ABSTRACT
Leo J. Wahl first began experimenting with electromagnetic motors in 1911 as a junior at Sterling High School in northwest Illinois. While an engineering student at the University of Illinois, he designed a vibrating medical massager later manufactured by his uncle, J. Frank Wahl. Leo spent much of his free time peddling these massagers to local barbers. On these excursions, he began to envision ways electromagnetic motors could make barbers’ day-to-day work more efficient. After his uncle was called into service during the Mexican Revolution, Leo took over the manufacturing business and began to work on designs for an electric hair clipper.
