66-544: William Murdoch (sometimes spelled Murdock ) (21 August 1754 – 15 November 1839) was a Scottish chemist, inventor, and mechanical engineer. Murdoch was employed by the firm of Boulton & Watt and worked for them in Cornwall , as a steam engine erector for ten years, spending most of the rest of his life in Birmingham , England. Murdoch was the inventor of the oscillating cylinder steam engine , and gas lighting
132-582: A "wooden horse" about 1763. His "Wooden Horse on Wheels" was a tricycle propelled by hand cranks. There are reports that in his youth Murdoch was responsible for the construction of one of the bridges over the River Nith ; this possibly derives from his father's work in building the Craikston Bridge over Lugar Water in 1774, which William would have been involved in. He is also said to have carried out experiments in coal gas , using coal heated in
198-705: A Circle making it carry the fire Shovel, poker & tongs. This demonstration of his steam carriage in Rivers Great Room, at the King's Head hotel, Truro , was the first public demonstration in Britain given of steam locomotion in action. Although after 1786 there is no further mention of Murdoch's work on Steam Carriages in Watt's or Boulton's correspondence, a volume of evidence exists that he continued to work on it without his employers' support, and some argue that
264-535: A bell at his home to announce visitors. Some of Murdoch's other minor inventions and experiments were: a machine developed in 1784 or 1785 in Cornwall for drilling wooden pipes, (in 1810 this was further developed and patented for stone pipes), a steam cannon which he attempted to use in 1803 to knock down a wall at Soho, a steam gun in the same year which fired 3 cm lead bullets, and machinery to grind and compress peat moss under great pressure to produce
330-440: A certain proportion of the savings in fuel which we make over any common engine, that raises the same quantity of water to the same height. Therefore, Murdoch's skill in getting the most out of his engines directly impacted upon Boulton and Watts profits. This he did so successfully that by 1782 Boulton was writing: We want more Murdocks, for of all others he is the most active man and best engine erector I ever saw...When I look at
396-466: A copper kettle in a small cave near his father's mill. However, there is no contemporary documentation. In 1777, at age 23, Murdoch walked to Birmingham , a distance of over 300 miles (480 km), to ask for a job with James Watt , the steam engine manufacturer. Both Watt and Murdoch were probably aware of each other because of their connections with James Boswell , who had made several visits to Watt's workshop at Soho. Watt's partner Matthew Boulton
462-454: A dearth of letters from Murdoch to Watt from 1780 until 1797 in the Watt archive, possibly, as argued by John Griffiths, due to an attempt by Watt's son, James Watt Junior , to uphold his father's reputation by removing any evidence of the origin of some of the inventions he patented. It is almost certain that Murdoch's contract of employment, in common with those for other employees of Boulton and Watt, specified that anything he invented would be
528-420: A full size version was built. One story often told, both in respect of a full size carriage and one of his models, is that one night Murdoch decided to test his carriage outside on the open road and it soon outpaced him, leaving him to chase after it. Whilst chasing it he encountered a local clergyman in a state of considerable distress who had mistaken his carriage, with its billowing smoke and fire burning under
594-506: A full-size steam carriage some time in the 1790s, which could be the source of this story. A fact important to the later development of the steam locomotive by others was that, in 1797 and 1798, Richard Trevithick came to live in Redruth next door to the house where William Murdoch lived (1782 to 1798). Trevithick would have seen and been influenced by Murdoch's experiments, and would certainly have been aware of his work in this area. There
660-511: A hard durable seal. Another discovery, and the first for which Murdoch took out a patent, was that of The art or method of making from the same materials and by the same processes entirely new copperas, vitriol, and different sorts of dye or dying stuff, paints and colours, and also a composition for preserving the bottoms of all kinds of vessels and all wood required to be immersed in water, from worms, weeds, barnacles, and every other foulness which usually does or may adhere thereto. This patent
726-441: A material with "the appearance of the finest Jet ". An important invention for which Murdoch receives less credit than one might expect is Britain's first working model of a steam carriage , or road locomotive , in 1784. French engineer Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot had already demonstrated the utility of such a device by building (from 1769) two full-sized working steam vehicles, one of which was designed to carry 4–5 tonnes . All that
