Henry Bell (7 April 1767 – 14 March 1830) was a Scottish engineer who helped to pioneer the development of the
steamship. He is mostly widely known for introducing the first successful passenger
steamboat service in Europe in 1812.
Early career
Bell was born at
Torphichen
Torphichen ( ) is a historic small village located north of Bathgate in West Lothian, Scotland. The village is approximately 18 miles (20 km) west of Edinburgh, 7 miles (11 km) south-east of Falkirk and 4 miles (6 km) south-west of Linlithgow. ...
, near
Bathgate
Bathgate ( sco, Bathket or , gd, Both Chèit) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland, west of Livingston, Scotland, Livingston and adjacent to the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorway. Nearby towns are Armadale, West Lothian, Armadale, Blackburn, ...
, West Lothian in 1767. He was the fifth son of Patrick Bell and Margaret Easton, themselves members of a family well known at the time as
millwrights, builders and engineers. He grew up at the local mill in Torphichen, where developed a working knowledge of water power. Work carried out by members of the Bell family included the design and construction of
harbours
A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...
, bridges, etc., in
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
and throughout the United Kingdom. Henry Bell was educated at the local parish school and was apprenticed to a
stonemason between 1780 and 1783. Three years later, he was briefly apprenticed to his uncle, a
millwright. In 1786, he went to work
Borrowstounness and learned
ship modelling. In 1787, he pursued his interest in ship mechanics in
Bellshill with the engineer Mr James Inglis, which was then followed by several years working in London under the engineer
John Rennie the Elder.
He returned to Scotland around 1790, and moved to
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
, where he worked as a house-
carpenter. His ambition was to follow in the footsteps of his ancestors and become a civil engineer, and to this end, he joined the Glasgow corporation of wrights on 20 October 1797. He was unsuccessful, apparently due to either lack of money, or lack of application or skill on his part. According to one contemporary:
"Bell had many of the features of the enthusiastic projector; never calculated means to ends, or looked much farther than the first stages or movements of any scheme. His mind was a chaos of extraordinary projects, the most of which, from his want of accurate scientific calculation, he never could carry into practice. Owing to an imperfection in even his mechanical skill, he scarcely ever made one part of a model suit the rest, so that many designs, after a great deal of pains and expense, were successively abandoned. He was, in short, the hero of a thousand blunders and one success."
Interest in steam power for shipping
The idea of propelling vessels by means of steam early took possession of his mind. "In 1800 (he writes) I applied to
Lord Melville, on purpose to show his lordship and the other members of the Admiralty, the practicability and great utility of applying steam to the propelling of vessels against winds and tides, and every obstruction on rivers and seas, where there was depth of water." Disappointed in this application, he repeated the attempt in 1803, with the same result, notwithstanding the emphatic declaration of the celebrated
Lord Nelson
Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805) was a British flag officer in the Royal Navy. His inspirational leadership, grasp of strategy, and unconventional tactics brought a ...
, who, addressing their lord-ships on the occasion, said, "My Lords, if you do not adopt Mr Bell's scheme, other nations will, and in the end vex every vein of this empire. It will succeed (he added), and you should encourage Mr Bell." Having obtained no support in this country, Bell forwarded copies of the prospectus of his scheme to the different nations of Europe, and to the United States of America. "The Americans," he writes, "were the first who put my plan into practice, and were quickly followed by other nations." The various attempts which preceded that of Bell are briefly noticed in the "Fifth Report of the
Select committee of the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...
on
Steam-Boats, June, 1822, Sir Henry Parnell, chairman." Mentioning the following as experimenters, namely, Mr
Jonathan Hulls, in 1736; the Duke of Bridgewater, on the Manchester and Runcorn canal; Mr Miller of Dalswinton; the Marquis de Jouffroy (a French nobleman), in 1781;
Lord Stanhope, in 1795; and Mr Symington and Mr Taylor, on the
Forth and Clyde Canal
The Forth and Clyde Canal is a canal opened in 1790, crossing central Scotland; it provided a route for the seagoing vessels of the day between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde at the narrowest part of the Scottish Lowlands. This allowe ...
, in 1801–2; the Report proceeds—"These ingenious men made valuable experiments, and tested well the mighty power of steam. Still no practical uses resulted from any of these attempts. It was not till the year 1807 when the Americans began to use steamboats on their rivers, that their safety and utility were first proved. But the merit of constructing these boats is due to natives of Great Britain. Mr Henry Bell of Glasgow gave the first model of them to the late Mr Fulton of America and corresponded regularly with Fulton on the subject. Mr Bell continued to turn his talents to the improving of steam apparatus, and its application to various manufactures about Glasgow; and in 1811, constructed the ''Comet''
steam-boat."
