffalo, New York. He is credited with inventing the electric chair as a method of legal execution.
He was also a professor at the University of Buffalo School of Dental Medicine, now known as the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Electric chair
Further information: Electric chair
In 1881, Alfred Southwick conceived the idea of electrical execution when he heard the story of an intoxicated man who touched a live electric generator.
Given that the man died so quickly, Southwick, a Quaker, concluded that electricity could be used as an alternative to hanging, making executions more humane.[1] His first application for this phenomenon was to help invent a way to euthanize stray dogs at the Buffalo SPCA, but within a year he was publishing his ideas on using this method for capital punishment in scientific journals.