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William Farr Goodwin was a diverse inventor. Two of his earlier inventions were for toys, the first of these
being for a Mechanical Horse, then later a Walking Doll.
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..The Screw Mower and Reaper Company exhibit a novelty designed by Mr W. Farr
Goodwin. This consists in replacing the ordinary gearing by a gun-metal driving wheel on the
main shaft, which drives a worm on the crank shaft ; thus we have very simple gearing and
direct action. Undue wear and friction, are avoided by running the gun-metal wheel in oil ; the
cover or box for this wheel makes a receptacle for the oil. This, we have no doubt, prevents
that friction which we should have expected from such a principle. . We are told that
machines could be produced which had cut large quantities of grain, and been working for
long periods ; but we object to the oiling box arrangement, since farmers are often so careless
that they would fail to clean out properly when done with, or to renew the oil before beginning
to work. The company claim, and we think with reason, durability and simplicity. It is clear
that the action is; fairly direct, and that the necessary motions are produced with the minimum
of gearing. Under trial it made very good work, but the draught on the dynamometer was
heavy ; this seems to indicate friction. Another novelty was shown by the National Ironworks
Company, New Brunswick, New Jersey ; this is also the invention of Mr W. Farr Goodwin,
who appears quite a genius for producing novelties. This, the Reciprocating Screw Mowing
Machine, is his latest invention. The merits claimed are, that it has no gear or cog wheels of
any kind, no crank movement, and no journal or bearings that revolve, save the main axle.
These are certainly startling alterations from all our preconceived notions of a mowing
machine, and we are bound to admit that the machine made good work, cutting both the
standing and laid crop well. The London Field.
What is more interesting, is that one of those companies where one of his inventions was manufactured,
namely the National Ironworks Company, was also making a mechanical horse for display.
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In 1878, William Farr Goodwin received the Elliot Cresson Award, in the category of Engineering, for
Competitive test of mowing machines. Among his inventions were novel mowing machines.
The Elliott Cresson Medal, also known as the Elliott Cresson Gold Medal, was the highest award given by
the Franklin Institute. The award was established by Elliott Cresson, life member of the Franklin Institute,
with $1,000 granted in 1848. The endowed award was to be "for some discovery in the Arts and Sciences,
or for the invention or improvement of some useful machine, or for some new process or combination of
materials in manufactures, or for ingenuity skill or perfection in workmanship." The medal was first
awarded in 1875, 21 years after Cresson's death.
Some of Goodwin's other patents:
IMPROVEMENT IN MOWERS WILLIAM F. GOODWIN
Patent number: 198604
Filing date: Mar 27, 1877
Issue date: Dec 25, 1877
IMPROVEMENT IN HAY-TEDDERS WILLIAM F. GOODWIN
Patent number: 197118
Filing date: Feb 9, 1877
Issue date: Nov 13, 1877
IMPROVEMENT IN MECHANISMS FOR CONVERTING RECIPROCATING INTO ROTARY
MOTION WILLIAM F. GOODWIN
Patent number: 214645
Filing date: Mar 23, 1879
Issue date: 1879
IMPROVEMENT IN TOWING CANAL-BOATS WILLIAM F. GOODWIN
Patent number: 171793
Filing date: Dec 14, 1875
Issue date: Jan 4, 1876
IMPROVEMENT IN MECHANICAL MOVEMENT FOR CONVERTING POWER INTO SPEED
WILLIAM F. GOODWIN
Patent number: 72842
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Tags: 1867, 1876 Centennial Exhibition, American, Mechanical horse, W. Farr Goodwin, Walking Doll,
William Farr Goodwin
Posted in Walking Machines No Comments
Zadoc P. Dederick's Steam Man appears to be the first of the Steam Men. The Steam Man from Newark
was so inspirational it generated many more Walking Machines, steam or otherwise, and also fictional
stories, now seen as some of the earliest Science or Speculative Fiction (SF) written.
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been corrected to Dederick. Like a lot of name changes throughut history, it is down
to the interpretation of the scribe. Further, Dederick, in his three found patents, as
well as on patents where he was a witness and/or the Patent Attorney (yes, he
became a bona fide Patent Attorney), he always spelled his first name as Zadoc,
whereas other official documents have him as Zadock, Later, he moved to the
convention of initials only i.e. Z.P. Dederick. Although I've seen no direct evidence
that his middle initial of "P." stands for Pratt, there are several other Z.P. Dedericks of
which Pratt is the second name. Note that their first names are spelled Zadock (with
a k).
See Joseph Rainone's book "Art & History of American Popular Fiction Vol 1." for a
more complete story on Dederick's life.
I have used 1867 as the date for Dederick's Steam Man, as although the patent and
most other articles are 1868, the first full article appeared in the Newark Advertiser,
Jan 8 1868, so the Steam Man had to have been built before then. Here's the full
reference and the OCR'd text:
Deddrick Steam Man
A Remarkable Mechanical Invention A Steam Man.'Mr. Zadock Deddrick, a Newark machinist, has invented a man; one that,
moved by steam, will perform some of the most important functions of
humanity; that will, standing upright, walk or run as he is bid, in any
direction, and at almost any rate of speed, drawing after him a load whose
weight would tax the strength of three draught horses. The history of this
curious invention is as follows: Six years ago Mr. Deddrick, the inventor,
who is at present but twenty-two years of age, conceived the novel idea of
constructing a man that should receive its vitality from a perpetual motion
machine. The idea was based on the well-known mechanical principle that,
if a heavy weight be placed at the top of an upright slightly inclined from
vertical, gravitation will tend to produce a horizontal as well as vertical
motion. The idea was unsuccessful. However, by observing carefully the
cause of failure, persevering and perfecting the man-form, and by
substituting steam in place of the perpetual motion machine, the present
success was attained.
