Profile America — Sunday, July 18th. On these blistering hot summer days when we walk from the heat into a cool office, business, or home, we can thank a man many of us never heard of — Willis Carrier. Known as the “father of air conditioning,” Carrier patented what he called an “apparatus for treating air” in 1906. His idea has fundamentally changed the way most Americans live, work and play. A good example is the surging population growth in some of the nation’s warmest climates. Air conditioning came into widespread use following World War II. Even by 1960, only 12 percent of homes in the U.S. were equipped. Today, two-thirds of houses in the nation have central air conditioning. Of the remaining homes, six-out-of-10 have window units. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau online at .

Sources: Chase’s Calendar of Events 2010, p. 353
U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Brief, Tracking the American Dream
Statistical Abstract of the United States 2010, t. 953

http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2010edition.html