Paddlesteamer ''Comet''
In 1808, Bell moved to the modern town of
Helensburgh
Helensburgh (; gd, Baile Eilidh) is an affluent coastal town on the north side of the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, situated at the mouth of the Gareloch. Historically in Dunbartonshire, it became part of Argyll and Bute following local gove ...
, on the north shore of the
Firth of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde is the mouth of the River Clyde. It is located on the west coast of Scotland and constitutes the deepest coastal waters in the British Isles (it is 164 metres deep at its deepest). The firth is sheltered from the Atlantic ...
, where his wife undertook the superintendence of the public baths, and at the same time kept the principal inn, whilst he continued to prosecute his favourite scheme, without much regard to the ordinary affairs of the world. In 1809 Henry Bell was elected as the first Provost of Helensburgh.
In 1812, he and John Robertson built the
steam-boat the ''
PS Comet
The PS (paddle steamer ) ''Comet'' was built in 1812 for Henry Bell, hotel and baths owner in Helensburgh, and began a passenger service on 15 August 1812 on the River Clyde between Glasgow and Greenock, the first commercially successful ...
'', of 30 tons burthen, with an engine of three horsepower. The Comet, named after
a great comet which had been visible for several months in 1811–12, was built by Messrs John Wood and Co., at
Port Glasgow which lies 3 miles to the east of
Greenock, as adjacent towns on the south bank of the
River Clyde as it widens into the Firth of Clyde. The ''Comet'' made a delivery voyage from Port Glasgow 21 miles upriver to the Broomielaw, Glasgow, then sailed from Glasgow the 24 miles down to Greenock, making five miles an hour against a head-wind. ''(some sources give a date of 18 January 1812 for a trial trip, McCrorie gives 6 August 1812 for the delivery, with the historic trip a day or so later.)'' In August, Bell advertised a passenger service on the ''Comet'' between Glasgow, Greenock and Helensburgh three times a week, returning on alternate days, "to ply upon the River Clyde from Glasgow, to sail by the power of air, wind, and steam."
Bell briefly tried a service on the
Firth of Forth. Then he had the ''Comet'' lengthened and re-engined and from September 1819 ran a service to
Oban and
Fort William (via the
Crinan Canal) a trip which took four days, but on 13 December 1820 the Comet was shipwrecked in strong currents at Craignish Point, near Oban. Bell built another vessel,
''Comet II'', but, on 21 October 1825, she collided with the steamer ''Ayr'' off Kempock Point,
Gourock
Gourock ( ; gd, Guireag ) is a town in the Inverclyde council area and formerly a burgh of the County of Renfrew in the west of Scotland. It was a seaside resort on the East shore of the upper Firth of Clyde. Its main function today is as a ...
. ''Comet II'' sank very quickly, killing 62 of the 80 passengers on board. After the loss of his second ship, Bell abandoned his work on steam navigation.
Later life
Bell lived to see his invention universally adopted. The Clyde, which first enjoyed the advantages of steam navigation, became the principal seat of this description of
ship-building
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...
. Bell reaped no personal advantage from the widespread adoption of steam-powered ships and spent many of his later years in abject poverty.
Touched by his condition, the late Dr Cleland, and a number of other benevolent individuals, commenced a subscription on his behalf, by which a considerable sum was raised. The trustees on the river Clyde granted him an annuity of £100, which was continued to his widow.
This was but a becoming acknowledgement of the value of his great invention on the part of the trustees of a river whose annual revenue was greatly increased by it.
Death
Bell died at
Helensburgh
Helensburgh (; gd, Baile Eilidh) is an affluent coastal town on the north side of the Firth of Clyde in Scotland, situated at the mouth of the Gareloch. Historically in Dunbartonshire, it became part of Argyll and Bute following local gove ...
in 1830, aged 62.
He was interred in the
Rhu churchyard.
An obelisk to his memory was erected on the rock of Dunglass, a promontory on the
Clyde Clyde may refer to:
People
* Clyde (given name)
* Clyde (surname)
Places
For townships see also Clyde Township
Australia
* Clyde, New South Wales
* Clyde, Victoria
* Clyde River, New South Wales
Canada
* Clyde, Alberta
* Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...
, about 2½ miles above
Dumbarton
Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990.
Dumbarton was the ca ...
. There is a memorial stone and obelisk on the seafront at Helensburgh.
References
Sources
* ''Clyde Pleasure Steamers'' Ian McCrorie, Orr, Pollock & Co. Ltd., Greenock,
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
* Henry Bell - Graces Guide https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Henry_Bell
External links
Henry Bell and the Comet – Clyde Waterfront Heritage
Torphichen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Henry
1767 births
1830 deaths
People from Bathgate
Scottish engineers
Scottish inventors
Scottish businesspeople