''The English Mechanic and World of Science'', commonly referred to as ''English Mechanic'', was a
popular-science
''Popular Science'' (also known as ''PopSci'') is an American digital magazine carrying popular science content, which refers to articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. ''Popular Science'' has won over 58 awards, incl ...
magazine, published weekly from 1865 to 1926, generally consisting of 24 pages. It was aimed at people interested in inventions and gadgets and new discoveries in science, technology, and mathematics. A regular
chess
Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...
column was also included, written by
James Pierce
James Hubert Pierce (August 8, 1900 – December 11, 1983) was an American actor and the fourth actor to portray Tarzan on film. He appeared in films from 1924 to 1951.
Background
Pierce was born in Freedom, Indiana. He was an All-American ...
.
History
The magazine was founded as a 1d weekly ''The English Mechanic'' subtitled ''A Record of Mechanical Invention, Scientific and Industrial Progress, Building, Engineering, Manufactures, Arts &c.'' in 1865, and purchased in its first year of publication by
John Passmore Edwards
John Passmore Edwards M.P. (24 March 1823 – 22 April 1911) ODNB article by A. J. A. Morris, 'Edwards, John Passmore (1823–1911)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 200 accessed 15 ...
. Ebeneezer J. Kibblewhite was a regular contributor, then became editor.
The publication featured a lively correspondence section, which occupied a quarter of its pages, each week headed by a quote from
Montaigne.
I would have everyone write what he knows, and as much as he knows but no more . . . for such a person may have some particular knowledge and experience of the nature of such a river or such a fountain, utas to other things knows no more than everybody does . . .
The size and content grew rapidly in size and quality, and as of the issue of 12 January 1866 its price was increased to 2d. and had new, rather elegant, banner art, with its title shortened to ''English Mechanic'', subtitled ''and Mirror of Science and Art'', but pages titled ''English Mechanic and Mirror of Science''.
Some time before 1876 it became ''English Mechanic'' subtitled ''and World of Science'', with which is incorporated ''The Mechanic'', ''Scientific Opinion'', and ''The British & Foreign Mechanic''. Pages were titled ''English Mechanic and World of Science''
Astronomy
The magazine popularized amateur telescope construction in the UK and later in the United States after the Reverend
William Frederick Archdall Ellison
Reverend William Frederick Archdall Ellison FRAS(28 April 1864 – 31 December 1936) was an Irish clergyman, Hebrew scholar, organist, avid amateur telescope maker, and, from 1918 to 1936, director of Armagh Observatory in Armagh, Northern Ire ...
's articles on the subject were reprinted in the ''
Scientific American
''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it ...
''. A letter published in the magazine also led to the formation of the
British Astronomical Association
The British Astronomical Association (BAA) was formed in 1890 as a national body to support the UK's amateur astronomers.
Throughout its history, the BAA has encouraged observers to make scientifically valuable observations, often in collaborati ...
.
Motoring
![--English Mechanic 1904 on London to Brighton VCR 1995](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/--English_Mechanic_1904_on_London_to_Brighton_VCR_1995.jpg)
In the May 1899 issue there was an article by T Hyler-White (1871–1920) on a motor tricycle that could be powered by a 1.75 hp
De Dion-Bouton
De Dion-Bouton was a French automobile manufacturer and railcar manufacturer operating from 1883 to 1953. The company was founded by the Marquis Jules-Albert de Dion, Georges Bouton, and Bouton's brother-in-law Charles Trépardoux.
Steam cars
T ...
. Following this and starting in January 1900 there appeared a series of 56 further articles entitled "A small car and how to build it", containing the plans for what was probably the UK's first
kit car
A kit car is an automobile available as a set of parts that a manufacturer sells and the buyer then assembles into a functioning car. Usually, many of the major mechanical systems such as the engine and transmission are sourced from donor ve ...
. The design was based on the
Benz Velo, and it was suggested that a Benz engine should be used and to keep down costs various secondhand parts should be used, although some new castings were made available with a machining service if required.
Further series of articles appeared with more designs including in 1901 a steam car, in 1902 a steam-3 wheeler, in 1904 a 5 hp twin-cylinder car, in 1909 a single-cylinder engined runabout and finally in 1913 a
cyclecar
A cyclecar was a type of small, lightweight and inexpensive car manufactured in Europe and the United States between 1910 and the early 1920s. The purpose of cyclecars was to fill a gap in the market between the motorcycle and the car. A key ...
.
It is not known how many cars were built following the plans but at least four survive.
They are collectively known today as "English Mechanics" but it is probable that a variety of names was used at the time.
References
Citations
Bibliography
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External links
Commercial scans at the englishmechanic.com websiteScans at the Internet Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:English Mechanic
1865 establishments in the United Kingdom
1926 disestablishments in the United Kingdom
Science and technology magazines published in the United Kingdom
Weekly magazines published in the United Kingdom
Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom
Engineering magazines
Magazines established in 1865
Magazines disestablished in 1926
Professional and trade magazines
Popular science magazines
Veteran vehicles