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246-457: Oliver Evans (September 13, 1755 – April 15, 1819) was an American inventor, engineer, and businessman born in rural Delaware and later rooted commercially in Philadelphia . He was one of the first Americans to build steam engines and an advocate of high-pressure steam (as opposed to low-pressure steam). A pioneer in the fields of automation , materials handling and steam power , Evans

492-592: A Norman lieu-dit La Guerre . This toponymic likely derived from Latin ager , the Breton gwern or from the Late Latin varectum ( fallow ). The toponyms Gara, Gare, Gaire, (the sound [ä] often mutated in [æ] ) also appear in historical texts cited by Lucien Musset , where the word ga(i)ra means gore . It could also be linked with a patronymic from the Old Norse verr . Before Delaware

738-496: A Declaration of Independence. Only the dramatic overnight ride of Caesar Rodney gave the delegation the votes needed to cast Delaware's vote for independence. Initially led by John Haslet , Delaware provided one of the premier regiments in the Continental Army , known as the "Delaware Blues" and nicknamed the " Blue Hen's Chicks ". In August 1777 General Sir William Howe led a British army through Delaware on his way to

984-542: A Delaware state patent application in 1783 for a steam-powered wagon , but it was denied as Evans had yet to produce a working model. That same year, aged 27, Evans married Sarah Tomlinson, daughter of a local farmer, in Old Swedes' Episcopal Church in Wilmington. Evans's attention turned to flour milling in the early 1780s, an industry that was booming in rapidly industrializing northern Delaware. In this era,

1230-522: A breakthrough with the Brandywine millers. However, he was frustrated at reports that the millers returned to Wilmington and reported that the Evans mill was "a set of rattletraps, unworthy the notice of any man of sense". Disinterest continued even after Evans convinced a Brandywine miller to have his mill converted. After years of persistence and attempts at marketing, Evans's designs were finally given

1476-546: A brief skirmish at Lexington, followed by the full-scale Battles of Lexington and Concord. British troops suffered around 300 casualties before withdrawing to Boston , which was then besieged by the militia. In May 1775, 4,500 British reinforcements arrived under Generals William Howe , John Burgoyne , and Sir Henry Clinton . On June 17, they seized the Charlestown Peninsula at the Battle of Bunker Hill ,

1722-802: A customs vessel in the June 1772 Gaspee Affair , then came to a head in 1773. A banking crisis led to the near-collapse of the East India Company , which dominated the British economy; to support it, Parliament passed the Tea Act , giving it a trading monopoly in the Thirteen Colonies . Since most American tea was smuggled by the Dutch, the act was opposed by those who managed the illegal trade, while being seen as yet another attempt to impose

1968-451: A device that gathered meal from a bucket elevator and spread it evenly over the drying floor—a mechanical rake would revolve around the floorspace. This would even out newly deposited meals for cooling and drying, while a gentle incline in the design of the rake blades would slowly move the flour towards central chutes, from which the material would be sifted. Used in conjunction, the two innovations saved many hours of labor and greatly reduced

2214-473: A few years after Evans's death on similar principles. Despite an incomplete understanding of the principles behind them, in some ways Evans's thinking about the potential for steam engines was once again far ahead of its time. In the postscript of the Steam Engineer's Guide , Evans noted that drawing a vacuum on water reduces its boiling point and cools it. He further observed that a vacuum would have

2460-559: A few years the Mars Works began exporting its engines inland. Oliver Evans's son George was the first such order, having moved to Pittsburgh in 1809 to operate the Pittsburgh Steam Flour Mill. George and the mill were highly successful, and generated a great deal of interest in Evans's engines across the interior. However exporting engines to western Pennsylvania, Kentucky or Ohio was challenging and expensive from

2706-546: A frontal assault in which they suffered over 1,000 casualties. Dismayed at the costly attack which had gained them little, Gage appealed to London for a larger army, but instead was replaced as commander by Howe. On June 14, 1775, Congress took control of Patriot forces outside Boston, and Congressional leader John Adams nominated Washington as commander-in-chief of the newly formed Continental Army . On June 16, Hancock officially proclaimed him "General and Commander in Chief of

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2952-739: A great many cases ended up in court. The 1808 act had indemnified those who had adopted Evans's technologies from 1805 to 1808, but did not specify whether this indemnity was perpetual (as defendants argued) or whether it was only for the three years in question (as Evans argued). Evans by this stage of his life had also established a poor reputation for himself amongst the milling community, and his abrasive and often petty pursuit of patent rights stiffened resistance. Several major legal cases questioned whether laws to extend private patents in this manner were even constitutional, but Evans ultimately prevailed in each case. The most bitter legal battle began in 1809. Evans sued Samuel Robinson—a miller near Baltimore who

3198-532: A high-pressure engine and Evans himself was often vague in appraising its capabilities. Yet Robert Fulton had found success with the North River Steamboat on the Hudson River in 1807, and thereafter steamboats became a reality. Although he used low-pressure engines, Fulton had in 1812 contacted Evans about the possibility of using Evans's engines, though that correspondence did not lead to

3444-568: A leading advocate for high-pressure engines, it would not be until the 1830s that such engines definitively replaced low-pressure designs. And Evans' dream of a steam wagon, notwithstanding the brave attempt of the Oruktor Amphibolos , would not see widespread adoption until even later. And unlike his earlier contributions, Evans was just one of many brilliant minds in steam technology. It would be another inventor, Richard Trevithick , working totally independently of Evans who would develop

3690-486: A lengthy appendix in which Evans detailed various ideas for other inventions, such as a hot-air system of central heating . Thomas Ellicott, whose family were early adopters of Evans's designs in Baltimore, contributed a section on mill construction. Much of the theoretical work of the book was based on earlier scientific work on mechanical principles. Yet, Evans insisted that theoretical sections align with observations in

3936-628: A logistical perspective. In 1811 Evans and George, as well as another successful steam miller and engineer Luther Stephens, founded the Pittsburgh Steam Engine Company , which in addition to engines would, like the Mars Works, produce heavy machinery and castings in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania . With high demand for industrial products and relatively little industrial capacity, the Pittsburgh works added to its repertoire

4182-455: A logistically challenging and dangerous operation. Meanwhile, the Hessians were involved in numerous clashes with small bands of Patriots and were often aroused by false alarms at night in the weeks before the actual Battle of Trenton . By Christmas they were tired, while a heavy snowstorm led their commander, Colonel Johann Rall , to assume no significant attack would occur. At daybreak on

4428-606: A network of accompanying pipes with radiators to heat the factory with engine exhaust. Although there are no records as to the designs of the early steam engines produced by the Mars Works, Evans's most famous engine design appeared around 1812. Called the Columbian Engine as a patriotic gesture, it would prove to be the most advanced and successful steam engine design created by Evans—he brought to bear his now extensive experience in designing and building high-pressure steam engines. This horizontally oriented engine allowed

4674-559: A period of almost continual warfare at the turn of the 18th century. Although several key elements of Evans's designs—such as bucket elevators and Archimedean screws—were merely modified rather than invented by him, the combination of many machines into an automated and continuous production line was a unique idea that would prove pivotal to both the Industrial Revolution and the development of mass production. Scientific and technical historians now generally credit Evans as

4920-418: A rake-drill and conveyor belt to his designs and now possessed a full complement of materials handling machines for just about every possible configuration. In 1790, Evans moved from Newport to Wilmington and constructed a working model of his designs in the town. Evans's inventions were given a major boost when leading miller Joseph Tatnall converted his mills to the Evans system, and estimated that in one year

5166-580: A rearguard. Howe met with a delegation from the Second Continental Congress at the September Staten Island Peace Conference , but it failed to conclude peace, largely because the British delegates only had the authority to offer pardons and could not recognize independence. On September 15, Howe seized control of New York City when the British landed at Kip's Bay and unsuccessfully engaged

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5412-582: A refrigeration device for which he received patents in 1834–1835, employing much the same principles originally put forward by Evans. Having, in his view, perfected many of his ideas and designs for steam engines, Evans turned his attention once more to the commercial propagation of his inventions. His first steam engines had been constructed on an ad-hoc basis, often with improvised tools and workers, and he had relied heavily on blacksmiths and other metal-working shops in Philadelphia with little experience in

5658-880: A riot started in Boston when the authorities seized the sloop Liberty on suspicion of smuggling. Tensions escalated further in March 1770 when British troops fired on rock-throwing civilians, killing five in what became known as the Boston Massacre . The Massacre coincided with the partial repeal of the Townshend Acts by the Tory-based North Ministry , which came to power in January 1770 and remained in office until 1781. North insisted on retaining duty on tea to enshrine Parliament's right to tax

5904-529: A rivalry with the Du Ponts until the passage of the 17th Amendment . The allegiance of industries with the Republican party allowed them to gain control of the state's governorship throughout most of the 20th century. The GOP ensured black people could vote because of their general support for Republicans and thus undid restrictions on Black suffrage. Delaware benefited greatly from World War I because of

6150-573: A scheme for the gas lighting of cities in the United States, a means for raising sunken ships, a machine gun, a self-oiling shaft bearing , various types of gearshift for steam carriages, a dough-kneading machine and a perpetual baking oven. In one proposal in 1814, as the British Navy threatened Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812, Evans ventured to build a steam-powered frigate , but

6396-500: A screw mill for grinding plaster of Paris , which was in great demand in Philadelphia for stucco work. Evans and his younger brother Evan, along with blacksmith Thomas Clark, developed a device for packing flour barrels using a wooden disc operating by a compound lever and a toggle joint . Steam engines appeared in the United States as a source of power in the late 18th century, and living in Delaware and Philadelphia meant Evans

6642-648: A second attack captured Fort Mifflin on November 16, while Fort Mercer was abandoned two days later when Cornwallis breached the walls. His supply lines secured, Howe tried to tempt Washington into giving battle, but after inconclusive skirmishing at the Battle of White Marsh from December 5 to 8, he withdrew to Philadelphia for the winter. On December 19, the Americans followed suit and entered winter quarters at Valley Forge ; while Washington's domestic opponents contrasted his lack of battlefield success with Gates' victory at Saratoga, foreign observers such as Frederick

6888-404: A series of bucket elevators around a mill could move grain and flour from one process to the next. Another labor-intensive task was that of spreading meal . This came out of the grinding process warm and moist, needing cooling and drying before it could be sifted and packed. Traditionally the task was done by manually shoveling meal across large floors. In response, Evans developed the "hopper boy",

7134-773: A siege mentality, penning to his numerous lawyers (at its height he had fifteen working on his various cases across the United States) his final work, known as Oliver Evans to His Counsel: Who are Engaged in Defence of His Patent Rights, for the Improvements He Has Invented: Containing a Short Account of Two Out of Eighty of His Inventions, Their Rise and Progress in Despite of All Opposition and Difficulties, and Two of His Patents with Explanations . Evans undertook travel to distant areas of

7380-427: A similar suite of tools and tables for potential steam engineers as he had for potential millers, such as tables itemizing the heat and pressure tolerances of various metals, instructions for assembling the basic components of a steam-powered system, and schematics for useful components such as valves and boilers. Evans also used the book to justify the safety of high-pressure steam engines if properly constructed, despite

