The Steam Engine

When James Watt first saw the Newcomen steam engine, he knew what he had to do. The steam engine was a revolutionary invention that let people power the Industrial Revolution and speed around the world that people had varying opinions of. Some people saw the steam engine as dangerous. The steam engine was known to have explosions and deaths associated with it. The majority of people, especially the mining industries were amazed and benefited from the steam engine and its monumental power. The steam engine led to an age of advancement and innovation that led to the modern world. The steam engine fueled and powered the Industrial Revolution, which led to the technology that we have today.

 The steam engine was one of the main things that boosted the Industrial Revolution, often called “the Age of Industry”. It was used to power machines in factories as well as powering trains. Before the steam engine and the Industrial Revolution, most goods were made in household factories. Goods were produced very slowly with labor and bigger machines were powered by man, animal and water. The steam engine was first an idea sparked by the Greek’s steam powered inventions. James Savery, Thomas Newcomen and James Watt are all credited with the invention of the steam engine. The industrial revolution had already started but the steam engine was the invention that made the industrial revolution become the start of a new age of production, transportation and labor. The steam engine was soon adapted into a high pressure engine by men like William Trevethick that was used in trains that broke the standards of the world. These trains could speed up to 20 miles per hour, which was huge at the time.

The steam engine works by heating up water in a boiler to create steam. This creates a high pressure system that can be used to move a piston, suck water or turn a wheel. Then the steam is vented out, creating that iconic chugging sound