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#1732802175413792-441: A matter of much consequence. Another innovation of Murdoch's was his 1799 invention of a much simplified and more efficient steam wheel than those in use at the time. A precursor of the steam turbine , the steam wheel allowed the wheel to be directly turned by the pressure of the steam moving through it. By this time Murdoch's contract had been amended and he was able to patent this device in his own name. Murdoch also carried out
858-400: A mine. At that time steam engines were not simply sold to customers but operated, and maintained by the builders for groups or individuals known as 'adventurers' (shareholders). The engine manufacturers were paid not for a completed engine but through a complex formula calculated on the basis of that engine's performance, as Watt described: Our profits arise not from making the engine, but from
924-500: A number of experiments with compressed air and developed the first pneumatic message system which worked by using compressed air to propel a message in a cylinder through a tube to its intended destination. This system was developed by the London Pneumatic Despatch Company and became widely used; Harrods in particular used this system until at least the 1960s. Murdoch also used compressed air to ring
990-619: A partnership between the English manufacturer Matthew Boulton and the Scottish engineer James Watt , the firm had a major role in the Industrial Revolution and grew to be a major producer of steam engines in the 19th century. The partnership was formed in 1775 to exploit Watt's patent for a steam engine with a separate condenser. This made much more efficient use of its fuel than the older Newcomen engine . Initially
1056-487: A patent. He having been told by Mr W. Wilkn what Sadler had said & he had likewise read in the news paper Simmingtons puff which had rekindled all Wms fire & impations to make Steam Carriages. However, I prevailed upon him readily to return to Cornwall by the next days diligence & he accordingly arivd here this day at noon, since which he hath unpacked his Carg & made Travil a Mile or two in Rivers's great room in
1122-525: A working model of his steam carriage (now in Thinktank, Birmingham Science Museum ); accounts exist from witnesses who "saw the model steam carriage run around Murdoch's living room in Redruth in 1784". This is the first recorded example in Great Britain of a man-made machine moving around completely under its own power. Murdoch's working model was a three-wheeled vehicle about a foot in height with
1188-403: Is a great deal of money to be made by it. Replies from Watt made it clear that he thought there was no future in such an idea and, fearful of losing Murdoch's services in Cornwall, attempted to dissuade him from the scheme. A later letter from Boulton disclosed more details of Murdoch's ideas: He proposes to catch most of the condensed Steam by making it strike against broad Copper plates &
1254-413: Is also a story told by Murdoch's son John of a visit by Trevithick and Andrew Vivian to see a model engine in 1794: The model of the wheel carriage engine was made in the summer of 1792 and was then shown to many of the inhabitants of Redruth – about two years after Trevithick and A. Vivian called at my father's house in Redruth... My father mentions that... on that day they asked him to show his model of
1320-597: Is attributed to him in the early 1790s, as well as the term " gasometer ". However the Dutch-Belgian Academic Jean-Pierre Minckelers had already published on coal gasification and gas lighting in 1784, and had used gas to light his auditorium at the University of Leuven from 1785. Archibald Cochrane, 9th Earl of Dundonald , had also used gas for lighting his family estate from 1789 onwards. Murdoch also made innovations to
1386-522: The British Isles , when Celts under the sovereignty of the king of England underwent a process of anglicisation. The Celtic language decline in England was mostly complete by 1000 AD, but continued in Cornwall and other regions until the 18th century. In Scotland , the decline of Scottish Gaelic began during the reign of Malcolm III of Scotland to the point where by the mid-14th century
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#17328021754131452-899: The Danish city København ( Copenhagen ), the Russian city of Moskva ( Moscow ), the Swedish city of Göteborg ( Gothenburg ), the Dutch city of Den Haag ( The Hague ), the Spanish city of Sevilla ( Seville ), the Egyptian city of Al-Qāhira ( Cairo ), and the Italian city of Firenze ( Florence ). The Indian city of Kolkata used to be anglicised as Calcutta , until the city chose to change its official name back to Kolkata in 2001. Anglicisation of words and names from indigenous languages occurred across
