Bornett L. Bobroff emigrated from Russia to the United States in 1904 and settled in Milwaukee. He worked at various places as a machinist until 1912 when he participated in a water waste survey for the City of Milwaukee. During all these years, his avocation was inventing. In 1917, the Bobroff voting machine was installed by the Wisconsin Assembly. This was the first operating legislative voting machine in the nation and ended the need for time-consuming roll call votes. Other inventions were a system of call signals for use by hospital patients, and turn signal devices for automobiles. The latter were manufactured by the Teleoptic Company of Racine, Wisconsin, of which Bobroff eventually became president.
