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
Dance ran Gurney's coaches on the Cheltenham and Gloucester Road until
public opposition compelled his withdrawal, but after that he was a joint
patentee with Joshua Field, of an improved boiler. This was applied to the
road carriage above mentioned and the first trips were made in September,
1833, with a drag and omnibus attached, a speed of sixteen miles an hour
being attained. On the first trip from London to Brighton, fifteen
passengers were carried and the distance of fifty-two miles was covered in
five and a half hours, the return journey being performed in less than
five hours. About the middle of October the steam drag and omnibus were
put upon the road between Wellington Street, Waterloo Bridge, and
Greenwich, where it continued to run for a fortnight, with a view of
showing the public in London what could be done in this direction. The
proprietor had no intention of making it a permanent mode of conveyance,
and therefore kept the company as select as he could by charging half a
crown for tickets each way.
JOSHUA FIELD
Born in 1786. Died in 1863.
A member of the well-known firm of Maudsley, Sons & Field, marine
engineers, of London, England, Joshua Field took out a patent for an
improved boiler, in conjunction with Sir Charles Dance. The firm made an
improved vehicle for Dance, and in 1835 Field constructed for himself a
steam carriage that made a trip in July with a party of guests. The
carriage was driven up Denmark Hill, and did the distance, nine miles, in
forty-four minutes. It also ran several times to Reading and back, at the
rate of twelve miles an hour. One of the subscribers towards the building
of this carriage, said that it was a success mechanically, but not
economical. Field was one of the six founders of the Institution of Civil
Engineers.
DIETZ
Previous to the time that the carriage of Francis Maceroni was taken to
France, an engine designed by Dietz was run in the streets of Paris. In
the reports of the Academy of Sciences and Academy of Industry in Paris,
in 1840, this vehicle was described. The carriage had eight wheels, two of
which were large and gave the impulsion. The six smaller wheels rose and
fell according to the irregularity of the road, and at the same time
assisted in bearing the weight of the carriages. The wheels were bound
with wood tires, having cork underneath. The locomotive was a drag,
drawing a carriage for passengers. The engine was of thirty horse-power,
and a speed of ten miles an hour was made.
YATES
A steam carriage was built by Messrs. Yates & Smith, London, in 1834. It
had a trial in July of that year, running from the factory in Whitechapel,
along High and several other streets, at the rate of ten to twelve miles
an hour. Vibrating engines, working on horizontal framing, were used. The
coach resembled an ordinary stage-coach.
G. MILLICHAP
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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