1518-616: The English-speaking world in former parts of the British Empire . Toponyms in particular have been affected by this process. In the past, the names of people from other language areas were anglicised to a higher extent than today. This was the general rule for names of Latin or (classical) Greek origin. Today, the anglicised name forms are often retained for the more well-known persons, like Aristotle for Aristoteles, and Adrian (or later Hadrian ) for Hadrianus. During
1584-708: The Isle of Man and the Channel Islands . Until the 19th century, most significant period for anglicisation in those regions was the High Middle Ages . Between 1000 and 1300, the British Isles became increasingly anglicised. Firstly, the ruling classes of England, who were of Norman origin after the Norman Conquest of 1066, became anglicised as their separate Norman identity, different from
1650-556: The Scots language was the dominant national language among the Scottish people . In Wales , however, the Welsh language has continued to be spoken by a large part of the country's population due to language revival measures aimed at countering historical anglicisation measures such as the Welsh not . In the early parts of the 19th century, mostly due to increased immigration from
1716-462: The Welsh educational system . English "was perceived as the language of progress, equality, prosperity, mass entertainment and pleasure". This and other administrative reforms resulted in the institutional and cultural dominance of English and marginalisation of Welsh, especially in the more urban south and north-east of Wales. In 2022, the Commission for Welsh-speaking Communities warned that
1782-744: The conquest of Wales by Edward I , which involved English and Flemish settlers being "planted" in various newly established settlements in Welsh territory. English settlers in Ireland mostly resided in the Pale , a small area concentrated around Dublin . However, much of the land the English settled was not intensively used or densely populated. The culture of settling English populations in Wales and Ireland remained heavy influenced by that of England. These communities were also socially and culturally segregated from
1848-664: The culture of England . It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English or place adopts the English language or culture; institutional, in which institutions are influenced by those of England or the United Kingdom ; or linguistic , in which a non-English term or name is altered due to the cultural influence of the English language. It can also refer to the influence of English soft power , which includes media, cuisine, popular culture, technology, business practices, laws and political systems. Anglicisation first occurred in
1914-532: The 1830s, but his reputation as an inventor has been obscured by the reputations of Matthew Boulton , James Watt , and the firm they founded. William Murdoch was born in Bello Mill near Old Cumnock in Ayrshire , Scotland , the third of seven children and the first son to survive beyond infancy. A son of John Murdoch, a former Hanoverian artillery gunner and a Millwright and tenant of Bello Mill on
1980-666: The Islands. The upper class in the Channel Islands supported anglicising the Islands, due to the social and economic benefits it would bring. Anglophiles such as John Le Couteur strove to introduce English culture to Jersey . Anglicisation was an essential element in the development of British society and of the development of a unified British polity. Within the British Isles , anglicisation can be defined as influence of English culture in Scotland , Wales , Ireland ,
2046-419: The Welsh people did not move abroad in search of employment during the early modern era, and thus did not have to learn to speak English. Furthermore, migration patterns created a cultural division of labour, with national migrants tending to work in coalfields or remain in rural villages, while non-national migrants were attracted to coastal towns and cities. This preserved monocultural Welsh communities, ensuring
William Murdoch - Misplaced Pages Continue
2112-505: The Wheels of Mills or other Machines". This gear converted the vertical motion of a beam, driven by a steam engine, into circular motion using a 'planet', a cogwheel fixed at the end of a rod connected to the beam of the engine. With the motion of the beam this revolved around, and turned, the 'sun' a second rotating cog fixed to and which turned the drive shaft . This system of achieving rotary motion, which enabled Boulton and Watt to evade
2178-480: The action of the exhaust shaft. In September 1779 Murdoch was sent to Redruth in Cornwall as a senior engine erector, responsible for the erection, maintenance & repair of Boulton & Watt engines. These were used for pumping water out of the Cornish Tin mines, and therefore the efficiency and efficacy of the engines was an important factor in the amount of tin, and money, which could be extracted from