7626-549: A slave society and cultivated tobacco as a cash crop, although English immigrants continued to arrive. Like the other middle colonies, the Lower Counties on the Delaware initially showed little enthusiasm for a break with Britain . The citizenry had a good relationship with the Proprietary government, and generally were allowed more independence of action in their Colonial Assembly than in other colonies. Merchants at

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7872-469: A small proportion of what survives from Evans, and he did continue his interest in inventing, but the tone of Evans's later life was undoubtedly one of hostility and disappointment. Evans gradually withdrew from the operations of his workshops, with his son George managing operations in Pittsburgh and his sons-in-law James Rush and John Muhlenberg likewise in Philadelphia. The Mars Works was by now an established entity, receiving prestigious commissions such as

8118-432: A steam engine works and a large steam engine of its own to grind materials and work wrought iron . With over thirty-five staff, the Mars Works produced a wide range of manufactures ranging from working steam engines to cast iron fittings, as well as milling and farming machines for Evans's now well-established agricultural clientele. Steam engine orders alone proved insufficient to support the extensive business costs; hence

8364-589: A steam-propelled carriage incorporating a heavy flywheel , in which pressure was converted directly to rotary power , however it became apparent in experimentation that a low-pressure, rotary steam engine would never be powerful enough to propel a carriage of any weight forward. Evans's attention thus turned to a reciprocating engine , not only for his steam carriage ideas, but also for industrial application. Importantly, Evans became an early proponent, like Trevithick, of 'strong steam' or high-pressure engines, an idea long resisted by Watt and earlier steam pioneers because

8610-425: A store for milling supplies. His early years in Philadelphia though were dominated by writing. Initially, Evans intended to write a pamphlet to assist millers in the construction of milling machinery, as well as promote his own automated designs. However, Evans became so engrossed in the project that he ultimately devoted several years to writing a comprehensive book on milling technology that included long chapters on

8856-440: A straw-cutter and flour press developed by his brother Evan, and a horse-drawn scraper and earth mover invented by Gershom Johnson. Evans also used the opportunity to encourage government sponsorship of research: "If government would, at the expense of uncertainty, employ ingenious persons, in every art and science, to make with care every experiment that might lead to the extension of our knowledge of principles, carefully recording

9102-480: A struggle with Britain, but also split between American Patriots and American Loyalists. Patriots generally supported independence from Britain and a new national union in Congress, while Loyalists remained faithful to British rule. Estimates of numbers vary, one suggestion being the population as a whole was split evenly between committed Patriots, committed Loyalists, and those who were indifferent. Others calculate

9348-671: A threat to liberty in general. This led to increased sympathy for the Patriot cause locally, in the British Parliament, and in the London press. Throughout the 18th century, the elected lower houses in the colonial legislatures gradually wrested power from their governors. Dominated by smaller landowners and merchants, these assemblies now established ad-hoc provincial legislatures, variously called congresses, conventions, and conferences, effectively replacing royal control. With

9594-528: A total area of 2,489 square miles (6,450 km ), making it the second-smallest state by either metric in the United States after Rhode Island . Delaware is bounded to the north by Pennsylvania ; to the east by the Delaware River , Delaware Bay , New Jersey , and the Atlantic Ocean; and to the west and south by Maryland . Small portions of Delaware are also situated on the eastern side of

9840-614: A trial on larger scales and adopted elsewhere. A breakthrough came in 1789 when the Ellicotts, a progressively minded Quaker family in Baltimore , invited Evans to refit their mills on the Patapsco River . The refits proved a success, and Evans worked with Jonathan Ellicott to develop a modified form of Archimedean screw that could act as a horizontal conveyor to work alongside the vertically orientated bucket elevators. He added

10086-521: A victory at the Battle of Brandywine and capture of the city of Philadelphia. The only real engagement on Delaware soil was the Battle of Cooch's Bridge , fought on September 3, 1777, at Cooch's Bridge in New Castle County, although there was a minor Loyalist rebellion in 1778. Following the Battle of Brandywine, Wilmington was occupied by the British, and State President John McKinly

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10332-427: A wide variety of products, as technology and prevailing opinion caught up. Evans contributions were later deemed to be so important that eminent industrial historian Sigfried Giedion would conclude that in this respect, Evans "opens a new chapter in the history of mankind". Evans' contributions to steam were not as ground-breaking as his earlier work in milling but he played a critical role by inventing and propagating

10578-414: A working example. Similarly, he drew up designs for a solar boiler, machine gun, steam-carriage gearshift, dough-kneading machine, perpetual baking oven, marine salvage process, quadruple-effect evaporator , and a scheme for urban gas lighting , ideas and designs which would not be made reality until some time after his death. Evans had influential backers and political allies, but lacked social graces and

10824-468: A year Evans had found a client. The Philadelphia Board of Health was concerned with the problem of dredging and cleaning the city's dockyards and removing sandbars : in 1805 Evans convinced them to contract him to develop a steam-powered dredge. The result was the Oruktor Amphibolos , or "Amphibious Digger". The vessel consisted of a flat-bottomed scow with bucket chains to bring up mud and hooks to clear away sticks, stones and other obstacles. Power for

11070-638: Is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states region of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey to its northeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state's name derives from the adjacent Delaware Bay , which in turn was named after Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr , an English nobleman and the Colony of Virginia 's first colonial-era governor. Delaware occupies

11316-401: Is also one of the first times that the colonies were referred to as "United States", rather than the more common United Colonies . On July 2, Congress voted for independence and published the declaration on July 4. At this point, the revolution ceased to be an internal dispute over trade and tax policies and had evolved into a civil war, since each state represented in Congress was engaged in

11562-619: Is in New Castle County, in the town of Townsend . According to HUD 's 2022 Annual Homeless Assessment Report , there were an estimated 2,369 homeless people in Delaware. According to the 2010 United States census, the racial composition of the state was 68.9% White American (65.3% Non-Hispanic White , 3.6% White Hispanic ), 21.4% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native , 3.2% Asian American, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander , 3.4% some other race, and 2.7% of multiracial origin . People of Hispanic or Latino origin, of any race, made up 8.2% of

11808-402: Is no longer in production. It is fairly basic but it seems faithful representation judging by the images of the original to be found online. A rarely modelled example of a vehicle from this period. Evans frequently quarrelled with fellow inventors and engineering peers over steam technology in the mid-1800s. His increasing frustration led to his premature publication of what he had hoped would be

12054-453: Is significant variation in mean temperature and amount of snowfall between Sussex County and New Castle County. Moderated by the Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay , the southern portion of the state has a milder climate and a longer growing season than the northern portion of the state. Summers are long, hot, and humid in Delaware, often with intense (but brief) late day thundershowers. Delaware averages 2,300 hrs of sunshine annually (higher than

12300-526: The A.U.M.P. Church . In 1814, Spencer called for the first annual gathering, known as the Big August Quarterly , which continues to draw members of this denomination and their descendants together in a religious and cultural festival. Delaware voted against secession on January 3, 1861, and so remained in the Union. While most Delaware citizens who fought in the war served in the regiments of

12546-737: The Aetna and the Pennsylvania . Another, christened the Oliver Evans but renamed the Constitution by its eventual owners, was lost along with the eleven crew members when its boiler exploded near Point Coupee, Louisiana . Evans was deeply distressed by the news, although he defended the safety of high-pressure engines and cited any explosions as an extremely rare occurrences. Evans found himself in battles to protect his intellectual property many times throughout his career, but he pursued

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12792-695: The Appalachian Mountains also avoided the cost of an expensive military occupation. The Royal Proclamation of 1763 was designed to achieve these aims by refocusing colonial expansion north into Nova Scotia and south into Florida , with the Mississippi River as the dividing line between British and Spanish possessions in America. Settlement was tightly restricted beyond the 1763 limits, and claims west of this line, including by Virginia and Massachusetts , were rescinded despite

13038-417: The Battle of Brandywine on September 11, then allowing him to withdraw in good order. After dispersing an American detachment at Paoli on September 20, Cornwallis occupied Philadelphia on September 26, with the main force of 9,000 under Howe based just to the north at Germantown . Washington attacked them on October 4, but was repulsed. To prevent Howe's forces in Philadelphia being resupplied by sea,

13284-511: The Battle of Sullivan's Island on June 28, 1776, but it failed. A shortage of gunpowder led Congress to authorize a naval expedition against the Bahamas to secure ordnance stored there. On March 3, 1776, an American squadron under the command of Esek Hopkins landed at the east end of Nassau and encountered minimal resistance at Fort Montagu . Hopkins' troops then marched on Fort Nassau . Hopkins had promised governor Montfort Browne and

13530-710: The British West Indies and Britain and barred New England ships from the Newfoundland cod fisheries . The increase in tension led to a scramble for control of militia stores, which each assembly was legally obliged to maintain for defense. On April 19, a British attempt to secure the Concord arsenal culminated in the Battles of Lexington and Concord , which began the Revolutionary War. After

13776-508: The Brown ruling was that Delaware became fully integrated, albeit with time and much effort. In October 1954, the city of Milford became the scene of one of the country's first pro-segregation boycotts after eleven Black students were enrolled in the previously all-white Milford High School . Mass protests continued in Milford; the school board eventually ceded to the protestors, expelling

14022-852: The Burning of Norfolk on January 1, 1776. The siege of Savage's Old Fields began on November 19 in South Carolina between Loyalist and Patriot militias, and the Loyalists were subsequently driven out of the colony in the Snow Campaign . Loyalists were recruited in North Carolina to reassert British rule in the South, but they were decisively defeated in the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge . A British expedition sent to reconquer South Carolina launched an attack on Charleston in

14268-772: The Chesapeake and Delaware Canal embody a Southern culture , while densely-populated Northern Delaware above the canal—particularly Wilmington, a part of the Philadelphia metropolitan area —has more in common with that of the Northeast and the North . The U.S. Census Bureau designates Delaware as one of the South Atlantic States , but it is commonly associated with the Mid-Atlantic States or northeastern United States by other federal agencies,

14514-528: The Congress to extend it. In January 1808 An Act for the Relief of Oliver Evans was passed and signed by President Jefferson, a long-time admirer of Evans's work. The act took the extraordinary step of reviving to Evans his expired patent and giving it another fourteen year term— Evans was delighted, but the move was to prove highly problematic, particularly regarding those who had implemented Evans's designs in

14760-837: The Continental Army and commanded by George Washington defeated the British Army . The conflict was fought in North America , the Caribbean , and the Atlantic Ocean . The war ended with the Treaty of Paris (1783) , which resulted in Great Britain ultimately recognizing the independence and sovereignty of the United States. After the British Empire gained dominance in North America with victory over

15006-431: The Continental Association ; based on a draft prepared by the First Virginia Convention in August, the association instituted economic sanctions and a full boycott of goods against Britain. While denying its authority over internal American affairs, a faction led by James Duane and future Loyalist Joseph Galloway insisted Congress recognize Parliament's right to regulate colonial trade. Expecting concessions by

