John Bell Blish (September 8, 1860 – December 22, 1921) was an American inventor known primarily for developing the
Blish lock
The Blish lock is a breech locking mechanism designed by John Bell Blish based upon his assumption that under extreme pressures, certain dissimilar metals would resist movement with a force greater than friction laws would predict. In modern eng ...
, used in the
Thompson submachine gun
The Thompson submachine gun (also known as the "Tommy Gun", "Chicago Typewriter", "Chicago Piano", “Trench Sweeper” or "Trench Broom") is a blowback-operated, air-cooled, magazine-fed selective-fire submachine gun, invented by United Stat ...
, more commonly known as the "Tommy Gun." Blish licensed the patent for his lock to the Auto-Ordnance Corporation in 1915 in return for company stock.
Blish was a career United States naval officer, serving as
executive officer
An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer, o ...
on the U.S. warships ''Niagara'' and ''Vicksburg'' (PG-11) during the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (clock ...
. He retired from the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
with the rank of
Commander
Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain.
...
in 1919.
Blish was buried at
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...
.
Namesake
The
USS ''John Blish'', a survey ship commissioned during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, was named after him.
External links
''Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships'': ''John Blish''The Unofficial Tommy Gun Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blish, John Bell
1860 births
1921 deaths
20th-century American inventors
American military personnel of the Spanish–American War
Burials at Arlington National Cemetery
United States Navy officers
References