2244-537: The anglicisation of the Welsh culture and language. Motives for anglicising Wales included securing Protestant England against incursions from Catholic powers in Continental Europe and promoting the power of the Welsh Tudor dynasty in the rest of England. Scholars have argued that industrialisation prevented Wales from being anglicised to the extent of Ireland and Scotland, as the majority of
2310-412: The boiler, for the devil . This story may be accurate; however, is more likely to relate to a model than to a full-size steam carriage. Another story often told, this one almost certainly apocryphal, is of Murdoch travelling from "mine to mine in a steam chaise lit by gas". Given the state of the roads at that time this can be discounted. However, it is argued by John Griffiths that Murdoch may have built
2376-585: The business was based at the Soho Manufactory near Boulton's Soho House on the southern edge of the then-rural parish of Handsworth . However most of the components for their engines were made by others, for example the cylinders by John Wilkinson . In 1795, they began to make steam engines themselves at their Soho Foundry in Smethwick , near Birmingham , England . Between 1775 and 1800, Boulton and Watt produced 496 engines. The partnership
2442-449: The close knit and clannish Cornwall of the time this was sometimes at his own risk. As one of his colleagues stated to Watt: If he makes an Affidavit against Carpenter or Penandrea, there will be no safety for him in Redruth. This early industrial espionage did not operate all in one direction and Murdoch was often required to undertake inspections of competitors' engines, either to determine whether patents had been infringed or to assess
2508-420: The condensed part trickling down may be caught and returned into its Boiler or other reservoir. This may do some good in rain or frosty weather & he proposes to have different sized revolvers to apply at every hill & every vale according to their angle with ye Horizon... I verely believe he would sooner give up all his cornish business & interest than be deprived of carrying the thing into execution. In
2574-532: The continued prominence of the Welsh language and customs within them. However, other scholars argue that industrialisation and urbanisation led to economic decline in rural Wales, and given that the country's large towns and cities were anglicised, this led to an overall anglicisation of the nation. The Elementary Education Act 1870 and the Welsh Intermediate Education Act 1889 introduced compulsory English-language education into
2640-434: The decline of French brought about the adoption of more values and social structures from Victorian era England. Eventually, this led to the Channel Islands's culture becoming mostly anglicised, which supplanted the traditional Norman-based culture of the Islands. From 1912, the educational system of the Channel Islands was delivered solely in English, following the norms of the English educational system . Anglicisation
2706-404: The effectiveness of those engines. While based in Cornwall, Murdoch had to deal with a wide range of mechanical problems related to steam engines, and this led him to make practical improvements to the basic steam engine designs used by Boulton and Watt. From 1782 there is evidence that Murdoch was discussing and collaborating with Watt on a number of inventions and improvements. There is, however,
William Murdoch - Misplaced Pages Continue
2772-554: The emigration of Anglophones to Welsh-speaking villages and towns was putting the Welsh language at risk. During the 19th and 20th centuries, there was a nationwide effort in the United States to anglicise all immigrants to the US . This was carried out through methods including (but not limited to) mandating the teaching of American English and having all immigrants change their first names to English-sounding names. This movement
2838-461: The engine and boiler placed between the two larger back wheels with a spirit lamp underneath to heat the water and a tiller at the front turning the smaller front wheel. The mechanics of the model locomotive incorporated a number of innovations, such as a boiler safety valve , having the cylinder partly immersed in the boiler and using a new valve system on the lines of the D-slide valve. This model
2904-570: The estate of James Boswell in Auchinleck , he was educated until the age of ten at the Old Cumnock Kirk School before attending Auchinleck school under William Halbert, author of a highly regarded arithmetic textbook. Murdoch excelled in mathematics. Murdoch also learned the principles of mechanics , practical experimentation and working in metal and wood by assisting in his father's work. Together with his father, he built
2970-411: The field of chemistry and made a number of discoveries. One such was the discovery, first recorded in 1784, of iron cement made from sal ammoniac , or ammonium chloride and iron filings, apparently discovered when Murdoch observed that these two components had accidentally mixed in his tool bag and formed a solid mass. This iron cement was used to fix and harden the joints of steam engines, thus creating
