working model of Trevithick locomotive
Date: 1829-1835
Inventory Number: 6902
Classification: Locomotive Model
Subject:
Maker: William Mason Stiles (I) (fl. 1824 - 1850)
User: Daniel Treadwell (1791 - 1872)
Cultural Region:
Place of Origin:
Dimensions:
27.7 x 12.3 x 19.7 cm (10 7/8 x 4 13/16 x 7 3/4 in.)
Description:
Working model of the Trevithick locomotive powered by steam and fired by an alcohol lamp. The rear wheels are made to be skewed to one side and clamped by a king pin and thumb screw so that it will run in a circle on the table without rails to guide it.
For a technical description of parts, see 1998-1-1081a-f, which are measured drawings and notes made for this object by Ebenezer Gay in 1982 when he cleaned, repaired, and varnished it.
For a technical description of parts, see 1998-1-1081a-f, which are measured drawings and notes made for this object by Ebenezer Gay in 1982 when he cleaned, repaired, and varnished it.
In Collection(s)
Signedon side: W. M. STILES. / Seward St., Goswell St., / LONDON.
Historical AttributesThis working model steam locomotive was purchased by Harvard around 1829 to 1835 for Professor Daniel Treadwell, who used it to teach about heat and the latest methods of steam-powered transportation soon after the date when the Stourbridge Lion had made its first run on a railway in the United States. This model is of the type of locomotive designed by Richard Trevithick (1771-1833) of Cornwall.
Records in the Harvard University Archives, dated October 15, 1835, show the purchase of a “Model from Stiles” for £70 for the use of Daniel Treadwell, the Rumford Professor and Lecturer on the Application of Science to the Useful Arts. This document might refer to the model Trevithick locomotive, but it might also refer to a clock escapement model or other models purchased from W. M. Stiles around this time.
Records in the Harvard University Archives, dated October 15, 1835, show the purchase of a “Model from Stiles” for £70 for the use of Daniel Treadwell, the Rumford Professor and Lecturer on the Application of Science to the Useful Arts. This document might refer to the model Trevithick locomotive, but it might also refer to a clock escapement model or other models purchased from W. M. Stiles around this time.
Primary SourcesHarvard University. Records pertaining to the Apparatus of the Rumford Professorship and Lectureship on the Application of Science to the Useful Arts. UAI 15.1037, Harvard University Archives. [former name: Records of the Harvard Corporation. Professorship records: Rumford Professorship and Lectureship on the Application of Science to the Useful Arts.] Finding Aid: website.
