Chainsaws were originally invented not for cutting wood, but for medical purposes—specifically, to assist in childbirth. In the late 18th century, two Scottish doctors, John Aitken and James Jeffray, developed the first prototype of a chainsaw around 1780. It was designed to make symphysiotomies easier, a surgical procedure that widens the pelvis to help with difficult births. The early chainsaw had a hand-cranked chain with small cutting teeth, intended to remove bone and cartilage more efficiently than traditional tools.

It wasn’t until the early 20th century that the chainsaw was adapted for logging and forestry, evolving into the powerful, gasoline-powered tool we recognize today.

That shift from medicine to forestry is quite a dramatic change in purpose! Would you like to know more about how the design evolved over time?

The first chainsaw, invented in the late 18th century by Scottish doctors John Aitken and James Jeffray, looked very different from the modern tool we know today. It was a hand-powered device, resembling a small, mechanical knife with a chain wrapped around a guiding blade. The chain had fine, serrated teeth designed for cutting through bone and cartilage—not wood.

Imagine a metal frame with a handle on one end and a chain looped around an oval or rectangular guide. The chain was moved by turning a crank, which made the teeth move in a continuous loop. It was more like a surgical instrument than a forestry tool, and it must have been quite intimidating to see in a medical setting!

Would you like to see an illustration or a sketch of how it might have looked? I can generate one for you.

Here’s a sketch of what the first medical chainsaw might have looked like in the late 18th century:

It’s quite a stark contrast to the chainsaws we see today, isn’t it? The idea of using this for medical procedures must have been intense. How does it compare to what you imagined?