The man stands seven feet and nine inches high, the other dimensions of
the body being correctly proportioned, making him a second Daniel
Lambert, by which name he is facetiously spoken of among the workmen.
He weighs five hundred pounds. Steam is generated in the body or trunk,
which is nothing but a three-horse power engine, like those used in our
steam fire engines. The legs which support it are complicated and
wonderful. The steps are taken very naturally and quite easily. As the body
is thrown forward upon the advanced foot the other is lifted from the ground
with a spring and thrown forward by the steam. Each step or pace
advances the body two feet, and every revolution of the engine produces
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It has been difficult in getting the full story around Dederick's Steam Man. Did it actually work? As far as
whether or not it worked, the press of the time offers some contradictory evidence. It did work, but only in
ideal conditions. It struggled on cobblestones, and was sometimes exhibited suspended off the ground by a
sling, mainly due to conditions put on the exhibtion by the insurers.
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Down the bottom of the above article gives light to why the Steam Man was in a sling. It makes sense really, i.e.
when in a hall or room, and you want to show the Steam Man in operation, the smoke would be a big problem. So
there's probably a rigid stove-pipe venting the smoke either up a chimney or outside some how. You can't have the
contrivance walking around with a fixed smoke exhaust attached to its "hat"! Other reports suggest the premise
insurers would only allow the Steam Man to operate when slung up. So saying it only works with its feet off the
ground is, I now think, a misnomer by the reporters in thinking it didn't work any other way.
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Update: 25 JUly 2010: The above article also points to the problem being one of extracting smoke from the "hat".
An inventor of Newark, N. J., about 1868 created excitement by bringing out a steam man
that was to be placed in front of a carriage, and run along with it at racing speed. But it never
ran, although it could be made to work its legs when hung up in the air.
There are so many objections to the use of steam for carriages or even ordinary business
wagons that it is difficult to see how it can be made successful, but the inventors working on
that line evidently have hopes, for they are attacking the problem with increasing energy.
When one considers the care and attention a small steam engine requires, .
Scientific American was interested, but didn't get far with it
Scientific American Vol 17. No. 5 p74 1868
STEAM MAN.-A lengthy account is going the round of the newspapers of a wonderful piece
of mechanism in the form of a " Steam Man," invented at Newark, N. J., by one Zaddock
Deddrick. We have taken the pains to investigate the truthfulness of the wonderful story and
we learn that, although an invention of the kind is in progress, it is far from being perfected
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; and we have the promise that as soon as the steam man is in a condition to travel we shall
have an opportunity of witnessing it, and the liberty of explaining its construction and
operation. In the mean time we advise our contemporaries not to get excited over the steam
man for he is likely to remain harmless for the present.
Scientific American Vol 18. No. 13 p202 1868
The Steam Man.
This automaton, which has furnished a number of pant- graphs for the press, is on exhibition
at 538 Broadway, New York City, nearly opposite the site of Barnum's Museum ; but owing to
some objection on the part of the owner of the hall, he is not permitted to " travel on his
muscle," but is hung in slings and merely " marks time," as our military friends would say.
We understand, however, that his managers have decided to test his powers more effectually,
when we shall probably have more to say of him. (see actual image above)
Of a later Steam Man, the report is
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The above article confirms that the building of the Steam Man was at the works of Bolen & Crane.
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The text in the above advertisement suggests another Steam Man was built to the
same pattern and currently exhibiting in Paris, but no evidence of this Parisienne has
been found.
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The above ad, from The Quincy, in Quincy, Illinois, 20 Feb 1869 suggests that the
Steam Man had already been exhibited in New York, Boston, Chicago, St. Louis and
New Orleans.
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rods, and wheel at the side for extra power. We recall that at a certain point in the parade,
the engine got too hot and had to be removed to save the human from incineration. Another
feature we recall, but not mentioned in the press descriptions was great dray containing a
hogshead of beer. Seated in front was a saloon keeper who held forth at or near Liberty and
Center Streets of large proportions: gaily dressed maidens drew the ale from the hogshead and
gave it to the man to drink. At the close of the parade he had to be skidded into his place.
.Following the concert, the next day, came the final parade of the True Blues, September
7, 1870Some of the features of this parade were an old Franklin press worked by
comically dressed pressmen and a printers devil and two female compositors sticking type.
The Alaska purchase by Seward (a proven diamond mine) in the form of an ice berg,
lambasted the governments investment. Ed Vrooman had a swaying Albany-Schenectady R.
R. train (hauled by horses) passengers masked , who kept leaving and boarding their cars
while in motion. Neptune was again shown, this year its headquarters being at Neptune Engine
Company Number 4. A model of the Neptune float is at the historical society. There was
another steam man eight feet high, and the giraffe came out again with its sixteen feet height.
A yacht club was in sailor garb; a sprinkling cart hauled by Susan B. Anthony (incognito);
heat and cold were shown in costume representing fire and frost; . .
The last we know of Dederick's Steam Man being exhibited was in Fort Wayne, Indiana in May of 1869.
There is an advertisement in September, 1869 of a Steam Man for sale. There is another article in April of
1870 that mentions a Steam Man being stowed away for non-payment of freight.
Was that the end of Dederick's Steam Man? Was it sold and re-incarnated as the W.W. Cole's circus Steam
Man? Unfortunately we currently do not know for sure, but I suspect not.
See all the known Steam Men and early Walking Machines here.
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Tags: 1867, 1868, Dederick, Iron Man, Isaac Grass, Mechanical Man, Newark, Robot, Steam Man, Steam
Men, Steam Punk, Steam Robot, Steam Walker, Steampunk, Walking machine, Zadoc P. Dederick
Posted in Steam Men, Walking Machines 1 Comment
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