Steam Power

A steam boat was invented before airplanes trucks cars and trains, if humans wanted to travel, rivers were the option. When steam boats were introduced that all changed. The Steamboat would carry people and cargo from one place to another, they could travel up to a speed of 5 miles an hour. They were soon used for trade and took charge of the river.

The idea of using steam as a force to power machinery was not new during the seventeen hundreds; it had already been mentioned by ancient Greek scholars. It was scientist such as James watt that refined that idea to create the steam engine (Live science, 2012). The concept is simple, water is heated by coal and the resulting steam acts as a driving force for the machines, similar to how the rivers flow powered the mills (Live science, 2012). Water power meant that factories were limited to certain locations, however steam powered factories could did not have such constraint (Live science, 2012). The steam engine expanded industries all over Britain. First, it improved the coal industry by pumping water out of coal mines, making it safe from flooding (Live science, 2012). Secondly, the

Initially, charcoal and wood were used a fuel source, but as those resources became scarce, coal became a necessity. As shown in Document 1, England was fortunate enough to have a readily available coal supply that other countries in Europe were not able to have. As England became industrialized, more coal was needed to fuel steam engines and furnaces. The development of factories and the improvement of the steam engine also increased the demand for coal. As a result, coal mines that were once mined at the surface, now got deeper and deeper, and there was too much water to safely get more coal. When the Newcomen engine was put into use at the coal mines, coal was put into the steam engine to pump more coal out. Similarly almost every other piece of technology in that time period used coal as the main fuel source so the need for coal skyrocketed. Document 4 explains how England had the natural conditions necessary to succeed such as coal, which is a major reason the Industrial Revolution started in England and not in any other

At first, overland travel was slow and expensive, and the west was isolated from the rest of the nation. Canals, steamboats, and railroads began to appear, resulting in faster travel, cheaper transport, and greater economic growth. The Erie Canal, completed in 1825, connected New York City to the Great Lakes. It cut the trip time from twenty days to six days and made it much cheaper to ship goods, which later inspired many new canal projects. Additionally, steam engines used the steam produced by boiling water to drive machinery. They were developed as a new source of power in the early 1700s and improved by James Watt in 1765 to be used in factories and for transportation. In 1807, Robert Fulton used the idea of steam power to built one of the first boats powered by a steam engine. These steamboats could travel against the wind and against river currents, increased the speed and lowered the costs of river travel and shipping, and opened up the South and West to more travel and trade. Furthermore, in the 1830s, railroads were developed. Steampowered locomotives pulled trains of cars. Travel by train was faster than travel by horse and trains carried more cargo than other land transportation did. Thus, railroads could be built where there were no rivers. Before long, railroads spread rapidly across the United States and the miles of railroad tracks increased from 3,000 miles in 1840 to 30,000 in 1860. They were concentrated in the North, made shipping cheaper and faster, linked the East and the West, and helped industry

“The water-frame used the waterpower from fast-flowing streams to drive spinning wheels.” (course reader 102) Then there was the introduction of the steam engine and power-loom. Due to an expired patent, James Watt decided to create his version of the steam engine for use in a cotton mill plant and introduced a system for the factory that was revolutionary. As a result, wages and manufacturing of cotton and iron really increased. This helped get more work done in less time and gave people jobs. (Document 2) The steam engines also helped get the economy ramped up by being able to bring supplies to the cities and more jobs to people. The steam engines provided jobs because they needed miners, engineers, and sailors who could build the canals and railroads for this transportation. As a result, they could bring supplies to the cities which also increased farmland available to produce more food for everyone. (Document 3) The steam engine brought in railroad development, industrialization and changes to the population. (Document 9) With the growth of railways and transportation, from 1801-1851, many cities were developed within the central part of Great Britain and the population

Engines built by George Stephenson and his sons, Robert, were considered superior. Rocket, which was built by them, was used on the first public railway line which opened in 1830, extending 32 miles from Liverpool to Manchester. Rocket went 16 miles per hour (Spielvogel 609).

What once took 20 days for wheat at $100 per ton to be transported from western New York State to Albany, now took only 10 days at $5 per ton for the wheat to be transported the same distance (Keene, 264). The success of the Erie Canal caused even more canals to be completed across the country. About the same time that the Erie Canal was completed the first railway began running in England. In the year 1830, a steam-powered train was successfully tested by the Baltimore and Ohio railroad. As a result, American quickly began creating their own railroads and by the year 1840 the amount of railroad mileage was higher than that of the canals (Keene, 264). The railroad greatly decreased the amount of time it took for certain goods to be delivered. With each new invention of transportation, people were amazed but the invention of the railroad caused the most amazement. People were able to get from one part of the country to the other even faster than before. The intellectual elements of 1815-1848 greatly improved the way of life. Goods were transported faster and more efficiently. People were able to travel from one place to another in about half the time it usually

Locomotives could transport thousands of troops to there destination in a very quick manner.. For example, Herman Haught rendered a strategy that was used at Gettysburg to transport the wounded. Herman Haught 's strategy was very effective in moving wounded soldiers. Two thousand to four thousand injured troops at a time. Another, fantastic example is during the first Battle of Manassas when the Confederates sent reinforcement troops with a locomotive causing a victory over the Union. Another example, is the Battle of Chickamauga when President Abraham Lincoln sent twenty thousand reinforcement troops in just eleven days from Washington, D.C. to Georgia. Locomotive were used for transporting the wounded and reinforcements during the United States of America 's civil war, but locomotives were also extremely effective at transporting resources such as guns, horses, food, and anything needed.

