Thaddeus Fairbanks

Thaddeus Fairbanks
Fairbanks, circa 1880
Born	(1796-01-16)January 16, 1796 Brimfield, Massachusetts
Died	April 12, 1886(1886-04-12) (aged 90) St. Johnsbury, Vermont
Resting place	Mount Pleasant Cemetery, St. Johnsbury, Vermont
Nationality	American
Occupation(s)	Inventor Businessman
Employer	E. & T. Fairbanks
Known for	Inventor of the Fairbanks scale
Spouse	Lucy Peck Barker (m. 1820–1866, her death)
Children	2 (including Charlotte Fairbanks)
Relatives	Erastus Fairbanks (brother) Ephraim Paddock (uncle) Horace Fairbanks (nephew) Franklin Fairbanks (nephew)

Thaddeus Fairbanks (January 17, 1796 – April 12, 1886) was an American businessman, mechanic, and engineer. He invented furnaces, cooking stoves, cast iron steel plows, and other metal items related to farming. He invented and manufactured the first platform scale, the Fairbanks scale, that allowed the accurate weighing of large objects. His scales revolutionized farming and manufacturing and were sold worldwide, and he received numerous honors and awards for his development of the technology. Fairbanks was also a philanthropist, and was a co-founder of the St. Johnsbury Academy.