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15252-443: The Delaware River and winning small but significant victories at Trenton and Princeton . In the summer of 1777, as Howe was poised to capture Philadelphia , the Continental Congress fled to Baltimore . In October 1777, a separate northern British force under the command of John Burgoyne was forced to surrender at Saratoga in an American victory that proved crucial in convincing France and Spain that an independent United States

15498-481: The Iroquois for their support, while US envoys urged them to remain neutral. Aware of Native American leanings toward the British and fearing an Anglo-Indian attack from Canada, Congress authorized a second invasion in April 1775. After the defeat at the Battle of Quebec on December 31, the Americans maintained a loose blockade of the city until they retreated on May 6, 1776. A second defeat at Trois-Rivières on June 8 ended operations in Quebec. British pursuit

15744-429: The Mississippi River , south of the Great Lakes , and north of the Floridas to the United States . [REDACTED]   Great Britain Combatants The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence , was an armed conflict that was part of the broader American Revolution , in which American Patriot forces organized as

15990-462: The Oruktor Amphibolos , it was the first automobile in the country and the world's first amphibious vehicle , although it was too primitive to be a success as either. Evans was a visionary who produced designs and ideas far ahead of their time. He was the first to describe vapor-compression refrigeration and propose a design for the first refrigerator in 1805, but it would be three decades until his colleague Jacob Perkins would be able to construct

16236-423: The Roman god of war , is thought to have been aspirational and a challenge to the Soho Foundry near Birmingham in the United Kingdom, famous for building the Watt and Boulton engines. Indeed, the completed Mars Works was one of the largest and best equipped outfits of its kind in the United States—by contemporary accounts it featured a substantial foundry, moldmaker's shop , blacksmith's shops, millstone maker,

16482-469: The Second Continental Congress appointed the Committee of Five : Thomas Jefferson , John Adams , Benjamin Franklin , Roger Sherman , and Robert Livingston . The declaration was written almost exclusively by Jefferson. Identifying inhabitants of the Thirteen Colonies as "one people", the declaration simultaneously dissolved political links with Britain, while including a long list of alleged violations of "English rights" committed by George III . This

16728-414: The Southern United States by the U.S. Census Bureau , but the state's geography, culture, and history are a hybrid of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the country. Before the Delaware coastline was explored and developed by Europeans in the 16th century, the state was inhabited by several Native American tribes, including the Lenape in the north and Nanticoke in the south. The state

16974-468: The Steam Engineer's Guide proved to be a popular work, though not on the same scale as his guide to milling, however it was the first book in the United States to make accessible to anyone ideas and techniques for steam engineering. The book begins with an introductory discussion of the principles of steam engines and the relevant physical principles, as well as designs for the Evans high-pressure steam engine, boilers, screw-mills and others. Evans developed

17220-413: The Sugar Act and Stamp Act , which imposed additional taxes on the colonies to pay for defending the western frontier. In July 1765, the Whigs formed the First Rockingham ministry , which repealed the Stamp Act and reduced tax on foreign molasses to help the New England economy, but re-asserted Parliamentary authority in the Declaratory Act . However, this did little to end the discontent; in 1768,

17466-506: The Treaty of Aranjuez , though Spain did not formally ally with the Americans. Howe's replacement Henry Clinton intended to take the war against the Americans into the Southern Colonies . Despite some initial success, British general Cornwallis was besieged by a Franco-American force in Yorktown in September and October 1781. Cornwallis was forced to surrender in October. The British wars with France and Spain continued for another two years, but fighting largely ceased in North America. In

17712-610: The Twelve-Mile Circle . The border follows the Circle for a short distance and then continues in a straight line due north until reaching the southern border of Pennsylvania. The Wedge of land between the northwest part of the arc and the Maryland border was claimed by both Delaware and Pennsylvania until 1921, when Delaware's claim was confirmed. Delaware is on a level plain, with the lowest mean elevation of any state in

17958-424: The clean-up of property "lightly contaminated" by hazardous waste , the proceeds for which come from a tax on wholesale petroleum sales. Wilmington is the state's most populous city (70,635) and its economic hub. It is located within commuting distance of both Philadelphia and Baltimore. Dover is the state capital and the second most populous city (38,079). The table below lists the ten largest municipalities in

18204-572: The colonial legislatures agreed on the boundaries but disagreed on where to set them. Many settlers resented the restrictions entirely, and enforcement required permanent garrisons along the frontier, which led to increasingly bitter disputes over who should pay for them. Although directly administered by the Crown , acting through a local governor, the colonies were largely governed by native-born property owners. While external affairs were managed by London, colonial militia were funded locally but with

18450-416: The crankshaft and piston rod to work closely together at one end of the machine, thus reducing the need for a heavy working beam like those required for conventional engines. The piston rod itself was kept working to a straight line while by a new type of linkage wherein two sets of pivoted bars guided the movements of the working bar. This linkage is still known as the Evans straight-line linkage, though it

18696-539: The cupola of the courthouse in the city of New Castle . This boundary is often referred to as the Twelve-Mile Circle . Although the Twelve-Mile Circle is often claimed to be the only territorial boundary in the U.S. that is a true arc , the Mexican boundary with Texas includes several arcs, and many cities in the South (such as Plains, Georgia ) also have circular boundaries. This border extends all

18942-481: The windmill palm , needle palm , and dwarf palmetto . Delaware's all-time record high of 110 °F (43 °C) was recorded at Millsboro on July 21, 1930. The all-time record low of −17 °F (−27 °C) was also recorded at Millsboro, on January 17, 1893. The hardiness zones are 7B and 8A at the Delaware Beaches . The transitional climate of Delaware supports a wide variety of vegetation. In

19188-585: The 1910s and 1920s. This included primary and secondary schools for Black people and women. Delaware suffered less during the Great Depression than other states, but the depression spurred further migration from the rural south to urban areas. Like in World War I, the state enjoyed a big stimulus to its gunpowder and shipyard industries in World War II. New job opportunities during and after

19434-617: The 1940s and 1950s, Delaware attempted to integrate its schools, although the last segregated school in the state did not close until 1970. The University of Delaware admitted its first black student in 1948, and local courts ruled that primary schools had to be integrated. Delaware's integration efforts partially inspired the US Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education , which found racial segregation in United States public schools to be unconstitutional. The result of

19680-624: The 26th, the American Patriots surprised and overwhelmed Rall and his troops, who lost over 20 killed including Rall, while 900 prisoners, German cannons and supplies were captured. The Battle of Trenton restored the American army's morale, reinvigorated the Patriot cause, and dispelled their fear of what they regarded as Hessian "mercenaries". A British attempt to retake Trenton was repulsed at Assunpink Creek on January 2; during

19926-468: The 50 U.S. states; from north to south, the three counties are: New Castle County , Kent County , and Sussex County . The southern two counties, Kent and Sussex counties, historically have been predominantly agrarian economies. New Castle is more urbanized and is considered part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan statistical area that surrounds Philadelphia . Delaware is considered part of

20172-474: The American cause. The reduced Continental Army had dwindled to fewer than 5,000 men and was reduced further when enlistments expired at the end of the year. Popular support wavered, and morale declined. On December 20, 1776, the Continental Congress abandoned the revolutionary capital of Philadelphia and moved to Baltimore , where it remained until February 27, 1777. Loyalist activity surged in

20418-526: The Americans at the Battle of Harlem Heights the following day. On October 18, Howe failed to encircle the Americans at the Battle of Pell's Point , and the Americans withdrew. Howe declined to close with Washington's army on October 28 at the Battle of White Plains , and instead attacked a hill that was of no strategic value. Washington's retreat isolated his remaining forces and the British captured Fort Washington on November 16. The British victory there amounted to Washington's most disastrous defeat with

20664-495: The Black students. The ensuing unrest, which included cross burnings , rallies, and pro-segregation demonstrations, contributed to desegregation in most of Southern Delaware being delayed for another ten years. Sussex County did not start closing or integrating its segregated schools until 1965, 11 years after the Brown ruling. Throughout the state, integration only encouraged more white flight, and poor economic conditions for

20910-542: The Canadians. In Virginia, Dunmore's Proclamation on November 7, 1775, promised freedom to any slaves who fled their Patriot masters and agreed to fight for the Crown. British forces were defeated at Great Bridge on December 9 and took refuge on British ships anchored near Norfolk. When the Third Virginia Convention refused to disband its militia or accept martial law, Lord Dunmore ordered

21156-787: The Colonial Secretary Lord Germain , proposing a limited offensive against Philadelphia, while a second force moved down the Hudson from Canada. Burgoyne supplied several alternatives, all of which gave him responsibility for the offensive, with Howe remaining on the defensive. The option selected required him to lead the main force south from Montreal down the Hudson Valley, while a detachment under Barry St. Leger moved east from Lake Ontario. The two would meet at Albany , leaving Howe to decide whether to join them. Reasonable in principle, this did not account for

21402-731: The Culper Spy Ring substantially increased the effective allocation and deployment of Continental regiments in the field. Throughout the war, Washington spent more than 10 percent of his total military funds on military intelligence . Washington split the Continental Army into positions on Manhattan and across the East River in western Long Island. On August 27 at the Battle of Long Island , Howe outflanked Washington and forced him back to Brooklyn Heights , but he did not attempt to encircle Washington's forces. Through

21648-702: The Delaware River sharing land boundaries with New Jersey. The state of Delaware, together with the Eastern Shore counties of Maryland and two counties of Virginia , form the Delmarva Peninsula , which stretches down the Mid-Atlantic Coast. The definition of the northern boundary of the state is unusual. Most of the boundary between Delaware and Pennsylvania was originally defined by an arc extending 12 miles (19.3 km) from

21894-621: The English colonists had arrived as indentured servants (contracted for a fixed period to pay for their passage), and in the early years the line between servant and slave was fluid. Most of the free African-American families in Delaware before the Revolution had migrated from Maryland to find more affordable land. They were descendants chiefly of relationships or marriages between white servant women and enslaved, servant or free African or African-American men. Under slavery law, children took

22140-639: The French in the Seven Years' War in 1763, tensions and disputes arose between Great Britain and the Thirteen Colonies over a variety of issues, including the Stamp and Townshend Acts . The resulting British military occupation led to the Boston Massacre in 1770. Among further tensions, the British Parliament imposed the Intolerable Acts in mid-1774. A British attempt to disarm the Americans and

22386-657: The Great were equally impressed with Germantown, which demonstrated resilience and determination. Over the winter, poor conditions, supply problems and low morale resulted in 2,000 deaths, with another 3,000 unfit for duty due to lack of shoes. However, Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben took the opportunity to introduce Prussian Army drill and infantry tactics to "model companies" in each Continental Army regiment, who then instructed their home units. Despite Valley Forge being only twenty miles away, Howe made no effort to attack their camp, an action some critics argue could have ended

22632-475: The Lower Counties. The fact that Delaware and Pennsylvania shared the same governor was not unique; from 1703 to 1738, New York and New Jersey shared a governor. Massachusetts and New Hampshire also shared a governor for some time. Dependent in early years on indentured labor, Delaware imported more slaves as the number of English immigrants decreased with better economic conditions in England. The colony became

