When you think about home security, smart cameras, Ring doorbells, or 24/7 surveillance, you’re thinking about technology that exists because of one brilliant Black woman:
Marie Van Brittan Brown.

Decades before Silicon Valley, before video doorbells, before security apps, Marie, a nurse from Queens, New York, invented the world’s first home security system. Her creation didn’t just influence modern security; it built the foundation for a multi-billion-dollar industry.

Her name deserves to be known, celebrated, and taught everywhere innovation is discussed.

A Queen From Queens: The Early Life of a Genius Innovator

Marie Van Brittan Brown was born in 1922 in Jamaica, Queens. She grew up in a community where neighbors looked out for one another, but also where safety wasn’t guaranteed. Crime was rising, police response times were slow, and Black families often struggled to get help when they needed it most.

Marie wasn’t a scientist by training. She wasn’t an engineer or a tech founder.
She was a working Black woman with a sharp mind and a determination to solve problems in her community.

That, in itself, was revolutionary.

Why She Created the Security System: A Need Black Families Understood

As a nurse, Marie worked long, irregular hours. Her husband, Albert Brown, an electronics technician, did too. That meant she was often home alone, and in the 1960s, Black neighborhoods were underserved and over-policed, but not protected.

Instead of feeling powerless, Marie decided to invent the solution herself.

The Invention That Changed the World

In 1966, she filed a patent for the first closed-circuit home security system, which included:

• A camera that could move between multiple peepholes
• A monitor inside the home
• A microphone and speaker system
• A panic button that could alert the police
• An ability to see and speak to visitors without opening the door

In other words, she invented:

• The video doorbell
• The intercom system
• Modern home surveillance
• Remote visitor monitoring
• Emergency alert technology

Her system was futuristic, especially for its time, long before digital cameras, Wi-Fi, or smartphones.

The U.S. Patent Office granted her patent in 1969, listing both Marie and Albert Brown as creators, but Marie was the original visionary.

What Most People Don’t Know About Marie Van Brittan Brown

1. Major companies still cite her invention’s patent today.

Her work directly influenced modern systems used by ADT, Ring, Nest, and more.

2. She inspired more Black women and men to enter STEM and patent innovation.

Her patent opened the door for more Black inventors to be taken seriously.

3. She received an award from the National Science Committee.

The recognition was rare for Black inventors in the 1960s.

4. She NEVER received the level of fame her invention deserved.

Her innovation became standard in homes around the world, but her name was erased from mainstream tech history.

Legacy: A Black Woman Built the Blueprint for Home Safety

Despite working outside the tech industry, Marie Van Brittan Brown imagined a future that still shapes how we live today.

Every doorbell camera.
Every motion detector.
Every smartphone-connected home system.
Every panic-button alert.

All of them exist because she dared to create something bigger than her own reality.

Marie Van Brittan Brown made homes safer, not just for Black families, but for families everywhere.

Her brilliance deserves to be shouted from the rooftops.