1780s 3 Horse Power Engine for the Birmingham Canal Co.
Reverse side view of the chain pump powered by the Birmingham Canal Co.’s small engines, April 1789.
In the late 1780s, Boulton & Watt began to make small engines, of 3 horses power and under. They ...
1780s 4 Horse Power 'Sun & Planet' Engine
Plan of 4 horse 'sun & planet' engine for Henry Goodwyn & Co., London.
The engine erected at Henry Goodwyn & Co.’s brewery in East Smithfield, London, was the first Boulton & Watt rotative engine ...
1780s Blowing Engine for Donnington Wood Forge
Reverse general section of blowing engine for Donnington Wood, Shropshire.
As with pumping engines, Boulton & Watt’s orders for blowing engines for blast furnaces increased in the 1780s, and the engines ...
1780s Double Expansive Engine, Soho Manufactory
Plan and side view of the 'Double Expansive Engine', Soho Manufactory, by James Watt.
In 1781, James Watt paid considerable attention to utilising the expansive power of steam in his engines. He ...
1780s Double Expansive Engine's Equalizing Beam, Soho Manufactory
Drawing of the equalizing beam for the double expansive engine, Soho Manufactory.
In 1781, James Watt paid considerable attention to utilising the expansive power of steam in his engines. He may ...
1780s Double-acting Engine
First Drawing of the 'Small Reciprocating Engine' (Double-acting Engine) by James Watt.
The idea of using steam to push a piston both up and down, thus allowing an engine to make a powered stroke ...
1780s Double-acting Engine for the Wheal Fortune Copper Mine
Reverse outside front view of engine for Wheal Fortune Copper Mine, Cornwall.
Cornwall continued to be a major market for Boulton & Watt during the 1780s, and they supplied larger and ever more powerful ...
1780s Double-acting Engine for Wheal Fortune Copper Mine
General section of engine for Wheal Fortune Copper Mine, Cornwall, April 1785.
Cornwall continued to be a major market for Boulton & Watt during the 1780s, and they supplied larger and ever more ...
1780s Double-acting Engine to replace Coates & Co.'s Horse Gin and Millwork
Drawing of Coates & Co.’s Horse Gin and Millwork to be replaced by a double-acting engine.
Henry Coates and John Jarratt bought this 7 horse power sun & planet engine for their oil mill at Sculcoates, ...
1780s Double-acting Engine's Working Gear, Soho Manufactory
Drawing of the working gear of the double-acting engine, Soho Manufactory.
The idea of using steam to push a piston both up and down, thus allowing an engine to make a powered stroke in both directions, ...
1780s Double-acting Pumping Engine at River Head Works replaced this Atmospheric Engine Designed by John Smeaton in the 1760s
Upright section of atmospheric engine, at New River Head Water Works, London.
Until the installation of the Boulton & Watt 32 inch engine in 1785, this engine was used to pump water at the New River ...
1780s Double-acting Pumping Engine for River Head Water Works
General view of pumping engine for New River Head Water Works, London, [Portfolio 5/1090]
This drawing shows a typical Boulton & Watt pumping engine of the 1780s and 1790s. The engine was double-acting, ...
1780s Double-acting Sun & Planet Engine for a Tobacco & Snuff Mill
Top part of drawing of elevation and plans of Messrs. Fish & Yates’ Tobacco and Snuff Mill, London.
Samuel Fish and John Yates bought an 8 horse power double-acting sun & planet engine, with a 16 ...
1780s Double-acting Sun & Planet Engine for a Tobacco and Snuff Mill
Lower part of drawing of elevation and plans of Messrs. Fish & Yates’ Tobacco and Snuff Mill, London.
Samuel Fish and John Yates bought an 8 horse power double-acting sun & planet engine, with a ...
1780s Framing for Samuel Whitbread's Engine, London
Reverse side view of the framing for Samuel Whitbread’s engine, London.
The parallel motion was first used on an engine for the London brewer Samuel Whitbread, in 1784. The engine was single-acting, ...
1780s 'Great Engine' for London Bridge
Plan of the 'Great Engine' at London Bridge, March 1787.
The 'Great Engine' was actually a large water wheel that was installed in the fifth arch of London Bridge. The water wheel worked a series ...
1780s Parallel Motion for Thomas Allingham of Rotherhithe
Parallel Motion for Thomas Allingham, Rotherhithe.
Watt developed the parallel motion to keep the piston rod absolutely vertical as the beam moved up and down. If the piston was slightly at an angle, ...
1780s Pumping Engine for Rotterdam
Preliminary drawings of the engine house for pumping engine, near Rotterdam, Holland.
Drainage of the polders and low-lying lands was a major issue for authorities in Holland. The steam engine seemed ...