22878-523: The Mars Works in Philadelphia had burned down, though his sons-in-law were committed to re-establishing the business and did so further outside of the city. Evans was buried at Zion Episcopal Church in Manhattan , but when that church was sold his body was moved several times until finally resting in 1890 in an unmarked common grave at Trinity Cemetery, Broadway at 157th Street, New York City. Undoubtedly, Evans' contributions to milling were profound and

23124-517: The North administration, Congress authorized the extralegal committees and conventions of the colonial legislatures to enforce the boycott; this succeeded in reducing British imports by 97% from 1774 to 1775. However, on February 9 Parliament declared Massachusetts to be in a state of rebellion and instituted a blockade of the colony. In July, the Restraining Acts limited colonial trade with

23370-595: The Patriot victory at Concord, moderates in Congress led by John Dickinson drafted the Olive Branch Petition , offering to accept royal authority in return for George III mediating in the dispute. However, since the petition was immediately followed by the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms , Colonial Secretary Lord Dartmouth viewed the offer as insincere and refused to present

23616-679: The Patriots erected Fort Mifflin and nearby Fort Mercer on the east and west banks of the Delaware respectively, and placed obstacles in the river south of the city. This was supported by a small flotilla of Continental Navy ships on the Delaware, supplemented by the Pennsylvania State Navy , commanded by John Hazelwood . An attempt by the Royal Navy to take the forts in the October 20 to 22 Battle of Red Bank failed;

23862-493: The Red Clay Creek mill in the early years of its operation after it was fully automated. He was alone at the mill that day and making hay in a nearby field, and purposely stayed out of sight so his visitors could observe the mill running independently without human supervision. Evans then appeared and at great length explained how the feat they witnessed was possible, and was convinced that the chance visit would bring about

24108-758: The Thirteen Colonies—;the Northern Theater and the Southern Theater —and a smaller but strategically important third one west of the Appalachian Mountains . On April 14, 1775, Sir Thomas Gage , Commander-in-Chief, North America and Governor of Massachusetts , received orders to take action against the Patriots. He decided to destroy militia ordnance stored at Concord, Massachusetts , and capture John Hancock and Samuel Adams , who were considered

24354-654: The Treaty of Paris, ratified on September 3, 1783, Great Britain acknowledged the sovereignty and independence of the United States, bringing the American Revolutionary War to an end. The Treaties of Versailles resolved Great Britain's conflicts with France and Spain and forced Great Britain to cede Tobago , Senegal , and small territories in India to France, and Menorca , West Florida and East Florida to Spain. The French and Indian War, part of

24600-566: The USA average). Winters are modestly cool to cold in northern Delaware, and cool to mild in southern Delaware. The normal seasonal snowfall ranges from about 20.0 inches in Wilmington to only 10.0 inches in Lewes. In many winters no snow will fall in coastal Delaware. Northern Delaware falls into USDA Garden Zone 7a, while southern and coastal areas fall into USDA zone 7b and 8a. The milder climate in southern Delaware allows for subtropical flora such as

24846-518: The Whigs, Parliament initially rejected the imposition of coercive measures by 170 votes, fearing an aggressive policy would drive the Americans towards independence. However, by the end of 1774 the collapse of British authority meant both Lord North and George III were convinced war was inevitable. After Boston, Gage halted operations and awaited reinforcements; the Irish Parliament approved

25092-507: The aftermath of the Steam Engineer's Guide what he called 'The Experiment Company', which would be a private research consortium to conduct reliable experiments and gather data for the benefits of subscribed members. The venture failed and Evans could find no paying stockholders to launch it, possibly due to Evans committing the new venture to developing a steam wagon of his own design. The Franklin Institute would be founded in Philadelphia

25338-478: The agriculture economy from tobacco to mixed farming resulted in less need for slaves' labor. In addition local Methodists and Quakers encouraged slaveholders to free their slaves following the American Revolution, and many did so in a surge of individual manumissions for idealistic reasons. By 1810, three-quarters of all blacks in Delaware were free. When John Dickinson freed his slaves in 1777, he

25584-634: The area of food. This slowed Burgoyne's progress and forced him to send out large foraging expeditions; on one of these, more than 700 British troops were captured at the Battle of Bennington on August 16. St Leger moved east and besieged Fort Stanwix ; despite defeating an American relief force at the Battle of Oriskany on August 6, he was abandoned by his Indian allies and withdrew to Quebec on August 22. Now isolated and outnumbered by Gates, Burgoyne continued onto Albany rather than retreating to Fort Ticonderoga, reaching Saratoga on September 13. He asked Clinton for support while constructing defenses around

25830-657: The army of the United Colonies." He assumed command on July 3, preferring to fortify Dorchester Heights outside Boston rather than assaulting it. In early March 1776, Colonel Henry Knox arrived with heavy artillery acquired in the Capture of Fort Ticonderoga . Under cover of darkness, on March 5, Washington placed these on Dorchester Heights, from where they could fire on the town and British ships in Boston Harbor. Fearing another Bunker Hill, Howe evacuated

26076-564: The base for American naval operations. After regrouping at Halifax in Nova Scotia, Howe set sail for New York in June 1776 and began landing troops on Staten Island near the entrance to New York Harbor on July 2. The Americans rejected Howe's informal attempt to negotiate peace on July 30; Washington knew that an attack on the city was imminent and realized that he needed advance information to deal with disciplined British regular troops. On August 12, 1776, Patriot Thomas Knowlton

26322-542: The basic principles of physics , hydraulics , and mechanics ; at times neglecting his family's financial security to complete it. The Young Mill-wright and Miller's Guide when it appeared consisted of five parts: 'Principles of Mechanics and Hydraulics', 'Of the different Kinds of Mills', 'Description of the Author's Improvements', 'On the Manufacturing of Grain into Flour', 'Ellicott's Plans for Building Mills', and

26568-652: The black population led to some violence during the 1960s. Riots broke out in Wilmington in 1967 and again in 1968 in response to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr , after which the National Guard occupied the city for nine months to prevent further violence. Since WWII, the state has been generally economically prosperous and enjoyed relatively high per capita income because of its location between major cities like Philadelphia, New York, and Washington, DC. Its population grew rapidly, particularly in

26814-476: The bulk of milling in the 1780s was done in the home through hand milling. Furthermore, the quality of milled wheat was poor in colonial America . Hard wheat varieties were insufficiently ground and sifted by mills, leaving a flour that was coarse and brown. Cross-contamination was a major problem: mill processes were not well-partitioned; the many people moving about the mill contaminated the flour with dirt, grain and other impurities. The result, Evans recognized,

27060-625: The camp to a "squalid hell" and supplies were dangerously low. Burgoyne capitulated on October 17; around 6,222 soldiers, including German forces commanded by General Friedrich Adolf Riedesel , surrendered their arms before being taken to Boston, where they were to be transported to England. After securing additional supplies, Howe made another attempt on Philadelphia by landing his troops in Chesapeake Bay on August 24. He now compounded failure to support Burgoyne by missing repeated opportunities to destroy his opponent, defeating Washington at

27306-502: The capacity for brasswork , as well as producing finer products for domestic purposes like hinges and fittings. The location of the Pittsburgh factory in the Mississippi River watershed was important in the development of high-pressure steam engines for the use in steamboats, and the new company began to promote its engines for river transport. Evans had long been a believer in the application of steam engines for maritime purposes. In his book of 1805, Evans had stated: "The navigation of

27552-420: The cause most doggedly during his latter years. His first and most successful patents concerning flour-milling proved the most problematic to defend, and Evans' battles proved influential in setting precedent for the newly established area of federal patent law. His original patent for his automated flour-mill expired in January 1805, but Evans believed that the fourteen year patent term was too brief and petitioned

27798-464: The changes saved his operation a small fortune amounting to $ 37,000. Local millers quickly followed suit, and Brandywine Village was soon a showcase for Evans's milling technology. After almost a decade, the Brandywine millers were finally convinced, and within a short period, automated mills began to spread across the eastern seaboard . In 1790, upon introduction of federal patent law , Evans immediately applied for protection for his milling designs and

28044-399: The city grew from $ 5.5 million in 1860 to $ 44 million in 1900. The most notable manufacturer in the state was the chemical company DuPont , which to this day is heavily credited with making the state what it is today in many ways. Because of Wilmington's growth, local politicians from the city and New Castle County pressured the state government to adopt a new constitution providing

28290-523: The city on March 17 without further loss and sailed to Halifax, Nova Scotia , while Washington moved south to New York City. Beginning in August 1775, American privateers raided towns in Nova Scotia, including Saint John , Charlottetown , and Yarmouth . In 1776, John Paul Jones and Jonathan Eddy attacked Canso and Fort Cumberland respectively. British officials in Quebec began negotiating with

28536-430: The civilian inhabitants that their lives and property would not be in any danger if they offered no resistance; they complied. Hopkins captured large stores of powder and other munitions that was so great he had to impress an extra ship in the harbor to transport the supplies back home, when he departed on March 17. A month later, after a brief skirmish with HMS  Glasgow , they returned to New London, Connecticut ,

28782-405: The colonial assemblies; combined with the lack of activity by Gage, opposition to the use of foreign troops allowed the Patriots to take control of the legislatures. Support for independence was boosted by Thomas Paine 's pamphlet Common Sense , which was published on January 10, 1776, and argued for American self-government and was widely reprinted. To draft the Declaration of Independence ,

29028-587: The colonies; the amount was minor, but ignored the fact it was that very principle Americans found objectionable. In April 1772, colonialists staged the first American tax revolt in Weare , New Hampshire against the British royal authority later referred to as the Pine Tree Riot . This occurrence would later inspire the design of the Pine Tree Flag . Tensions escalated following the destruction of

29274-659: The committee shared information and built alliances through secret correspondence, as well as employing secret agents in Europe to gather intelligence, conduct undercover operations, analyze foreign publications, and initiate Patriot propaganda campaigns. Paine served as secretary, while Benjamin Franklin and Silas Deane , sent to France to recruit military engineers, were instrumental in securing French aid in Paris. The Revolutionary War included two principal campaign theaters within

29520-771: The compensation Evans could seek for his patent's use or for Congress to void it altogether. Although the Senate drafted a bill that would roll-back some of Evans's patent rights, it did not pass, and he continued to vigorously pursue his patent fees. It would not be until the Patent Act of 1836 that many of these issues, including what constituted originality in the context of a patent, would be addressed. Although Evans had always suffered from bouts of depression, and bitterness towards those he felt did not appreciate his inventions, such sentiments seemed to peak in his later years. During one of his many legal battles in 1809, comments from

29766-434: The country in order to find offenders. On a trip to Vermont , Evans visited various mills and then promptly engaged a lawyer there to press charges against twenty-two of them for perceived breaches of his patent rights. In his last years Evans compiled a list, since lost, of all his inventions—eighty in total, as alluded to in the title of his last publication to his lawyers. Some of his unfinished ideas that are known include

