Elisha Graves Otis was an American industrialist, founder of the Otis Elevator Company

Otis Elevator Company

The Otis Elevator Company is the world's largest manufacturer of vertical transportation systems today, principally focusing on elevators and escalators...

, and inventor of a safety device that prevents elevator

Elevator

An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...

s from falling if the hoisting cable fails. He worked on this device while living in Yonkers, New York

Yonkers, New York

Yonkers is the fourth most populous city in the state of New York , and the most populous city in Westchester County, with a population of 195,976...

 in 1852, and had a finished product in 1854.
Otis was born in Halifax, Vermont

Halifax, Vermont

Halifax is a town in Windham County, Vermont, in the United States. The town was named for the Earl of Halifax. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 782.-Geography:...

 to Stephen Otis, Jr. and Phoebe Glynn. He moved away from home at the age of 20, eventually settling in Troy, New York

Troy, New York

Troy is a city in the US State of New York and the seat of Rensselaer County. Troy is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany and Schenectady, forming a region popularly called the Capital...

, where he lived for five years employed as a wagon driver.