The one-way hinge damper includes a cylindrical housing into a rotor is rotatably inserted. A gap is formed between the rotor and the cylindrical housing which is filled with silicone or a similar viscous fluid for damping the rotation of the rotor. The damping can be increased by forming longitudinal grooves or similar discontinuities in the interior surface of the cylindrical housing and longitudinal passageways on the exterior surface of the rotor. A clutch, to which the output shaft is attached, is biased against an end of the rotor by a wave spring. Both the clutch and the end of the rotor include complementary rotationally alternating ramped surfaces and flat (or longitudinally level) surfaces. Radially extending walls are formed between the higher end of the ramped surfaces and the adjacent flat surface. When the output shaft and the clutch are rotated in a first direction, the radially extending walls of the clutch align with and engage the radially extending walls of the rotor and the rotor rotates through the viscous fluid thereby achieving damping. However, when the output shaft and clutch are rotated in a second direction, the ramped surfaces of the clutch "ramp over" the ramped surfaces of the rotor, and the rotor does not rotate, thereby allowing the clutch and output shaft to rotate substantially free of damping.