Peter Cooper, Inventor of The 1st Steam Locomotive of America
Peter Cooper was born to a Dutch family on February 12, 1791. He didn't attend much school but was working with machines for most of his life. By the age of 17 he was an apprentice to a Coach Maker in Long Island where he made machines to shear cloth. Cooper took advantage of the Industrial Revolution because there were many unskilled workers. Cooper invented a machine for shaping wheel hubs, concocted a method to take power from tides, invented a rotary steam engine, patented a musical cradle, conducted a method to make salt, go the first American patent for making gelatin, and also unveiled the 1st steam locomotive that he called Tom Thumb. He also connected cabling so people from the U.S. could talk to people in Britain.
In 1828 Cooper went to Baltimore on a huge investment. He met 2 guys in Baltimore who had him buy a plot of harbor-land without a single dime contributed. There Cooper made the 1st working American steam engine that could work on the tight turns of Maryland's hills. He had clearance to test his engine "Tom Thumb" on the railways.
One of Cooper's last projects was to connect cables so people could communicate via telegraph. It took many ships to haul all of the cables. They laid the cables down successfully. But after about 3 weeks, the cables stopped working.
In 1828 Cooper went to Baltimore on a huge investment. He met 2 guys in Baltimore who had him buy a plot of harbor-land without a single dime contributed. There Cooper made the 1st working American steam engine that could work on the tight turns of Maryland's hills. He had clearance to test his engine "Tom Thumb" on the railways.
One of Cooper's last projects was to connect cables so people could communicate via telegraph. It took many ships to haul all of the cables. They laid the cables down successfully. But after about 3 weeks, the cables stopped working.
The Steam Engine
The steam engine was invented in 1690 by Frenchman Denis Papin. He created the engine so it could pump out water. It was a small crude device for one cylinder to fit over a flame. As water evaporated the engine would force a piston to close. The engine was then taken off the flame so the piston could be shoved down so work could be done. The atmospheric steam engine was built in 1712 by Thomas Newcomen and John Calley. The engine created steam in a boiler and sent the steam up into a cylinder directly above. Water was then injected into the cylinder, causing a condensing of the steam. This would lower the pressure so outside air could get into the cylinder. Newcomen’s engine was modified many times; some even were being sold by 1800.
A Scottish instrument maker named James Watt thought that having the heat and coolness together, created poor fuel utilization. So he decided to make the cooling chamber separate from the heating chamber. Watt and his partner Matthew Boulton sold their engines at 1/3 of fuel savings being paid to them. Watt’s engine was 75% more fuel efficient than Newcomen’s engine. Watt improved the crankshaft so there was more power. He also fixed the regulation flow of steam to the engine and also fixed the flywheel; which smoothed the jerking action of the cylinders. He also figured that high pressure steam was better than atmospheric steam. Even though he thought this, his engines never ran at high power.
In 1801 the 1st steam drawn carriage was invented by Richard Trevithick. 2 years later the 1st steam locomotive was invented, it didn't last long because the boiler exploded. In 1829 George Stephenson invented the rocket locomotive which inspired the railroad systems in many countries.
A Scottish instrument maker named James Watt thought that having the heat and coolness together, created poor fuel utilization. So he decided to make the cooling chamber separate from the heating chamber. Watt and his partner Matthew Boulton sold their engines at 1/3 of fuel savings being paid to them. Watt’s engine was 75% more fuel efficient than Newcomen’s engine. Watt improved the crankshaft so there was more power. He also fixed the regulation flow of steam to the engine and also fixed the flywheel; which smoothed the jerking action of the cylinders. He also figured that high pressure steam was better than atmospheric steam. Even though he thought this, his engines never ran at high power.
In 1801 the 1st steam drawn carriage was invented by Richard Trevithick. 2 years later the 1st steam locomotive was invented, it didn't last long because the boiler exploded. In 1829 George Stephenson invented the rocket locomotive which inspired the railroad systems in many countries.
You Should use this invention because.....
Fellow Americans, you should use this invention because it's the next step from horse drawn carriages. It travels at 18 mi per hour. In the race the invention lost, it took the machine less than an hour to get from Baltimore to Ellicott's Village, 13 mi to the west. Even though "Tom Thumb" lost, it showed us that machinery will one day take this land over. "Tom Thumb" also showed that it is the only machine that can take those sharp turns on the hills of Maryland.
I say that this train will become so much faster as time will go on. I encourage all of you to use this to show that we as Americans are able to keep up with the world of technology. "Tom Thumb" is only the beginning of a great future. I expect to see trains that triple the speed of "Tom Thumb" and can carry loads of people. One day I will see that a train will take you from one place of the country to another. So I hope all of you see that this train will become better than a horse drawn carriage, as long as time progresses.
I say that this train will become so much faster as time will go on. I encourage all of you to use this to show that we as Americans are able to keep up with the world of technology. "Tom Thumb" is only the beginning of a great future. I expect to see trains that triple the speed of "Tom Thumb" and can carry loads of people. One day I will see that a train will take you from one place of the country to another. So I hope all of you see that this train will become better than a horse drawn carriage, as long as time progresses.
Bibliography
"Britannica School." Britannica School. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2013.
"American National Biography Online." American National Biography Online. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2013.
"America's First Steam Locomotive, 1830." America's First Steam Locomotive, 1830. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2013.
"American National Biography Online." American National Biography Online. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2013.
"America's First Steam Locomotive, 1830." America's First Steam Locomotive, 1830. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2013.