30012-449: The course of his life. In time these feelings turned to bitterness and vengeance towards those who criticized or doubted him, and led him to become notoriously bombastic and combative, often aggrandizing his accomplishments and fiercely denouncing critics (such as the wild exaggerations as to the success of the Oruktor Amphibolos at the end of his life). While his relentless pursuit of patent rights did indeed force people to pay him his due,

30258-415: The day to serve as fuel for small fires. The Revolutionary War began when Evans was 19. He enlisted in a Delaware militia company but saw no active service during the war. By the age of 22, Evans moved out of wheel-making and became a specialist in forming the fine wire used in textile cards , which was used to comb fibers in preparation for the spinning process to make thread or yarn. A desire to increase

30504-493: The development of automated textile card production, then in great demand due to the growth of the Southern cotton industry . Early pioneers of mechanized textile-card production, including Giles Richards and Amos Whittemore , are thought to have borrowed heavily from his original designs. Evans also began experimenting in this period with steam power and its potential for commercial application. His early ideas culminated in

30750-408: The development of high-pressure steam engines (and his designs were widely used), his theoretical understanding of them was limited and he was generally unable to accurately predict the inputs and outputs of his machines. The guide also indulged in a far wider range of topics of interest to Evans, including a compendium of inventions from others which he deemed to be worthy of further circulation—such as

30996-570: The direction of James, the Duke of York . Fighting off a prior claim by Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , Proprietor of Maryland , the Duke passed his somewhat dubious ownership on to William Penn in 1682. Penn strongly desired access to the sea for his Pennsylvania province and leased what then came to be known as the "Lower Counties on the Delaware" from the Duke. Penn established representative government and briefly combined his two possessions under one General Assembly in 1682. However, by 1704

31242-423: The dredging equipment and propulsion was supplied by a high-pressure Evans engine. The end result was a craft nearly thirty feet long, twelve feet wide and weighing some seventeen tons. To move this ungainly hulk to the waterfront, as well to give a demonstration of his long-held beliefs in the possibility of land-based steam transportation, Evans mounted the hull on four wheels (twice, as the first set collapsed under

31488-460: The efficiency of this process led him to his first invention—a machine that would bend wire into teeth and cut them off rapidly to aid the assembly of cards. George Latimer , then a justice of the peace in Newport, saw its potential and tasked a blacksmith with creating the machine, which became one of Evans's early successes when it was introduced in 1778. Evans wished to go further in mechanizing

31734-484: The ending of the French threat in 1763, the legislatures expected less taxation, not more. At the same time, the huge debt incurred by the Seven Years' War and demands from British taxpayers for cuts in government expenditure meant Parliament expected the colonies to fund their own defense. The new taxes levied on subjects in the colonies proved highly burdensome in colonies such as North Carolina , particularly for

31980-426: The engine, and at this point his engines were as efficient and powerful as low-pressure Watt-Boulton designs, yet far cheaper to build and smaller in size. Within a year 27 Columbian engines were operating or under construction in applications ranging from sawmilling and grain milling to the manufacturing of paper, wire and wool. As the reputation of the Mars Works grew, so too did the demand for its products. After

32226-507: The engines equally well suited for a variety of industrial applications. As with the automated mill, Evans's ideas were harshly criticized by other engineers—most notably some of the Philadelphia engineering community including the influential Benjamin Latrobe . As it happened, Cornish engineer Richard Trevithick had previously developed nearly identical ideas in favor of high-pressure engines and begun to experiment with them in developing

32472-480: The engines for the Philadelphia Mint in 1816. Records indicate the Mars Works would turn out more than one hundred steam engines by the time of Evans death. In retirement Evans became increasingly consumed with pursuing his patent dues from those using his technology, which was now widespread. In 1817 he stated that his time was "wholly engrossed by law suits". Evans had become somewhat obsessed and took on

32718-461: The equivalent five horse wagons, for whom the trip took three days. Evans declared in his proposal that "I have no doubt but that my engines will propel boats against the current of the Mississippi, and waggons [ sic ] on turnpike roads with great profit." With the company unsure of the reliability and cost of the technology, the proposal was rejected. Despite this setback, within

32964-482: The equivalent of his earlier manual for millers—the petulantly titled The Abortion of the Young Steam Engineer's Guide . The Steam Engineer's Guide was significantly shorter than this first book and less structured in its approach. A third of the book is devoted to an ongoing argument between Evans and John Stevens (another prominent steam engineer of the day), much of which had previously appeared in

33210-716: The exception of Georgia , twelve colonies sent representatives to the First Continental Congress to agree on a unified response to the crisis. Many of the delegates feared that an all-out boycott would result in war and sent a Petition to the King calling for the repeal of the Intolerable Acts. However, after some debate, on September 17, 1774, Congress endorsed the Massachusetts Suffolk Resolves and on October 20 passed

33456-459: The exception of a minor skirmishing between the two armies which continued until March, Howe made no attempt to attack the Americans. The 1776 campaign demonstrated that regaining New England would be a prolonged affair, which led to a change in British strategy to isolating the north by taking control of the Hudson River , allowing them to focus on the south where Loyalist support was believed to be substantial. In December 1776, Howe wrote to

33702-632: The experiments and results so that they might be fully relied on, and leaving readers to draw their own inferences, the money would be well expended; for it would tend greatly to aid the progress of improvement in the arts and sciences." This suggestion stemmed from the observation that many engineers relied on the basic principles of physics and mechanics to guide their work, and yet this often required inventors and engineers to become scientists as well to obtain experimental data—something that they were rarely qualified or resourced to do. Short of government funding of such research, Evans also attempted to create in

33948-498: The face of enemy fire. The successes led to predictions that the British could win within a year. The British established winter quarters in the New York City area and anticipated renewed campaigning the following spring. On the night of December 25–26, 1776, Washington crossed the Delaware River , leading a column of Continental Army troops from today's Bucks County, Pennsylvania , to today's Mercer County, New Jersey , in

34194-411: The fact that by this time Evans himself had experienced several boiler explosions in his workshop. However, thermodynamics were little understood in his time. As such, many of Evans's theoretical contentions, including the 'grand principle' of steam he develops to guide the mathematical modelling of pressure and fuel in steam engines, were substantially flawed. Although Evans was to be quite successful in

34440-540: The fact that each colony argued that their boundaries extended from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean . The vast exchange of territory ultimately destabilized existing alliances and trade networks between settlers and Indians in the west, while it proved impossible to prevent encroachment beyond the Proclamation Line. With the exception of Virginia and others deprived of rights to western lands,

34686-401: The first high-pressure steam engine in the United States in 1801, developing his design independently of Richard Trevithick , who built the first in the world a year earlier. Evans was a driving force in the development and adoption of high-pressure steam engines in the United States. Evans dreamed of building a steam-powered wagon and eventually constructing and running one in 1805. Known as

34932-424: The first locomotives , but it is assumed Evans was unaware of Trevithick's work. Constructing his designs proved far more difficult than Evans initially envisaged—with just six working steam engines in the United States at this time, and a handful of workshops with any experience making them, it took Evans much of his savings and two years to yield a working example to display to the public in 1803. This first engine

35178-442: The first in a line of industrialists that culminated with Henry Ford and the modern assembly line. His concept of industrial automation was far ahead of its time, and the paradigm shift within manufacturing towards that concept would take more than a century to be fully realized. However continuous process manufacturing would spread from Evans's milling designs, first to related industries such as brewing and baking, then eventually to

35424-564: The flour he provided to feed the Continental Army during the War of Independence , he saw Evans's technology at work in the mills in Brandywine Village and was so impressed that had his own gristmill at Mount Vernon converted to the Evans system in 1791, the completion of which was overseen by Evans's brothers. In 1793, Evans sold his share in the Red Clay Creek mill and moved his family from Wilmington to Philadelphia, where he opened

35670-478: The former slave states. The Delaware legislature declared Black people to be second-class citizens in 1866, and restricted their voting rights despite the 15th Amendment, ensuring continued Democratic success in the state throughout most of the 19th century. Fearful that the 1875 Civil Rights Act passed by Congress might establish racial equality, Delaware legislators passed Jim Crow laws that mandated segregation in public facilities. The state's educational system

35916-416: The future. long before any such potential could be realized: "The time will come when people will travel in stages moved by steam engines, from one city to another, almost as fast as birds fly, fifteen or twenty miles in an hour" The Italian automobile model company, Brumm , made a 1/43 scale model of this steam carriage in their 'Old Fire' series, a series of 8 models of important early steam vehicles. It

36162-553: The head of a group of Swedes, Finns and Dutch. The colony of New Sweden lasted 17 years. In 1651, the Dutch, reinvigorated by the leadership of Peter Stuyvesant , established a fort at present-day New Castle and, in 1655, they conquered the New Sweden colony, annexing it into the Dutch New Netherland . Only nine years later, in 1664, the Dutch were conquered by a fleet of English ships by Sir Robert Carr under

36408-486: The high-pressure engine that would make that dream possible. And yet despite his formidable record and undoubted importance in the history of technology, Evans never became a household name. In this respect Evans was his own worst enemy. He was deeply affected by a perceived lack of recognition and appreciation from his peers for his work, and his bouts of depression would lead him to act in the extreme, prematurely ending projects and vowing to give up inventing many times over

36654-488: The high-pressure steam engine in the United States. Evans' engines, particularly the Columbian, were highly influential in early steam-power applications in United States (particularly in the evolution of steamboats and steam-powered industrial processes). Yet once more Evans was ahead of the curve with many of his ideas, and his death during steam's infancy in the United States meant that it would be some time before many of his ideas would come to fruition. For example, although

36900-430: The hopper-boy was undoubtedly original, the use of bucket chains and Archimedean screws had been used since ancient times and Evans had only modified some of their features and adapted them for use in a milling context. A now retired Thomas Jefferson weighed into the debate in letters to both Evans and his detractors, questioning the philosophy of patent law and what truly defined 'invention' and 'machine' (and to some extent

37146-417: The implementation of any of Evans's designs for Fulton's steamships. The Mississippi and tributaries experienced far stronger currents than eastern counterparts, and low-pressure steamboats lacked the power to counteract these. The Enterprise was the first viable steamboat to run on these rivers, and its designer Daniel French employed an adapted Evans' engine for the purpose. High-pressure engines became

37392-404: The intervening three year period between the patent terms, as many millers had waited for Evans's patent to expire before upgrading their mills. Evans and his agents set about aggressively collecting royalties from those using his designs. Furthermore, Evans significantly raised the license fees for his use of his patented technology, raising claims of extortion from those being asked to pay, and

37638-434: The invention proved ineffective for its ostensible purpose as a dredger, and it was scrapped for parts by the Board of Health in 1808. Nevertheless, Evans's ideas of steam carriages were not an impossible dream. Evans would continue to promote the idea. In 1812 he published a futuristic description of a world connected by a network of shipping lines railroad tracks and steam locomotives, accurately describing what will happen in

37884-402: The journal The Medical Repository and to which now Evans added various additional criticisms of Stevens' contentions. Evans concludes his book by renouncing inventing and any further work on his designs, complaining of the ingratitude of the public and the unprofitability of the endeavour, although this would prove to be just one of many such assertions by Evans over the coming years. Regardless,

