Dudgeon was an American

steam automobile A steam car is a car (automobile) propelled by a steam engine. A steam engine is an external combustion engine (ECE) in which the fuel is combusted outside of the engine, unlike an internal combustion engine (ICE) in which fuel is combusted ins ...

company active in the middle of the 19th century. In 1855, inventor

Richard Dudgeon Richard Dudgeon (1819, Tain – 9 April 1895, New York City) was a mechanic, noted for his inventions of the hydraulic jack and steam carriage. Born in Scotland, he emigrated as a boy with his family to the United States The United Stat ...

astounded

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

ers by driving from his home to his place of business in a steam carriage. The noise and vibration generated by the ''Red Devil Steamer'' frightened horses so badly that city authorities confined it to one street. After losing the original in a fire, Dudgeon constructed a second steamer in 1866. After encountering more opposition to the vehicle, he moved his family, and the steam carriage, to

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

to escape city officials. Here he and his carriage became a familiar site, often with a young boy running ahead to warn travelers of the danger that followed. Dudgeon ran the steam carriage many hundreds of miles and once covered a mile in under two minutes. Although the inventor claimed the carriage could carry 10 people at 14 m.p.h. on one barrel of anthracite coal, it was too far ahead of its time and failed to gain popular favor.Dudgeon Automobile Page
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References

External links

* Dudgeon steam wagon at Smithsonia

* http://sbiii.com/dudgeon.html Steam cars {{US-transport-company-stub