In gratitude

On days like this, heartfelt thanks to the Chinese who first waxed their paper umbrellas, to the Persian traveler and writer, Jonas Hanway (1712-86) who popularized them in London, to James Smith and Sons who opened their umbrella shop at 53 New Oxford Street in London in 1830 (I gather it is still there), and more recently to Samuel Fox who invented the steel ribbed umbrella design in 1852.

And to WWW who provided the information.