38130-465: The jury found in favor of Evans, but it was a pyrrhic victory as Evans had put most of the milling community offside in the process, and ultimately reduced his claim against Robinson to $ 1,000. In response, prominent Evans critic Isaac McPherson, made submission to Congress in the wake of the trial entitled Memorial to the Congress of Sundry Citizens of the United States, Praying Relief from the Oppressive Operations of Oliver Evans' Patent , seeking to limit

38376-418: The leading proponents of a strong central United States with equal representation for each state. Many colonial settlers came to Delaware from Maryland and Virginia , where the population had been increasing rapidly. The economies of these colonies were chiefly based on labor-intensive tobacco and increasingly dependent on African slaves because of a decline in working class immigrants from England. Most of

38622-404: The license fees. In these years Evans concentrated on growing his commercial operations in Philadelphia, expanding his store several times, becoming an agent for English imports, and taking on blacksmiths to complete more complicated metal work for mills. All the while Evans continued to refine various elements of mill design, including patenting a new process for making millstones and developing

38868-475: The logistical difficulties involved and Burgoyne erroneously assumed Howe would remain on the defensive; Germain's failure to make this clear meant he opted to attack Philadelphia instead. Burgoyne set out on June 14, 1777, with a mixed force of British regulars, professional German soldiers and Canadian militia, and captured Fort Ticonderoga on July 5. As General Horatio Gates retreated, his troops blocked roads, destroyed bridges, dammed streams, and stripped

39114-447: The loss of 3,000 prisoners. The remaining American regiments on Long Island fell back four days later. General Henry Clinton wanted to pursue Washington's disorganized army, but he was first required to commit 6,000 troops to capture Newport, Rhode Island , to secure the Loyalist port. General Charles Cornwallis pursued Washington, but Howe ordered him to halt. The outlook following the defeat at Fort Washington appeared bleak for

39360-462: The loss of their lands on the Delaware River and the destruction of the Minqua by the Iroquois of the Five Nations in the 1670s, the remnants of the Lenape who wished to remain identified as such left the region and moved over the Allegheny Mountains by the mid-18th century. Generally, those who did not relocate out of the state of Delaware were baptized, became Christian and were grouped together with other persons of color in official records and in

39606-510: The machine in operation, while the Philadelphia newspaper Aurora declared "a new era in the history of the steam engine." Evans received a patent for his new steam engine in 1804, and set about looking for commercial applications. The first of his proposals was for the Lancaster Turnpike Company . He proposed to construct a steam wagon with the capacity to carry 100 barrels of flour between Philadelphia and Lancaster in two days, which by his estimation would greatly increase profits compared to

39852-466: The major components (expander, cooling coil, compressor and condenser) of a refrigeration cycle, leaving some to credit him as the 'grandfather of refrigeration'. Although Evans never developed a working model of his designs, and there is no evidence that he ever attempted to, Evans in his later life worked and associated extensively with fellow inventor Jacob Perkins on steam engines and the potential for refrigeration. Perkins would later develop and build

40098-445: The media, and some residents. Delaware is the sixth most densely populated state, with a population density of 442.6 people per square mile, 356.4 per square mile more than the national average, and ranking 45th in population. Delaware is one of five U.S. states ( Maine , Vermont , West Virginia , Wyoming ) that do not have a single city with a population over 100,000 as of the 2010 census. The center of population of Delaware

40344-474: The minds of their non-Native American neighbors. The Dutch were the first Europeans to settle in present-day Delaware in the middle region by establishing a trading post at Zwaanendael , near the site of Lewes in 1631. Within a year, all the settlers were killed in a dispute with Native American tribes living in the area. In 1638, New Sweden , a Swedish trading post and colony, was established at Fort Christina (now in Wilmington ) by Peter Minuit at

40590-405: The more precise metal-work required to build steam engines. In particular, Evans soon realized that unlike his milling machines of wood and leather he would need specialist skills, precision tools and a large foundry in order to build steam machines on a commercial basis. Thus, Evans constructed the Mars Works on a large site a few blocks north of his store in Philadelphia. The choice of name, after

40836-405: The most rapidly adopted. Within his lifetime American milling had undergone a revolution, and his designs allowed mills to be built on industrial-scales with far greater efficiency. Now a more profitable enterprise, the number of mills increased dramatically across the United States. The price of flour fell significantly, availability increased, and the automated drying and bolting processes increased

41082-541: The nation. Its highest elevation, located at Ebright Azimuth , near Concord High School , is less than 450 feet (140 m) above sea level. The northernmost part of the state is part of the Piedmont Plateau with hills and rolling surfaces. The Atlantic Seaboard fall line approximately follows the Robert Kirkwood Highway between Newark and Wilmington ; south of this road is the Atlantic Coastal Plain with flat, sandy, and, in some parts, swampy ground. A ridge about 75 to 80 feet (23 to 24 m) high extends along

41328-604: The necessary iron making and metal working technology was lacking in America. Evans recognized that a high-pressure steam engine would be essential to the development of a steam carriage because they could be built far smaller while providing similar or greater power outputs to low-pressure equivalents. Some experiments with high-pressure steam engines had been made in Europe, most notably Trevithick's Puffing Devil , in 1801, and his later London Steam Carriage of 1803, which circumvented Watt's condenser patent by simply removing it. The prevailing fear of early steam engineering, however,

41574-414: The night of August 28, Knox bombarded the British. Knowing they were up against overwhelming odds, Washington ordered the assembly of a war council on August 29; all agreed to retreat to Manhattan. Washington quickly had his troops assembled and ferried them across the East River to Manhattan on flat-bottomed freight boats without any losses in men or ordnance, leaving General Thomas Mifflin 's regiments as

41820-440: The night, Washington outmaneuvered Cornwallis, then defeated his rearguard in the Battle of Princeton the following day. The two victories helped convince the French that the Americans were worthy military allies. After his success at Princeton, Washington entered winter quarters at Morristown, New Jersey , where he remained until May and received Congressional direction to inoculate all Patriot troops against smallpox . With

42066-415: The north with more representation. However, the subsequent 1897 constitution did not proportionally represent the north and continued to give the southern counties disproportionate influence. As manufacturing expanded, businesses became major players in state affairs and funders of politicians through families such as the Du Ponts. Republican John Addicks attempted to buy a US Senate seat multiple times in

42312-436: The northeastern portion of the Delmarva Peninsula , and some islands and territory within the Delaware River . It is the second-smallest and sixth-least populous state, but also the sixth-most densely populated . Delaware's most populous city is Wilmington , and the state's capital is Dover , the second-most populous city in Delaware . The state is divided into three counties , the fewest number of counties of any of

42558-440: The northern third of the state are found Northeastern coastal forests and mixed oak forests typical of the northeastern United States. In the southern two-thirds of the state are found Middle Atlantic coastal forests . Trap Pond State Park , along with areas in other parts of Sussex County, for example, support the northernmost stands of bald cypress trees in North America. Delaware provides government subsidy support for

42804-501: The operation of grist mills was labor-intensive. Although the stages of the milling process—grinding, cooling, sifting, and packing—were beginning to be mechanized to various degrees, gravity or manual labor was required to move grain from one stage to the next. Additionally, some stages (particularly cooling) were slow and inefficient, creating significant production process bottlenecks. Mills were becoming commonplace in populated areas and those with ready access to waterways for power, but

43050-431: The petition to the king. Although constitutionally correct, since George could not oppose his own government, it disappointed those Americans who hoped he would mediate in the dispute, while the hostility of his language annoyed even Loyalist members of Congress. Combined with the Proclamation of Rebellion , issued on August 23 in response to the Battle at Bunker Hill , it ended hopes of a peaceful settlement. Backed by

43296-449: The poorer classes, and quickly became a source of much discontent. The 1763 to 1765 Grenville ministry instructed the Royal Navy to cease trading smuggled goods and enforce customs duties levied in American ports. The most important was the 1733 Molasses Act ; routinely ignored before 1763, it had a significant economic impact since 85% of New England rum exports were manufactured from imported molasses. These measures were followed by

43542-447: The population. The 2022 American Community Survey estimated the state had a racial and ethnic makeup of 60.6% non-Hispanic whites, 23.6% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian or Alaska Native, 4.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 2.9% multiracial, and 10.1% Hispanic or Latin American of any race. American Revolutionary War American and allied victory Great Britain cedes generally, all mainland territories east of

43788-534: The port of Wilmington had trading ties with the British. New Castle lawyer Thomas McKean denounced the Stamp Act in the strongest terms, and Kent County native John Dickinson became the "Penman of the Revolution". Anticipating the Declaration of Independence, Patriot leaders Thomas McKean and Caesar Rodney convinced the Colonial Assembly to declare itself separated from British and Pennsylvania rule on June 15, 1776. The person best representing Delaware's majority, George Read , could not bring himself to vote for

44034-472: The potential applications of steam power for transportation while still an apprentice in the 1780s, and had developed rudimentary designs for 'steam carriages' in the 1790s. In 1801, Evans definitively began work on making his long-held dream of a steam carriage a reality, although British engineers such as Richard Trevithick had already begun work on such ideas. Other early steam engineers, most notably Watt contemporary, William Murdoch , had developed plans for

44280-495: The practical sections, and hence often revised standing theories to comport with experiments he conducted and observations he made. For example, he found what was written on the theoretical mechanical principles of waterwheels did not match what he could replicate in practice, so he revised them based on observation to form a "true theory" and concluded that "neither the old or new theories agree with practice, therefore we must suspect that they are founded on error. But if, what I call

44526-404: The presiding judge sent Evans into a particular fury in which he dramatically incinerated many schematics and papers regarding his inventions, both prior and future. Evans declared at the time that inventing had led only to heartache, disappointment and under-appreciation; and committed himself to business and material acquisition for the sake of his family. Ultimately what was burned represents only

44772-548: The pressure. The output of the machine was approximately five horsepower . This work output was modest by contemporary standards—the low-pressure engine of the nearby waterworks produced about twelve horsepower. But his steam engine was just a fraction of the size of pre-existing machines—the waterworks machine was over twenty-five times larger in volume. Evans unveiled his engine at his store and put it to work crushing plaster of Paris and, more sensationally, sawing slabs of marble . The showmanship paid off, and thousands came to see

45018-405: The principal guidebook for American milling it would not be superseded until after the Civil War . After the publication of the Guide , Evans concentrated on his work as a milling supply merchant and gaining financial security through licensing his patented designs. With enough millers now using Evans's machinery, adoption began to accelerate rapidly after 1800, as did his considerable wealth from

45264-400: The principal instigators of the rebellion. The operation was to begin around midnight on April 19, in the hope of completing it before the American Patriots could respond. However, Paul Revere learned of the plan and notified Captain Parker , commander of the Concord militia, who prepared to resist. The first action of the war, commonly referred to as the shot heard round the world , was

