Richard Dudgeon (1819,

Tain Tain ( Gaelic: ''Baile Dhubhthaich'') is a royal burgh and parish in the County of Ross, in the Highlands of Scotland. Etymology The name derives from the nearby River Tain, the name of which comes from an Indo-European root meaning 'flow'. The ...

– 9 April 1895,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

) was a

mechanic A mechanic is an artisan, skilled tradesperson, or technician who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially cars. Duties Most mechanics specialize in a particular field, such as auto body mechanics, air conditioning an ...

, noted for his inventions of the

hydraulic jack A jack is a mechanical lifting device used to apply great forces or lift heavy loads. A mechanical jack employs a screw thread for lifting heavy equipment. A hydraulic jack uses hydraulic power. The most common form is a car jack, floor jack o ...

and steam carriage. Born in Scotland, he emigrated as a boy with his family to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, where he became a mechanic in New York. He founded an engineering machine shop on Broome Street and this prospered, so that he was able to live well nearby and have a country estate in Harlem. The business still exists as ''Richard Dudgeon, Inc.''

References

1819 births 1895 deaths American civil engineers Hydraulic engineers Scottish emigrants to the United States People from Ross and Cromarty 19th-century American engineers 19th-century American inventors {{Scotland-engineer-stub