Nathan Read (July 2, 1759 – January 20, 1849) was an American engineer and steam pioneer.
Nathan Read was the true inventor of the high-pressure steam engine in 1789, this was twelve years before the
steam-engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...
was known to be used in the form of a high-pressure engine, and led a great revolution in steam power to navigation and land-transport.
Early life and family
Nathan Read was born in the town of
Western
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*Western, New York, a town in the US
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*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
(later re-named "Warren") in the
Province of Massachusetts Bay
The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in British America which became one of the Thirteen Colonies, thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III of England, William III and Mary II ...
, on July 2, 1759. His ancestors came from
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is als ...
, northeast
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
.
His father, Reuben Read, was an officer in the Revolutionary service and his mother's maiden name was Tamsin Meacham
[.
In 1774, Nathan Read commenced his preparatory studies for college. At the close of the summer vacation of 1777, he became a student at ]Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
.
Harvard University
At Harvard, Read studied medicine and graduated in 1781. He taught school in Beverly and Salem
Salem may refer to: Places
Canada
Ontario
* Bruce County
** Salem, Arran–Elderslie, Ontario, in the municipality of Arran–Elderslie
** Salem, South Bruce, Ontario, in the municipality of South Bruce
* Salem, Dufferin County, Ontario, part ...
and was elected a tutor in Harvard University. After graduating, he became a scholar until 1783. Then, he was elected a tutor and continued his labors as such where he continued until 1787. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...
in 1791.
As an apothecary
Then, he opened an apothecary
''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...
store in Salem and developed potassium bicarbonate
Potassium bicarbonate (IUPAC name: potassium hydrogencarbonate, also known as potassium acid carbonate) is the inorganic compound with the chemical formula KHCO3. It is a white solid.
Production and reactivity
It is manufactured by treating an ...
(KHCO3) in 1788, but kept the store for only one year.
High-pressure steam engine
From October 1788, Nathan Read quit the last work and began to make a number of improvements of the steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...
. He invented and patented the multi-tubular boiler. He then made efforts to improve the function of the steam cylinder, and placed it in a horizontal position so the engine could sustain much higher pressure, that is to say, Read invented the high-pressure steam engine, a new kind of steam engine, different from James Watt's old engine.
Read made the engine more convenient and portable, also much lighter and safer. The most important was that the new engine needed much less room and fuel than the old one. Read successfully reconstructed the steam engine; he modified the Watt engine to a high-pressure engine that could be widely used in new fields, such as steamboat and locomotive.
Use in transportation
To prove the usefulness of the high-pressure steam engine, Read made several models of steamcar and steamboat in 1790. Read's experiment was very successful; it proved that the engine he built functioned well. He also invented the chain-wheel for paddle wheels to propel the steamboat, and set up a shipbuilding factory with his friends in 1796. There is, however, no evidence he ever built a full-scale version of his models.
Nail machine
Several years later, Read made another important innovation. He developed a new machine, which could be used for cutting and heading nails at one operation. It was patented on January 8, 1798. A sample of this machine is owned by the Peabody Essex Museum.
Other inventions
He developed a style of rotary steam engine in 1817.
In agricultural areas, he had more inventions and plans, such as threshing machine, thrashing machine, different forms of pumping engines and a new kind of windmill. He developed a plan for using the expansion and contraction of metals, multiplied by levers, widely used in winding up clocks and other purposes. He patented some of them, but others were mainly used in agricultural fields and never patented.
Marriage
Nathan Read married Elizabeth Jeffrey in October 1790.
Politics
Read was selected as a Federalist
The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''.
History Europe federation
In Europe, proponents of de ...
to the Sixth Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Samuel Sewall
Samuel Sewall (; March 28, 1652 – January 1, 1730) was a judge, businessman, and printer in the Province of Massachusetts Bay, best known for his involvement in the Salem witch trials, for which he later apologized, and his essay ''The Selling ...
; and was popularly elected to the Seventh Congress and served from November 25, 1800, to March 3, 1803. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1802. In 1803, he was judge of the Court of Common Pleas
A court of common pleas is a common kind of court structure found in various common law jurisdictions. The form originated with the Court of Common Pleas at Westminster, which was created to permit individuals to press civil grievances against one ...
of Essex County. In 1807, he moved to Belfast, Maine
Belfast is a city in Waldo County, Maine, Waldo County, Maine, in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city population was 6,938. Located at the mouth of the Passagassawakeag River estuary on Belfast Bay (Main ...
, and was judge of the county court of Hancock County that year. He was instrumental in establishing Belfast Academy
The Belfast Royal Academy (commonly shortened to ) is the oldest school in the city of Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is a co-educational, non-denominational voluntary grammar school in north Belfast. The Academy is one of 8 schools in Northern ...
and served as trustee for forty years. He died near Belfast; interment was in Grove Cemetery, Belfast.
Notes
References
*
Engines of our Ingenuity No. 2089 NATHAN READ by John H. Lienhard
Nathan Read his invention of the multi-tubular boiler and portable high-pressure engine, and discovery of the true mode of applying steam-power to navigation and railways. A contribution to the early history of the steamboat and locomotive engine
1870}
* Scientific American, May 5, 1870, Page 328, "Nathan Read, the Inventor of the Multi-Tubular Boiler" (obituary)}
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Read, Nathan
1759 births
1849 deaths
Harvard University alumni
Massachusetts state court judges
Maine state court judges
People from Warren, Massachusetts
People from Belfast, Maine
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
18th-century American inventors
19th-century American inventors
Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts
Inventors from Massachusetts