45510-415: The principle of taxation by Parliament. In December 1773, a group called the Sons of Liberty disguised as Mohawk natives dumped 342 crates of tea into the Boston Harbor , an event later known as the Boston Tea Party . The British Parliament responded by passing the so-called Intolerable Acts , aimed specifically at Massachusetts, although many colonists and members of the Whig opposition considered them

45756-409: The process badly damaged his reputation and made him many enemies. A leading Philadelphia merchant summed it up in 1802, stating "few if any [millers] are inclined to give pompous blockhead, Oliver Evans, the credit of inventing any of the useful contrivances in milling for which he now enjoys patents." And yet in spite of his anguish and the weight of his detractors, Evans was steadfastly persistent in

46002-419: The production of textile cards by developing a machine that could puncture the leather into which the wire teeth were inserted. His invention greatly speeded the card manufacturing process, producing around 1,500 teeth every minute, though Evans himself was unable to find financial backing to commercialize his invention. Nevertheless, over the next two decades card manufacturing innovations inspired by Evans led to

46248-491: The promise in Evans's ideas and helped him to secure patent protection over the inventions throughout 1787 and 1788. By this time Evans converted his brothers' mill at Red Clay Creek into a fully automated prototype based on his perfected designs, and the Evans brothers sent handbills and diagrams to the major milling centers of the United States offering free licensing of the designs for the first miller in each county who would commission Evans to refit their mills. Yet this campaign

46494-406: The province of Pennsylvania had grown so large their representatives wanted to make decisions without the assent of the Lower Counties, and the two groups of representatives began meeting on their own, one at Philadelphia , and the other at New Castle. Penn and his heirs remained proprietors of both and always appointed the same person Governor for their province of Pennsylvania and their territory of

46740-412: The pursuit of his ideas, a quality which Evans felt would ultimately see him triumph. The French translator of the Young Steam Engineer's Guide agreed, concluding "posterity will place his name among those who are most truly distinguished for their eminent services rendered to their country and to humanity." Delaware Delaware ( / ˈ d ɛ l ə w ɛər / DEL -ə-wair )

46986-458: The quality and fineness of flour. In turn this led to major shift in bread making —cheaper and better quality flour lowered the cost of bread production and within a generation the majority of bread consumption shifted from the home-made to store-bought. The revolution was even more far-reaching in Europe where the so-called " American System " was quickly adopted by the milling industry and triggered major increases in food production—sorely needed in

47232-410: The recruitment of new regiments, while allowing Catholics to enlist for the first time. Britain also signed a series of treaties with German states to supply additional troops . Within a year, it had an army of over 32,000 men in America, the largest ever sent outside Europe at the time. The employment of German soldiers against people viewed as British citizens was opposed by many in Parliament and by

47478-513: The reliance upon labor for milling. Moving wheat from the bottom to the top of the mill to begin the process was the most onerous task of all in contemporary mills. Evans's first innovation was a bucket elevator to facilitate this process. Chains of buckets to raise water was a Roman technology that had been used in various guises since antiquity. Evans had seen diagrams of their use for marine applications and realized with some modification and careful engineering they could be used to raise grain, so

47724-448: The resulting Battles of Lexington and Concord in April 1775 ignited the war. In June, the Second Continental Congress formalized Patriot militias into the Continental Army and appointed Washington its commander-in-chief. The British Parliament declared the colonies to be in a state of rebellion in August 1775. The stakes of the war were formalized with passage of the Lee Resolution by the Congress in Philadelphia on July 2, 1776, and

47970-426: The risk of contamination. Despite their technical complexity, neither device was revolutionary by the standards of the time. However, the total vision of their design was. Evans was attempting a radical shift in thinking about the manufacturing process, treating it as a continuous integrated whole rather than a series of isolated processes. Thus, manufacturing could be a fully automated production line. The missing link

48216-424: The river Mississippi, by steam engines, on the principles here laid down, has for many years been a favorite subject of the author, and among the fondest wishes of his heart" Evans had long been an acquaintance of John Fitch , the first to build a steamboat in the United States, and the two had worked together on steam projects. The Oruktor Amphibolos was Evans's lone attempt at building his own steamboat powered by

48462-409: The river and paddling at speed to Philadelphia harbor ; the great weight of the craft make land-propulsion based on its limited engine capacity and jury-rigged power train fairly improbable over any significant distance. It is similarly unknown how well, if at all, the Oruktor functioned as a steamboat, and Evans's claims on this point vary significantly over the years. Nevertheless, it is known that

48708-434: The same effect upon ether , and the resulting cooling should be sufficient to produce ice. He went on to describe a piston vacuum pump apparatus to produce this effect, and also showed that a compression cylinder, or the compression stroke of the vacuum pump, should produce heat in a condenser . Thus Evans had produced the first detailed and theoretically coherent design for a vapor-compression refrigerator , identifying all

48954-476: The scheme didn't get far. In 1816 his wife Sarah died, although the cause is unrecorded. Evans remarried two years later in April 1818 to Hetty Ward, who was many years his junior and the daughter of the New York innkeeper. In these last years Evans lived in New York with his new wife. In early 1819 Evans developed an inflammation of the lungs and, after a month of illness, died on April 15, 1819. Just four days prior, on April 11, news had reached him in New York that

49200-452: The social status of their mothers, so children born to white women were free, regardless of their paternity, just as children born to enslaved women were born into slavery. As the flow of indentured laborers to the colony decreased with improving economic conditions in England, more slaves were imported for labor and the caste lines hardened. By the end of the colonial period, the number of enslaved people in Delaware began to decline. Shifts in

49446-412: The split as 40% Patriot, 40% neutral, 20% Loyalist, but with considerable regional variations. At the onset of the war, the Second Continental Congress realized defeating Britain required foreign alliances and intelligence-gathering. The Committee of Secret Correspondence was formed for "the sole purpose of corresponding with our friends in Great Britain and other parts of the world". From 1775 to 1776,

49692-405: The standard on the Mississippi, though relatively few of those were actually built by the Pittsburgh works as Evans' patent on high-pressure engines was not widely enforced, and many other engine shops opened on the Mississippi that freely adapted Evans' designs for their own purposes. Notable examples of river steamboats that were constructed by the Pittsburgh and Mars Works include the Franklin ,

49938-445: The state based on the 2020 United States census . The United States Census Bureau determined that the population of Delaware was 989,948 on April 1, 2020, an increase from the 2010 census figure of 897,934. Delaware's history as a border state has led it to exhibit characteristics of both the Northern and the Southern regions of the United States. Generally, the rural Southern (or "Slower Lower") regions of Delaware below

50184-406: The state's large gunpowder industry. DuPont, the most dominant business in the state by WWI, produced an estimated 40% of all gunpowder used by the Allies during the war. It produced nylon in the state after the war and began investments into General Motors . Additionally, the company invested heavily in the expansion of public schools in the state and colleges such as the University of Delaware in

50430-413: The state, some served in companies on the Confederate side in Maryland and Virginia Regiments. Delaware is notable for being the only slave state from which no Confederate regiments or militia groups were assembled. Delaware essentially freed the few slaves who were still in bondage shortly after the Civil War but rejected the 13th , 14th , and 15th Amendments to the Constitution; the 13th Amendment

50676-453: The suburbs in the north where New Castle county became an extension of the Philadelphia metropolitan area . Americans, including migrants from Puerto Rico, and immigrants from Latin America flocked to the state. By 1990, only 50% of Delaware's population consisted of natives to the state. Delaware is 96 miles (154 km) long and ranges from 9 to 35 miles (14 to 56 km) across, with a land area of 1,982 square miles (5,130 km ) and

50922-495: The town. Morale among his troops rapidly declined, and an unsuccessful attempt to break past Gates at the Battle of Freeman Farms on September 19 resulted in 600 British casualties. When Clinton advised he could not reach them, Burgoyne's subordinates advised retreat; a reconnaissance in force on October 7 was repulsed by Gates at the Battle of Bemis Heights , forcing them back into Saratoga with heavy losses. By October 11, all hope of escape had vanished; persistent rain reduced

51168-549: The true theory, should continue to agree with practice, the practitioner need not care on what it is founded." The guide's list of subscribers was topped by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Edmund Randolph when the first edition appeared in print in 1795. The book proved very popular and remained a staple manual for millers for over half a century, undergoing several revisions and fifteen printed editions between 1795 and 1860. The book's popularity rested on its detailed practical explanations of mill design and construction, and as

51414-399: The turn of the 20th century, Delaware has become an onshore corporate haven whose corporate laws are deemed appealing to corporations; over half of all New York Stock Exchange -listed corporations and over three-fifths of the Fortune 500 are legally incorporated in Delaware. Over 90% of all U.S. based companies that went public in 2021 incorporated themselves in Delaware. Delaware

51660-398: The unanimous ratification of the Declaration of Independence two days later, on July 4, 1776. After a successful siege , Washington's forces drove the British Army out of Boston in March 1776, and British commander in chief William Howe responded by launching the New York and New Jersey campaign . Howe captured New York City in November. Washington responded by clandestinely crossing

51906-430: The validity of his claims) but ultimately defended the purpose of patent law, which was to incentivize innovation by rewarding inventors for their development and sharing of new technology. And Jefferson noted that though Evans's designs consisted of devices that had long existed beforehand, everyone had access to these and yet only Evans had thought to modify and use them in conjunction to build an automatic mill. Ultimately

52152-428: The wake of the American defeat, especially in New York state . In London, news of the victorious Long Island campaign was well received with festivities held in the capital. Public support reached a peak. Strategic deficiencies among Patriot forces were evident: Washington divided a numerically weaker army in the face of a stronger one, his inexperienced staff misread the military situation, and American troops fled in

52398-404: The war in the Wilmington area coaxed Black people from the southern counties to move to the city. The proportion of blacks constituting the city's population rose from 15% in 1950 to over 50% by 1980. The surge of Black migrants to the north sparked white flight , in which middle class whites moved from the city to suburban areas, leading to de facto segregation of Northern Delaware's society. In

52644-474: The way east to the low-tide mark on the New Jersey shore, then continues south along the shoreline until it again reaches the 12-mile (19 km) arc in the south; then the boundary continues in a more conventional way in the middle of the main channel ( thalweg ) of the Delaware River. On the west, Delaware and Maryland are mostly separated by a line running from the midpoint of the Transpeninsular Line , going slightly west of due north up to its tangent point on

52890-680: The weight) and connected the engine to them in order to drive the Oruktor from his workshop through the Philadelphia streets on the way to the Schuylkill River on July 13, 1805. The Oruktor Amphibolos is thus believed to have been the first automobile in the United States, and the first motorized amphibious craft in the world. However, very few contemporary accounts of the craft survive, and Evans's tendency to exaggerate its success in his own annals make verification of its performance difficult. Although Evans himself claimed it proceeded successfully around Philadelphia (and circled his erstwhile rival Benjamin Latrobe's Philadelphia waterworks) before launching into

53136-448: The western boundary of the state and separates the watersheds that feed Delaware River and Bay to the east and the Chesapeake Bay to the west. Since almost all of Delaware is a part of the Atlantic coastal plain , the effects of the ocean moderate its climate. The state lies in the humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa ) zone. Despite its small size (roughly 100 miles (160 km) from its northernmost to southernmost points), there