Trains and ships powered by steam enabled Soldiers and supplies to move more rapidly around the battlefield. The Napoleonic style of warfare was limited logistically with the support elements being no more than a five day march away. Supporting the battle was changed drastically where comparing a six mule wagon train to a 15 car train yielded 500 tons moved versus 5250 tons moved. Along with steam powered logistical ships, iron steam powered warships made their way onto the scene. The battle of the Monitor and the Merrimac on 8-9 March 1862 doomed wooden ships as fighting vessels. 1 This was the first ever battle between Iron Clad Warships. Wooden warships began to fade away when the CSS Virginia rammed the USS Cumberland and forced USS Congress to run aground fearing the same fate. These coal burning, steam driven machines changed transportation

My steamboat voyage to Albany and back, has turned out rather more favorable than I had calculated. The distance from New York to Albany is one hundred and fifty miles; I ran it up in thirty-two hours, and down in thirty. I had a light breeze against me the whole way, both going and coming, and the voyage has been performed wholly by, the power of the steam engine. I overtook many sloops and schooners beating to windward and parted with them as if they had been at anchor. The power of propelling boats by steam is now fully proved.”- Robert Fulton. The steamboat, a nineteenth-century invention by Robert Fulton, gave a path to more efficient water travel, which aroused an increase in productivity and economic growth due to mainly the high speeds of the steamboat that lead to economic as well as social effects on society.

The unlocking of steam power in human technology was integral to the development of the steam engine, which allows access to steam ships and railroads.Railroads allow the mass transport of goods in rapid speed, promoting extensive trade. Steam shipping would induce the flow of goods and migration to the New World, and the development of the telegraph would create price convergence and rapid communication across multiple economies.

In addition with the invention of the steam engine came the steam locomotive. As the development of steam engines progressed through the 18th century, various attempts were made to apply them to road and railway us. In 1812 Matthew Murray was the first to build a successful steam locomotive, and it hauled 27 carts of around 95 tonnes at 3 mph. Accompanied with this came Richard Trevithick’s 40 psi steam locomotive, The Penydarren Locomotive, “the world's first ever railway journey that ran 9 miles from the ironworks at Penydarren to the Merthyr-Cardiff Canal, South Wales.” This creation lead to many more innovations, which will lead to speedy land travel for goods and products.

The canalization of rivers, the steam engine, and railways were key components of the development of industry [2]. The extensive canal system was created around the mid 1700s to move goods and supplies inland. This system was cheaper and quicker than shipping goods over land [3]. The steam engine, however, was the driving force behind the Industrial Revolution. Prior to the invention of steam power, factories were located along rivers and used water for power. The development of a practical, efficient steam engine and its application to industry and transportation was a great leap in progress for industrialization. The steam engine’s application was limitless, and it was responsible for lifting industries from infancy to adolescence. Steam engines were used to develop machines that operated factory systems, pumps for mines, faster ships, and locomotives. A steam locomotive was able to carry raw materials and products very quickly. The expansion of the uses of the steam engine created the steam locomotive and a greater need for a railroad system. As a result, Railroads multiplied rapidly in England from 1,000 miles in 1836 to more than 7,000 miles by 1852 [4]. Machinery took the place of the work of many humans and made the work easier on others.

The idea using the power of steam to our advantage goes back nearly twenty-one centuries. A learned writer in ancient Alexandria, named Hero, wrote a manuscript describing various devices and ideas of the time. Although it is not proven that Hero was the inventor of any of these devices, he is given credit for the earliest mention of steam power. Hero describes a method to open the doors of a temple with the action of a fire on the alter at the front of the temple. A series of pipes runs between the alter and the temple doors. The force of the steam created by the fire on the alter is strong enough to open the temple doors. The essential principle that Hero used was to change heat energy into mechanical energy or work. Supposedly, Hero continued his work and ended up creating what is often called the "First Steam Engine." Hero's engine is featured on below on the right. The cauldron or bowl like portion AB holds water. There is a steam tight cover place over top of the cauldron. Two pipes extend from the lid and suspend a globe directly above the cauldron. The water is heated, causing steam to be created and forced through the pipes. The globe then fills with steam. Pipes K and H are located on opposite sides of the globe and allow the steam to escape when the pressure becomes uneven. The escaping steam then causes the globe to spin on its axis.

In the beginning, man’s only form of transportation was his own feet. Later, to comfort his journey on foot, was the invention of footwear. Through envy of the speed of other animals he would learn to tame these animals. People who live in the desert ride atop camels. The people who live in the frigid climates travel by dogs. Some people from places like India ride elephants. But the must widely used form of transportation by animal power was by horse. Man would soon develop boats and ships to travel long distances over water and time would flow like the rivers and hundreds of years later, in the late 1700s steam power became the new craze. Steam power got the wheels turning amongst many inventors who