Roadside Attraction: Grave of the Smiley Face Inventor - Worcester, MA

Grave of the Inventor

 of the 

Smiley Face 

Harvey Ross Ball

Worcester, MA

N 42° 14.079 W 071° 50.242

Quick Description: 

The inventor of the ubiquitous smiley face, Harvey Ross Ball, is located in the western edge of the St. Rita section of Notre Dame Cemetery, Worcester, MA.

Long Description:

When the State Mutual Life Assurance Company of Worcester, MA found it necessary to raise worker morale they hired freelance artist Harvey Ross Ball to design a happy image for posters, buttons, and signs. The result was the smiley face. Note: the original smiley face has oval eyes, the left eye is slightly larger, and the smile is asymmetrical.

Harvey Ball took ten minutes to create the image, was paid $45, and never applied for a trademark or copyright for his design. Thus, it entered the public domain and became free for anyone to use. The smiley face then became a world wide icon.

His grave marker contains the original image of the smiley face on both the front and the back.