Josiah Hornblower (February 23, 1729 – January 21, 1809) was an English engineer and statesman in

Belleville, New Jersey Belleville (French: "Belle ville" meaning "Beautiful city / town") is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States Census, the township's population wa ...

. He was a delegate for

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

in the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

in 1785 and 1786.

Personal life

Josiah was born in

Staffordshire, England Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

, the son of

steam power 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 tra ...

pioneer Joseph Hornblower. As a young man, he studied mechanics and mathematics.

Career

Early career

In 1745, he started working for his elder brother

Jonathan Jonathan may refer to: *Jonathan (name), a masculine given name Media * ''Jonathan'' (1970 film), a German film directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer * ''Jonathan'' (2016 film), a German film directed by Piotr J. Lewandowski * ''Jonathan'' (2018 ...

as an

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

apprentice Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners to gain a ...

. They went to

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...

, England and built Newcomen

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 ...

s for use in tin mines. Josiah became an expert in both the engines and mining operations.

Engineering and military career

On September 9, 1753, Hornblower was brought to America by the Schuyler family to support their copper mines on

New Barbadoes Neck New Barbadoes Neck is the name given in the colonial era for the peninsula in northeastern New Jersey, US between the lower Hackensack and Passaic Rivers, in what is now western Hudson County and southern Bergen County. The neck begins in ...

. Hornblower settled in Belleville and is credited with building the first steam engine in America in 1755. There is some dispute about the validity of the project, since he apparently (and illegally) brought two or three sets of critical engine parts with him from England. He continued to practice mechanical and civil engineering for much of his life. In 1794, he built the first stamping mill in America. (A stamping mill mechanically crushes raw ore for further processing.) Over the years, Hornblower became American in his attitude as well as by residence. In the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the st ...

, he was a captain in the Essex County Regiment of the New Jersey militia. However, his company was assigned for defence and he didn’t see action. In 1760, he opened a hardware store as an adjunct to his engineering work, and became a prosperous merchant.

Political career

For several years, Josiah had acted as a leading citizen. He served as clerk in various town meetings and for his county. As New Jersey established a revolutionary government, Essex County sent him to the state’s Assembly from 1779–1780, and in 1780, the Assembly named him its speaker. From 1781 until 1784, he represented Essex County as a member of the

New Jersey Legislative Council The New Jersey Legislative Council was the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature under the New Jersey Constitution of 1776 until it was replaced by the New Jersey Senate under the Constitution of 1844. History The Legislative Council replaced ...

, which functioned as an

upper house An upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restric ...

in the legislature. Then in 1785, the New Jersey assembly sent Hornblower as one of their delegates to the

. His term started in November 1785 and ran for a year. While he was diligent in attendance and voting, he wasn’t a leading member of the Congress. After his year, he returned home to attend to his engineering and mercantile pursuits.

Personal life

In 1755, Josiah married Elizabeth Kingsland, the daughter of William Kingsland, a Colonel and Judge of

Bergen County Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.William Pinhorne William Pinhorne (died 1720) was an American colonial politician and jurist, who served in various capacities in both New York and New Jersey. Career New York William Pinhorne probably arrived in New York City from England in the 1670s. In May ...

– a Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. One of their twelve children was

Joseph Coerten Hornblower Joseph Coerten Hornblower (May 7, 1777 – June 11, 1864) was an American lawyer and jurist from Belleville, New Jersey. He was the chief justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. Early life and education Hornblower was born on May 7, 1777 i ...

, who later became Chief Justice of the

Supreme Court of New Jersey The Supreme Court of New Jersey is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, the Supreme Court of New Jersey is the final judicial authority on all cases in the state court system, including cases challenging th ...

Later life and death

Josiah remained active in engineering circles, and for a time served as the head of a mine association. He expanded his operations, opening various mills in along the Second River and the

Passaic River Passaic River ( ) is a river, approximately long, in Northern New Jersey. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburban northern New Jersey, ...

over the next two decades. He remained somewhat active in public life as well, serving as a County Judge from 1790 until 1808, when his failing health forced him to resign. Josiah died in Newark on January 21, 1809, and is buried in the yard of the Dutch Reformed Church at Belleville.

References

*"Josiah Hornblower, and the First Steam Engine in America" by William Nelson. Published 1883, Daily Advertiser Printing House (Newark, N. J)

External links

The First American Steam EngineHornblower’s Congressional biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hornblower, Josiah 18th-century American politicians 1729 births 1809 deaths American engineers British emigrants to the United States American steam engine engineers British steam engine engineers Continental Congressmen from New Jersey English engineers Members of the New Jersey Legislative Council People from Staffordshire 19th-century American Episcopalians