53382-428: The western part of the state before migrating across the Chesapeake Bay. The Kuskarawocks were most likely the Tuscarora . The Unami Lenape in the Delaware Valley were closely related to Munsee Lenape tribes along the Hudson River . They had a settled hunting and agricultural society, and they rapidly became middlemen in an increasingly frantic fur trade with their ancient enemy, the Minqua or Susquehannock . With

53628-457: The wider global conflict known as the Seven Years' War , ended with the 1763 Peace of Paris , which expelled France from their possessions in New France . Acquisition of territories in Atlantic Canada and West Florida , inhabited largely by French and Spanish-speaking Catholics , led British authorities to consolidate their hold by populating them with English-speaking settlers. Preventing conflict between settlers and Indian tribes west of

53874-504: The works became highly experienced in producing all kinds of heavy machinery, contributing to Philadelphia's emergence as a leading center for such work in the 19th century. Indeed, the works even received military orders, casting naval cannons during the War of 1812 . Evans also proved highly innovative in designing steam power solutions for his clients. In one example where the Mars Works was commissioned to build engines for wool processing factories in Middletown, Connecticut , Evans designed

54120-443: Was Delaware's largest slave owner with 37 slaves. By 1860, the largest slaveholder owned 16 slaves. Although attempts to abolish slavery failed by narrow margins in the legislature, in practical terms the state had mostly ended the practice. By the 1860 census on the verge of the Civil War , 91.7% of the black population were free; 1,798 were slaves, as compared to 19,829 "free colored persons". An independent black denomination

54366-425: Was a low-quality product that took too many laborers to make. In 1783, two of Evans's brothers began building a mill in Newport on part of the family's farm estate which they purchased from their father, and Evans was recruited to oversee its construction on the Red Clay Creek. When the mill opened in 1785 it was of a conventional design, but over the next five years, Evans began to experiment with inventions to reduce

54612-410: Was a viable possibility. France signed a commercial agreement with the rebels, followed by a Treaty of Alliance in February 1778. In 1779, the Sullivan Expedition undertook a scorched earth campaign against the Iroquois who were largely allied with the British. Indian raids on the American frontier, however, continued to be a problem. Also, in 1779, Spain allied with France against Great Britain in

54858-486: Was apprenticed to a wheelwright . Going into business with his brothers, he worked for over a decade designing, building and perfecting an automated mill with devices such as bucket chains and conveyor belts. In doing so Evans designed a continuous process of manufacturing that required no human labor. This novel concept would prove critical to the Industrial Revolution and the development of mass production . Later in life Evans turned his attention to steam power and built

55104-562: Was born in Newport, Delaware on September 13, 1755, to Charles and Ann Stalcop Evans. His father was a cordwainer by trade, though he purchased a large farm to the north of Newport on the Red Clay Creek and moved his family there when Oliver was still in his infancy. Oliver was the fifth of twelve children; he had four sisters and seven brothers. Little else is known of Evans's early life, and surviving records provide few details as to his formative years. The nature and location of his early education have not been preserved, however, his literacy

55350-452: Was chartered in 1813 by freed slave Peter Spencer as the " Union Church of Africans ". This followed the 1793 establishment in Philadelphia of the African Methodist Episcopal Church by Richard Allen , which had ties to the Methodist Episcopal Church until 1816. Spencer built a church in Wilmington for the new denomination. This was renamed as the African Union First Colored Methodist Protestant Church and Connection , more commonly known as

55596-501: Was complicated. Evans struggled to find the money to pay the highly skilled carpenters needed to construct his complex machines. The nearby flour milling industry on the Brandywine River was large, but dominated by the Quaker millers of Wilmington who saw little potential in Evans's designs. James Latimer, a Newport flour merchant upon hearing Evans's ideas exclaimed "Ah! Oliver, you cannot make water run uphill, you cannot make wooden millers!" Latimer's son, George, however once more saw

55842-434: Was demonstrably strong from a young age, both as a writer and an avid reader on technical subjects. Aged 17, Evans was apprenticed to a wheelwright and wagon-maker in Newport. An anecdote from the period recalls that his master, an illiterate and extremely frugal man, forbade Evans the use of candles to illuminate his reading in the evenings. Evans found another way by collecting scraps and shavings of wood from his work during

56088-445: Was disliked by many of his peers. Disappointed and then angry at the perceived lack of recognition for his contributions, Evans became combative and bitter in later years, which damaged his reputation and left him isolated. Despite the importance of his work, his contributions were frequently overlooked (or attributed to others after his death) so he never became a household name alongside the other steam pioneers of his era. Oliver Evans

56334-727: Was exposed to early examples of their application there. John Fitch had launched the first rudimentary steamboat onto the Delaware River in the late 1780s, and the Philadelphia waterworks was by 1802 operating two low-pressure steam engines to pump water from the Schuylkill River , but these were rare examples and most instances of this new technology were to be found in Europe. Much of the development of steam power had occurred in Great Britain, with Thomas Newcomen and James Watt instrumental in developing and commercializing steam power there and elsewhere in Europe, with several hundred of machines operating there in industrial and labor-saving applications by 1800. Evans had first begun to consider

56580-432: Was first colonized by Dutch traders at Zwaanendael , near present-day Lewes, Delaware , in 1631. Delaware was one of the Thirteen Colonies that participated in the American Revolution against Great Britain , which established the United States as an independent nation. On December 7, 1787, Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution of the United States , earning it the nickname "The First State". Since

56826-581: Was granted the third US patent, with his application personally examined and approved by Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson , Secretary of War Henry Knox , and Attorney-General Edmund Randolph . Having secured patent protection for his designs and general adoption by the Brandywine millers, Evans now turned his attention outside Delaware. His brother Joseph travelled widely to promote Evans's work, and according to some sources, by 1792 over one hundred mills were operating Evans machinery. When George Washington called upon Joseph Tatnall in 1790 to thank him for

57072-476: Was independently operated by one of four cams . The resulting design was a high-pressure steam engine that had a higher power-to-weight ratio than Newcomen engines, setting it among the ranks of other engineers' engines in their quest to make locomotives and steamboats practical. These engines were also mechanically simpler than condensing engines, making them less costly to build and maintain, and did not require large volumes of condensing water. These features made

57318-420: Was initially blocked by American naval vessels on Lake Champlain until victory at Valcour Island on October 11 forced the Americans to withdraw to Fort Ticonderoga , while in December an uprising in Nova Scotia sponsored by Massachusetts was defeated at Fort Cumberland . These failures impacted public support for the Patriot cause, and aggressive anti-Loyalist policies in the New England colonies alienated

57564-434: Was materials handling, and Evans's mill designs sought to feed materials continuously through a system without the need for any human intervention. This was the first fully automated industrial process, and the idea of continuous production was proved to be a critical ingredient of the industrial revolution, and would ultimately lay the foundation for modern mass production . Constructing the machinery to realize this vision

57810-439: Was named after its location on the Delaware Bay , which in turn derived its name from Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr (1577–1618), the first governor of the Colony of Virginia . The Delaware people, a name used by Europeans for Lenape people Indigenous to the Delaware Valley, also derive their name from the same source. The name de La Warr was derived from Sussex and is of Anglo -French origin. It came probably from

58056-472: Was one of the most prolific and influential inventors in the early years of the United States. He left behind a long series of accomplishments, most notably designing and building the first fully automated industrial process, the first high-pressure steam engine , first vapor compression refrigeration and the first (albeit crude) amphibious vehicle and American automobile. Born in Newport, Delaware , Evans received little formal education and in his mid-teens

58302-414: Was ordered to form an elite group for reconnaissance and secret missions. Knowlton's Rangers , which included Nathan Hale , became the Army's first intelligence unit. When Washington was driven off Long Island , he soon realized that he would need to professionalize military intelligence. With aid from Benjamin Tallmadge , Washington launched the six-man Culper spy ring . The efforts of Washington and

58548-407: Was powered by a double-acting cylinder six inches in diameter and with a piston stroke length of eighteen inches. Many components, such as the flywheel and crosshead , were made of wood in order to simplify construction. The boiler, the engineering of which was critical to the safe operation of the engine, consisted of a large copper shell encased in wood and cast iron rings in order to contain

58794-456: Was rejected on February 8, 1865, the 14th Amendment was rejected on February 8, 1867, and the 15th Amendment was rejected on March 18, 1869. Delaware officially ratified the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments on February 12, 1901. During the Reconstruction Era that followed the Civil War , Democratic Redeemer governments led by the South's Bourbon aristocracy continued to dominate the region and imposed explicitly white supremacist regimes in

59040-434: Was segregated by operation of law. Delaware's segregation was written into the state constitution, which, while providing at Article X, Section 2, that "no distinction shall be made on account of race or color", nonetheless required that "separate schools for white and colored children shall be maintained." Beginning in the late 19th century, the Wilmington area grew into a manufacturing center. Investment in manufacturing in

59286-403: Was settled by European colonists, the present-day state was home to the Eastern Algonquian tribes known as the Unami Lenape , or Delaware, who lived mostly along the coast, and the Nanticoke who occupied much of the southern Delmarva Peninsula . John Smith also shows two Iroquoian tribes, the Kuskarawock and Tockwogh , living north of the Nanticoke—they may have held small portions of land in

59532-416: Was superseded within a few years by more precise straight line mechanisms . The Columbian was also the culmination of the grasshopper-style of steam engine. Perfected designs like the Columbian saw a popularization of the grasshopper-style and its wide use in a range of applications. In 1813 he made the decision to introduce a condenser to the Columbian design. This significantly cut the running cost to

59778-439: Was taken prisoner. The British remained in control of the Delaware River for much of the rest of the war, disrupting commerce and providing encouragement to an active Loyalist portion of the population, particularly in Sussex County. Because the British promised slaves of rebels freedom for fighting with them, escaped slaves flocked north to join their lines. Following the American Revolution , statesmen from Delaware were among

60024-483: Was that no boiler could safely contain high-pressure steam. Watt, for example, wanted to have Trevithick imprisoned because of the danger his high-pressure engines introduced. Evans ignored the potential drawbacks, and developed similarly different designs of engines operating at high-pressure while eliminating Watt's condenser. His designs also incorporated a grasshopper beam , a double-acting cylinder, and four steam valves , very similar to Trevithick's designs. Each valve

60270-494: Was to prove a major disappointment, and little commercial interest materialized. Evans lacked patience, however, and coupled with a prickly disposition, was prone to display frustration and bewilderment towards those who could not immediately see the value of his ideas. His ideas and designs were often far ahead of their time, and the idea of a fully automated production process was difficult for contemporaries to comprehend. Evans recalled when some Brandywine millers happened to visit

60516-486: Was using Evans's improvements without a license to produce a very modest amount of flour—for damages of $ 2,500. That sum was deemed unjustifiably high and harsh by many, and Evans's actions rallied the Baltimore community against him, and when the case was finally heard in 1812 many appeared in support of the defendant. Evans's detractors presented evidence and witnesses at the trial to press the argument that Evans did not truly invent much of what his patents protected. Although

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