3036-403: The identity of the native Anglo-Saxons , became replaced with a single English national identity . Secondly, English communities in Wales and Ireland emphasised their English identities, which became established through the settlement of various parts of Wales and Ireland between the 11th and 17th centuries under the guidance of successive English kings. In Wales, this primarily occurred during
3102-402: The intellectual property of his employers, and frequently it was they who filed, and benefited from, patents on these inventions. One of Murdoch's most significant inventions, for which evidence exists to attribute it to him, was the sun and planet gear which allowed steam power to be used to "produce a continued Rotative or Circular Motion round an Axis or Centre, and thereby to give Motion to
3168-704: The native Irish and Welsh, a distinction which was reinforced by government legislation such as the Statutes of Kilkenny . During the Middle Ages , Wales was gradually conquered by the English. The institutional anglicisation of Wales was finalised with the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 , which fully incorporated Wales into the Kingdom of England . This not only institutionally anglicised Wales, but brought about
3234-728: The patent of the crank held by James Pickard , was patented in by James Watt in his own name in October 1781 (although Samuel Smiles, biographer of Boulton and Watt, attributes the invention to Murdoch; there also exists a drawing of the sun and planet system in Murdoch's hand dated August 1781)). Other evidence attributing this invention to Murdoch takes the form of a letter from Boulton to a colleague concerning Watt's forthcoming October patents in which he writes: He has another rotative scheme to add, which I could have told him of long ago when first invented by William Murdock but I do not think it
3300-476: The rest of the British Isles, the town of St Helier in the Channel Islands became a predominantly English-speaking place, though bilingualism was still common. This created a divided linguistic geography, as the people of the countryside continued to use forms of Norman French , and many did not even know English. English became seen in the Channel Islands as "the language of commercial success and moral and intellectual achievement". The growth of English and
3366-497: The same ends. As a result, a great deal of copying of mechanical innovations and violation of patents went on, often through the reporting of casual conversations between engineers and practical observations of engine modifications. The risk of his patents being infringed was something which particularly exercised Watt, and so Murdoch was, in addition to his other activities, called upon to make reports and swear out affidavits for legal actions against Boulton & Watt's competitors. In
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#17328021754133432-408: The same letter Boulton also secretly urged Watt to include a scheme for a steam-powered carriage in his patent application, which Watt did shortly thereafter. I have given such descriptions of engines for wheel carriages as I could do in the time and space I could allow myself; but it is very defective and can only serve to keep other people from similar patents. By this time Murdoch had already built
3498-441: The same year. Shortly after this birth, and with a second model already built, Murdoch took steps to patent his steam locomotive. However, at Exeter on the way to London he was met by Boulton who persuaded him to return to Cornwall without registering the patent. As Boulton wrote to Watt on 2 September 1795: He said He was going to London to get Men but I soon found he was going there with his Steam Carg to shew it & to take out
3564-480: The steam engine, including the sun and planet gear and D slide valve . He invented the steam gun and the pneumatic tube message system, and worked on one of the first British paddle steamers to cross the English Channel . Murdoch built a prototype steam locomotive in 1784, and made a number of discoveries in chemistry . Murdoch remained an employee, and later a partner, of Boulton and Watt until
3630-496: The wheel carriage engine which worked with strong steam and no vacuum. This was immediately shown to them in a working state. In any event without the support of Boulton and Watt, who appear to have opposed Murdoch's work due to the need to use high pressure steam which Watt distrusted, Murdoch was unable to develop or gain publicity for his invention and it was left to Trevithick and others to develop it commercially later. In addition to his mechanical work Murdoch also experimented in
3696-477: The work done it astonishes me & is entirely owing to the spirit and activity of Murdoch who hath not gone to bed 3 of the nights. Due to the frequent problems which could occur with steam engines Murdoch was kept busy travelling around the area repairing and attempting to improve the performance of the engines under his care. In Cornwall at that time there were a number of engine erectors competing with each other, each with different technical methods of achieving
