James Watt (1736

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Biography

James Watt was a Scottish inventor, engineer and chemist who improved on Thomas Newcomen's 1712 Newcomen steam engine with his Watt steam engine in 1776, which was fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world.

Timeline

The story of James Watt, told in moments.

1765 Event

Walking across Glasgow Green on a Sunday afternoon, he realized a separate condenser would fix the Newcomen steam engine's terrible inefficiency. The idea that powered the Industrial Revolution came during a stroll.

What exactly happened on that walk across Glasgow Green? Was the separate condenser obvious or revelatory?

1776 Life

Partnered with Matthew Boulton in Birmingham. Their improved steam engines started replacing water wheels in factories. Watt coined "horsepower" to help customers compare his engines to draft horses.

Did you coin 'horsepower' for marketing or engineering? What was Boulton like as a partner?

1800 Life

Retired wealthy. Spent his final years tinkering with sculpture-copying machines and chemical experiments in his workshop at Heathfield Hall.

What did you tinker with in retirement? Was the sculptor-copying machine just for fun?

1819 Death

Died at Heathfield Hall, age 83. The unit of power, the watt, was named after him in 1882. His workshop was sealed after his death and preserved intact for over a century.

Does it please you that every lightbulb is measured in watts? Why was your workshop sealed after death?

In Their Own Words (2)

It is not worth my while to manufacture in three countries only; but I can find it very worthwhile to make it for the whole world.

Attributed to James Watt in: Joel Mokyr, The lever of riches: Technological creativity and economic progress. Oxford University Press, 1992. p, 245, 1992

I can think of nothing else than this machine.

in a letter to a friend, Dr. Lind, April 29, 1765., 1765

Artifacts (15)

James Watt (1736-1819)

Pidgeon, C.F.

1800-1825

vam View

James Watt (1736-1819)

Rouw, Peter (the younger)

1803

vam View

Titian (after G. F. Watts)

Sutherland, Agnes

late 19th century

vam View

Specification of John James Watt

James Watt, of Stracy Street, Stepney, in tlie County of Middlesex, Surgeon, send greeting. WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth 5 did, by His Letters Patent under the...

1857

Works Read Talk

Great novelists

PREFACE. NEITHER this book nor the series of which it forms a part pretends to any higher claim than to be a concise epitome of the lives which it recounts, designed for those whom youth, business,...

1880

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John Inglis, Lord Justice-General of Scotland

PREFACE. THIS book, which had its origin in some contributions to the daily and periodical press, pretends to be nothing higher than a record of facts and opinions concerning the subject of it, and...

1893

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Public speaking for normal and academy students

PREFACE A textbook on the art of expression, to be useful to Normal or Academy students, must be simple and practical. Their need is not to absorb an ambitious system, but to learn how to grasp a...

1915

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Partners in Science: Letters of James Watt and Joseph Black

The scientific correspondence of Watt, Black, Robison and others, together with James Watt's notebook of experiments on heat, edited by Eric Robinson and Douglas McKie. The close friendship that grew...

1969

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Business for Punks: Break All the Rules--the BrewDog Way

Forget about building a business—businesses fail and fade into oblivion. Start a revolution instead. James Watt started a rebellion against tasteless mass market beers by founding BrewDog, now one of...

2016

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The Origin and Progress of the Mechanical Inventions of James Watt

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains...

2018

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Specification Of James Watt: Steam Engines

Originally published in 1795, this text offers a detailed look at the various steam engines invented by James Watt. From their design to their operation, this specification is an important document...

2023

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by Usher, which appeared on Usher's seventh studio album, Raymond vs. Raymond. I...

, Rated R, for a track called "Photographs". In February 2010, he wrote and produced the single "OMG" by Usher, which appeared on Usher's seventh studio album, Raymond vs. Raymond. In a YouTube video...

Works Talk

The Origin and Progress of the Mechanical Inventions of James Watt

1854

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The Origin and Progress of the Mechanical Inventions of James Watt

1854

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The Land of Saddle-bags: A Study of the Mountain People of Appalachia

1924

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