The steam engine converts the heat of burning fuel into continuous mechanical motion, first by boiling water into steam and using its pressure to drive a piston. Thomas Newcomen built the first commercially successful steam engine in 1712, an atmospheric engine used to pump water out of mines, and James Watt later separate condenser design dramatically improved its fuel efficiency and turned it into a general purpose power source.
Facts
Disputed
YearThomas Newcomen built the first commercially successful steam engine in 1712, an atmospheric engine used to pump water from mines. Thomas Savery had patented an earlier steam pump in 1698 that saw limited practical use, and James Watt separate condenser, patented in 1769, dramatically improved fuel efficiency and turned the steam engine into the general purpose power source that drove the Industrial Revolution. Which of the three counts as the steam engine inventor depends on whether the test is the first working device, the first patent, or the first design efficient enough for widespread industrial use. Patent or First-Use Date SignificanceThe steam engine freed manufacturing, mining and transport from dependence on human, animal, wind and water power, and became the driving power source of the Industrial Revolution. 2 Connections
Associated With
In Field
Source A History of TechnologyCharles Singer, E. J. Holmyard, A. R. Hall and Trevor I. Williams, editors
Invented By
Source A History of TechnologyCharles Singer, E. J. Holmyard, A. R. Hall and Trevor I. Williams, editors
Source A History of TechnologyCharles Singer, E. J. Holmyard, A. R. Hall and Trevor I. Williams, editors
Patented an earlier steam powered water pump in 1698, sold for draining mines; its broad patent, extended to 1733 by a 1699 Act of Parliament, legally required Thomas Newcomen to partner with Savery to bring the more practical atmospheric engine to market in 1712.
Source Thomas Savery (Wikipedia)Wikipedia contributors
Predecessor Of
Source Encyclopaedia BritannicaEncyclopaedia Britannica editors
In the Other Atlases
Sources
1. James Watt (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia contributors, Wikimedia FoundationPatent trials sectionQuote, Patent trials section
The specification was accepted on 5 January 1769; enrolled on 29 April 1769, and extended to June 1800 by an Act of Parliament in 1775.
2. A History of Technology
Charles Singer, E. J. Holmyard, A. R. Hall and Trevor I. Williams, editors, Oxford University Press, 1954View the Source Thomas Savery (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia contributors, Wikimedia FoundationSteam-powered pump subsection, Career section
On 2 July 1698 Savery patented a steam-powered pump, which he called: A new invention for raiseing of water and occasioning motion to all sorts of mill work by the impellent force of fire, which will be of great use and advantage for drayning mines, serveing townes with water, and for the working of all sorts of mills where they have not the benefitt of water nor constant windes.
Invented By: Thomas Savery, Patent section
A new invention for raiseing of water and occasioning motion to all sorts of mill work by the impellent force of fire.
View the Source Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica editors, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.Predecessor Of: The Internal Combustion EngineView the Source Frequently Asked Questions
Did James Watt invent the steam engine?
No. Savery and Newcomen came first; Watt's separate condenser transformed it.
No. Thomas Savery patented a steam-powered pump in 1698, and Thomas Newcomen built the first commercially successful steam engine in 1712, an atmospheric engine used to pump water out of mines. Watt later added a separate condenser that dramatically improved fuel efficiency and turned the engine into a general purpose power source, and his patent specification was accepted on 5 January 1769.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.