The Tech Milestones That Helped Define the 1800s
The 19th century was marked by astounding advances in technology. Here are some technology milestones everyone should know about:
Experimental steamboats existed in the late 1700s, but it wasn't until American Robert Fulton outfitted a boat with an imported British engine that the practicality of them was shown. Fulton's boat, The Clermont, traveled along the Hudson River from New York City to Albany and back in August 1807.
The trip of the Clermont showed that steamboats could be made reliable. And within a few years the waters around New York City, as well as in other locations, were filling with steamboats. Entrepreneurs, including Cornelius Vanderbilt, began building great fortunes by operating fleets of steamboats.
After the introduction of steamships that could cross oceans, the great British engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel took to designing and building ships. His three great steamships revolutionized the technology of crossing the ocean, and one of his ships, the Great Eastern, later made possible the laying of the transatlantic telegraph cable.
For a time it seemed that canals, including New York's Erie Canal, would be the backbone of transportation in the 19th century. But then the steam engine was successfully adapted to land transportation by innovators such as Peter Cooper.
Throughout the 1830s and 1840s railroads slowly spread through the United States, and by the time of the Civil War it was obvious that rail travel would be the dominant form of transportation of the century.
After years of experiments, French inventor Louis Daguerre invented a process which could preserve an image. The 1839 announcement of the Daguerreotype created a revolution. The complicated process was eventually replaced by the wet-plate collodion method, which was used to take photographs during the Civil War.
Until a practical working telegraph was introduced in the 1840s, news could only travel as quickly as someone could carry it. The idea of suddenly being able to know what was happening in distant places changed life in profound ways. In 1844 a man nominated as vice president at a national political convention received the news via telegraph and simply didn't believe it. But within a few years, telegraphic news was commonplace in newspapers.
During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln used the telegraph to send orders to his generals. In the years following the war the transatlantic cable made the transmission of distant news a reality. In 1883 the eruption of Krakatoa was on newsstands in London and New York within hours of news being telegraphed from an outpost in the western Pacific.
When the 19th century began, ferries were the normal way of crossing rivers. Bridge spans had definite limits, but that changed with the introduction of the suspension bridge. By the mid-1800s geniuses like John Roebling were building bridges that let steam lomotives chug high across the Niagara River. And Roebling's son would see to the completion of his father's masterpiece, the Brooklyn Bridge.
Steamboats
Experimental steamboats existed in the late 1700s, but it wasn't until American Robert Fulton outfitted a boat with an imported British engine that the practicality of them was shown. Fulton's boat, The Clermont, traveled along the Hudson River from New York City to Albany and back in August 1807.
The trip of the Clermont showed that steamboats could be made reliable. And within a few years the waters around New York City, as well as in other locations, were filling with steamboats. Entrepreneurs, including Cornelius Vanderbilt, began building great fortunes by operating fleets of steamboats.
After the introduction of steamships that could cross oceans, the great British engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel took to designing and building ships. His three great steamships revolutionized the technology of crossing the ocean, and one of his ships, the Great Eastern, later made possible the laying of the transatlantic telegraph cable.
Railroads
For a time it seemed that canals, including New York's Erie Canal, would be the backbone of transportation in the 19th century. But then the steam engine was successfully adapted to land transportation by innovators such as Peter Cooper.
Throughout the 1830s and 1840s railroads slowly spread through the United States, and by the time of the Civil War it was obvious that rail travel would be the dominant form of transportation of the century.
Photography
After years of experiments, French inventor Louis Daguerre invented a process which could preserve an image. The 1839 announcement of the Daguerreotype created a revolution. The complicated process was eventually replaced by the wet-plate collodion method, which was used to take photographs during the Civil War.
Telegraph
Until a practical working telegraph was introduced in the 1840s, news could only travel as quickly as someone could carry it. The idea of suddenly being able to know what was happening in distant places changed life in profound ways. In 1844 a man nominated as vice president at a national political convention received the news via telegraph and simply didn't believe it. But within a few years, telegraphic news was commonplace in newspapers.
During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln used the telegraph to send orders to his generals. In the years following the war the transatlantic cable made the transmission of distant news a reality. In 1883 the eruption of Krakatoa was on newsstands in London and New York within hours of news being telegraphed from an outpost in the western Pacific.
Suspension Bridges
When the 19th century began, ferries were the normal way of crossing rivers. Bridge spans had definite limits, but that changed with the introduction of the suspension bridge. By the mid-1800s geniuses like John Roebling were building bridges that let steam lomotives chug high across the Niagara River. And Roebling's son would see to the completion of his father's masterpiece, the Brooklyn Bridge.