3762-481: Was filed in 1791 and although it was not developed at the time this can be seen as the first step in the development of aniline dyes and coatings. Boulton %26 Watt Boulton & Watt was an early British engineering and manufacturing firm in the business of designing and making marine and stationary steam engines . Founded in the English West Midlands around Birmingham in 1775 as
3828-544: Was given to the city of Birmingham in 1911 and is kept at the Library of Birmingham . An additional archive was donated to the Boulton and Watt collection in 2015 including a thesis. The archive contains: Display folders containing text and varieties of drawings. Anglicisation Anglicisation or Anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by
3894-713: Was known as Americanization and is considered a subset of Anglicization due to English being the dominant language in the United States. Linguistic anglicisation is the practice of modifying foreign words, names, and phrases to make them easier to spell, pronounce or understand in English . The term commonly refers to the respelling of foreign words, often to a more drastic degree than that implied in, for example, romanisation . Non-English words may be anglicised by changing their form and/or pronunciation to something more familiar to English speakers. Some foreign place names are commonly anglicised in English. Examples include
3960-500: Was needed was a more effective design. The earliest mention of Murdoch's thoughts and plans for this method of transport was in March 1784 when his colleague in Cornwall, Thomas Wilson, wrote to Watt on Murdoch's "new scheme": It is no less than drawing carriages upon the road with steam engines...he says that what he proposes, is different from anything you ever thought of, and that he is positively certain of its answering and that there
4026-404: Was not the only one made by Murdoch as he continued experimenting with the design and by August 1786 had made at least one other model, of a different size, which we know of. Apart from this Murdoch does not appear to have worked much on his ideas from 1784 to 1786, because of the continuing high volume of work for Boulton and Watt, his marriage in 1785, and the birth of his and his wife's twins in
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#17328021754134092-399: Was often sent from Soho for this purpose. By 1779 Boulton was writing to Watt: I think Wm. Murdock a valuable man and deserves every civility and encouragement. On his first solo job erecting an engine at Wanlockhead Mine, Murdoch made the first of many improvements to the standard Boulton and Watt engine by rearranging the gears to enable the steam valve to be worked automatically by
4158-502: Was passed to two of their sons in 1800. William Murdoch was made a partner of the firm in 1810, where he remained until his retirement 20 years later at the age of 76. The firm lasted over 120 years, albeit renamed "James Watt & Co." in 1849, and was still making steam engines in 1895, when it was sold to W & T Avery Ltd. For ten years their banker in London was Charlotte Matthews after her husband died in 1792. A woman banker
4224-589: Was so impressed by Murdoch's wooden hat, made on a lathe of his own design, that he hired him. Murdoch began his career with Boulton and Watt in the pattern workshop of their Soho Foundry , making patterns for the casting of machine parts. By 1778 Watt wrote: if William Murdoch is not at home he should be sent for immediately as he understands the patterns and care must be taken to avoid mistakes of which our engine shop has been too guilty. He Anglicised his name to "Murdock" when he settled in England. Murdoch progressed to work in fitting and erecting steam engines and
4290-489: Was supported by the British government , and it was suggested that anglicisation would not only encourage loyalty and congeniality between the Channel Islands and Britain, but also provide economic prosperity and improved "general happiness". During the 19th century, there was concern over the practise of sending young Channel Islanders to France for education, as they might have brought back French culture and viewpoints back to
4356-536: Was unusual but she became a close confidante, holidaying with Boulton, and she lent them enormous sums to fund their endeavours. When she died aged 43 in 1802 her business was run by the Boulton and Watt families. The business trained young engineers who went on to achieve notability. Among the names which were employed there in the eighteenth century were James Law, Peter Ewart , William Brunton , Isaac Perrins , William Murdoch , and John Southern . The firm left an extremely detailed archive of its activities, which
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