John Bell Blish

John Bell Blish (September 8, 1860 - December 22, 1921) Known mostly for inventing the Blish lock, used in the Thompson submachine gun. Blish licensed the patent for his lock to the Auto-Ordnance Corporation in 1915 in trade for company stock.

Blish was a career United States naval officer, serving as executive officer on the U.S. warships Niagara and Vicksburg (PG-11) during the Spanish-American War. He retired from the United States Navy with the rank of Commander in 1919.

Blish was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Namesake

The USS John Blish (AGS-10), a survey ship commissioned during World War II, was named after him.

External links

• Genealogical and Historical Page for John Bell Blish
• The Unofficial Tommy Gun Page

Persondata
Name	Blish, John Bell
Alternative names
Short description	American inventor
Date of birth	September 8, 1860
Place of birth
Date of death	December 22, 1921
Place of death