Sofia Iosilevich

Belarusian-Jewish inventor of the first functional electric wheelchair in 1917

Sofia Iosilevich (1893–1956), a disabled engineer from Minsk, created the prototype electric wheelchair decades before commercial models emerged. After losing her legs in a tram accident at age 19, she modified a wooden chair with salvaged motor parts from early automobiles and bicycle chains.

Her 1917 design featured adjustable speeds and joystick control—innovations absent in manual wheelchairs of the era. Though overshadowed by male inventors, her work inspired Poland's Mobility Freedom Foundation to mass-produce similar devices post-WWII. Iosilevich also advocated for disability rights under Soviet rule, secretly distributing pamphlets about accessible infrastructure.

In 2021, the World Health Organization recognized her as a pioneer in assistive technology. Few know her contributions due to Soviet-era censorship, but recent exhibitions at the Minsk Technical Museum have revived interest in her groundbreaking engineering.