﻿514 
  

  

  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  1929 
  

  

  ing 
  water. 
  Lastly 
  their 
  eyes 
  rested 
  on 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  ropes 
  and 
  valve 
  

   handles 
  on 
  a 
  board 
  within 
  easy 
  reach 
  from 
  the 
  floor. 
  

  

  The 
  fluttering 
  of 
  the 
  safety 
  valve 
  showed 
  that 
  steam 
  was 
  up. 
  Josiah 
  

   Hornblower 
  took 
  his 
  place 
  at 
  the 
  control 
  board, 
  undoubtedly 
  nerv- 
  

   ous 
  because 
  of 
  the 
  importance 
  of 
  the 
  occasion, 
  and 
  yet 
  with 
  confidence 
  

   opened 
  the 
  steam 
  valve 
  between 
  the 
  boiler 
  and 
  the 
  cylinder. 
  Steam 
  

   rushed 
  in 
  filling 
  the 
  cylinder. 
  Another 
  handle 
  was 
  turned 
  and 
  water 
  

   from 
  the 
  overhead 
  tank 
  spurted 
  into 
  it, 
  condensing 
  the 
  steam 
  and 
  

   creating 
  a 
  vacuum. 
  All 
  this 
  time 
  the 
  piston 
  remained 
  still 
  at 
  the 
  top 
  

   of 
  the 
  cylinder. 
  Now, 
  however, 
  atmospheric 
  pressure 
  bore 
  down 
  on 
  the 
  

   piston 
  head, 
  forcing 
  it 
  downward 
  and 
  pulling 
  with 
  it 
  the 
  inner 
  end 
  of 
  

   the 
  big 
  walking 
  beam 
  and 
  raising 
  the 
  pump 
  rod 
  attached 
  to 
  the 
  other 
  

   end 
  outside. 
  Hornblower 
  had 
  so 
  skillfully 
  calculated 
  the 
  weight 
  of 
  the 
  

  

  pump 
  rod 
  and 
  water 
  to 
  be 
  

   pumped 
  at 
  one 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  beam 
  

   and 
  the 
  weight 
  of 
  the 
  piston 
  and 
  

   air 
  pressure 
  at 
  the 
  other 
  end 
  

   that 
  the 
  weight 
  of 
  the 
  air 
  was 
  

   just 
  a 
  little 
  more 
  than 
  enough 
  

   to 
  lift 
  the 
  water 
  from 
  the 
  mine. 
  

   Other 
  handles 
  were 
  then 
  turned, 
  

   steam 
  again 
  entered 
  the 
  cylin- 
  

   der 
  and 
  the 
  pump 
  rod 
  descended 
  

   by 
  its 
  own 
  weight 
  into 
  the 
  mine, 
  

   pulling 
  up 
  the 
  piston 
  to 
  its 
  first 
  

   position. 
  Again 
  steam 
  was 
  

   condensed 
  and 
  down 
  went 
  the 
  

   piston 
  and 
  up 
  went 
  the 
  pump 
  

   rod. 
  So 
  it 
  kept 
  going, 
  10 
  to 
  

   12 
  strokes 
  a 
  minute 
  and 
  lifting 
  

   And 
  so 
  America's 
  first 
  steam 
  

  

  Figure 
  5.— 
  Hornblower 
  family 
  seal. 
  This 
  illustrates 
  the 
  

   building 
  which 
  housed 
  the 
  Newcomen 
  engine 
  built 
  in 
  

   England 
  by 
  Joseph 
  Hornblower 
  and 
  erected 
  by 
  his 
  son 
  

   Josiah 
  in 
  1755 
  at 
  the 
  Schuyler 
  copper 
  mine, 
  North 
  

   Arlington, 
  N. 
  J. 
  (Courtesy 
  of 
  the 
  Delaware 
  and 
  Hud- 
  

   son 
  Company) 
  

  

  10 
  gallons 
  of 
  water 
  with 
  each 
  stroke 
  

   engine 
  was 
  put 
  in 
  operation. 
  

  

  Hornblower's 
  task 
  was 
  now 
  successfully 
  accomplished 
  and 
  he 
  could 
  

   have 
  returned 
  to 
  England. 
  Two 
  things 
  deterred 
  him, 
  however 
  — 
  the 
  

   memory 
  of 
  the 
  bad 
  trip 
  over 
  and, 
  more 
  particularly, 
  an 
  interest 
  in 
  a 
  

   very 
  attractive 
  girl 
  of 
  Belleville. 
  Instead 
  of 
  going 
  home 
  he 
  decided 
  to 
  

   accept 
  Colonel 
  Schuyler's 
  offer 
  of 
  the 
  superintendency 
  of 
  the 
  mine 
  and 
  

   thereupon 
  married 
  Miss 
  Elngsland. 
  He 
  operated 
  the 
  mine 
  for 
  5 
  years 
  

   then 
  leased 
  it 
  from 
  the 
  owner 
  for 
  14. 
  He 
  had 
  rather 
  indifferent 
  success 
  

   in 
  operating 
  it 
  by 
  himself 
  so 
  that 
  when 
  the 
  power 
  house 
  burned 
  down 
  

   and 
  greatly 
  damaged 
  the 
  engine 
  in 
  1768, 
  the 
  mine 
  was 
  abandoned. 
  

   Hornblower 
  then 
  turned 
  to 
  civic 
  afl'airs, 
  became 
  a 
  member 
  of 
  the 
  New 
  

   Jersey 
  Assembly 
  and 
  later 
  an 
  influential 
  member 
  of 
  the 
  Continental 
  

   Congress. 
  In 
  1793 
  another 
  attempt 
  was 
  made 
  to 
  operate 
  the 
  Schuyler 
  

   mine, 
  and 
  Hornblower 
  again 
  put 
  the 
  engine 
  into 
  shape. 
  But 
  the 
  effort 
  

  

  