Automobile Biographies: An Account of the Lives and the Work of Those Who Have Been Identified with the Invention and Development of Self-Propelled Vehicles on the Common RoadsWeeks, Lyman Horace
History
Automobile Biographies: An Account of the Lives and the Work of Those Who Have Been Identified with the Invention and Development of Self-Propelled Vehicles on the Common Roads
Weeks, Lyman Horace
Automobiles -- History
One day, however, a heavy strain, unusually severe, caused by jolting over
the rough road, broke a wheel, and the weight of the coach falling on the
boiler caused an explosion. Five persons were killed, and as a result of
this accident the Court of Session interdicted the further travel of these
carriages in Scotland. The Steam Carriage Company brought an action for
damages against the trustees of the turnpike road for having compelled
them to withdraw the carriages from the Glasgow and Paisley road by
"wantonly, wrongfully and maliciously accumulating masses of metal, stones
and rubbish on the said road, in order to create such annoyance and
obstruction as might impede, overturn, or destroy the steam coaches
belonging to the plaintiffs," but nothing seems to have come of this
action.
No longer used in Scotland, two of Russell's coaches were sent to London.
There they were engaged in running with passengers between London and
Greenwich, or Kew Bridge. Several trips were made to Windsor. After about
a year they were offered for sale, and, on exhibition preparatory to sale,
they started every day from Hyde Park Corner to make a journey to
Hammersmith. But they remained unsold, and were shortly forgotten.
Had conditions been more encouraging Russell might have achieved as great
success in his land as in his water vehicles. He was a man of rare
scientific attainments, and his work in ship designing and building put
him in the front rank of naval architects and builders of his day. In
addition to his work, already mentioned, he built a big steamer to
transport railway trains across Lake Constance.
W. H. CHURCH
A physician of Birmingham, England, Dr. W. H. Church gave many years to
the study of steam locomotion. Several patents were secured by him between
1832 and 1835, and in the latter year a common road carriage, built
according to his plans, was brought out.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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