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Using steam to power industry |
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DESCRIPTION James Watt Steam Beam ('Smethwick') Engine
MANUFACTURER Boulton & Watt, Birmingham, Britain
INVENTOR/DESIGNER James Watt (1736 -1819)
DATE 1778
MATERIAL Iron, steel, wood, copper alloy, glass, paint, brick
DIMENSIONS 10900x7000
PROVENANCE 1779-1959: Birmingham-Wolverhampton canal; Gift from Birmingham Canal Company in 1959
LOCATION Thinktank
CAT. NO 1959.S.01063 | |
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James Watt’s Steam ‘Smethwick’ Engine | © Thinktank Trust | Come and see it in the Power Up gallery at Thinktank
After 1775, Birmingham developed a new industry making much larger products than arms and watches. James Watt’s steam engines put Birmingham at the centre of the European Industrial Revolution.
This is the oldest working steam engine in the world. It was based on Watt’s patent design of 1769 and built in 1778. The Smethwick Engine was installed on the Birmingham-Wolverhampton canal near Smethwick. The engine pumped water to the highest point on the canal, allowing 250 boats to pass through the Smethwick locks every week.
Steam power was later taken up by other businesses... MORE |
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