Why were chainsaws invented?
Quick answer
The earliest chainsaw was a medical tool. In the late 1700s, Scottish doctors John Aitken and James Jeffray described a small hand-cranked chain saw for cutting bone, including during difficult childbirth. Motorized chainsaws for cutting trees came much later, in the early 20th century.
It sounds like an internet myth, but it’s well documented in medical history. Before anesthesia and safe cesarean sections, doctors needed ways to help when a baby was stuck during birth.
- 1780s–1790sScottish surgeons John Aitken and James Jeffray describe a fine, hand-cranked chain saw for cutting bone
- 1830German surgeon Bernhard Heine invents the osteotome, a more advanced hand-cranked chain saw for bone surgery
- 1920sEngineers develop motorized chainsaws for cutting timber; Andreas Stihl patents an electric chainsaw in 1926
- 1950sLighter gasoline chainsaws that one person can carry transform logging
How the medical chainsaw worked
The surgical saw was a thin chain with small cutting teeth, turned by a hand crank. It could cut through bone with less damage to surrounding tissue than a straight saw. Doctors used it for symphysiotomy, widening the pelvis during an obstructed birth, and for removing diseased sections of bone.
Thankfully, as anesthesia, antiseptics and safer cesarean sections improved in the late 1800s and 1900s, the procedure became rare.
From operating room to forest
| Medical chain saw | Modern chainsaw | |
|---|---|---|
| Era | Late 1700s – 1800s | 1920s onward |
| Power | Hand crank | Gasoline, electric or battery |
| Size | Small, handheld | Heavy, with a long guide bar |
| Use | Cutting bone in surgery | Cutting trees and wood |
The same basic idea, a chain of teeth moving in a loop, proved perfect for timber. Early motorized versions were so heavy they needed two people to operate.
Inventions often end up far from their original purpose. Another famous invention story: who invented the light bulb.
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