Robert Fulton (November 14, 1765 – February 24, 1815) was an Americanengineer andinventor who is widely credited with developing the world's first commercially successfulsteamboat, theNorth River Steamboat (also known asClermont). In 1807, that steamboat traveled on theHudson River with passengers fromNew York City toAlbany and back again, a round trip of 300 nautical miles (560 kilometers), in 62 hours. The success of his steamboat changed river traffic and trade on major American rivers.
In 1800, Fulton had been commissioned byNapoleon Bonaparte, leader of France, to attempt to design a submarine; he then producedNautilus, the first practicalsubmarine in history.[1] Fulton is also credited with inventing some of the world's earliest navaltorpedoes for use by theRoyal Navy.[2]
Robert Fulton was born ona farm inLittle Britain, Pennsylvania, on November 14, 1765. His father, Robert Fulton, married Mary Smith, daughter of Captain Joseph Smith and sister of Col. Lester Smith,[3] a comparatively well off family.[4] He had three sisters, Isabella, Elizabeth, and Mary, and a younger brother, Abraham.[5]
For six years, he lived inPhiladelphia, where he painted portraits and landscapes, drew houses and machinery, and was able to send money home to help support his mother. In 1785, Fulton bought a farm atHopewell Township inWashington County nearPittsburgh for £80 (equivalent to $13638 in 2018),[6] and moved his mother and family into it.
Fulton's 1806 submarine design for theU.S. governmentAn 1803 bust of Fulton byJean-Antoine HoudonLocation and plaque of Fulton's August 9, 1803, experimentA 1918 commemorative plaque of Fulton in the port ofRouen, thanking the United States for their involvement inWorld War I
In early 1786, Fulton developed symptoms of tuberculosis and was advised by an eminent doctor to take an ocean voyage for the benefit of his health.[7] Fulton traveled to Europe, where he would live for the next twenty years. He left for England in the autumn of 1786, carrying several letters of introduction to Americans abroad from prominent individuals he had met inPhiladelphia. He already corresponded with artistBenjamin West; their fathers had been close friends. West took Fulton into his home, where Fulton lived for several years and studied painting. Fulton gained many commissions painting portraits and landscapes, which allowed him to support himself. He continued to experiment with mechanical inventions.[5]
Fulton became caught up in the enthusiasm of the "Canal Mania". In 1793, he began developing his ideas forcanals with inclined planes instead of locks. He obtained a patent for this idea in 1794, and also began working on ideas for the steam power of boats. He published a pamphlet about canals and patented adredging machine and several other inventions. In 1794, he moved toManchester to gain practical knowledge of English canal engineering. While there he became friendly withRobert Owen, a cotton manufacturer and earlysocialist. Owen agreed to finance the development and promotion of Fulton's designs for inclined planes and earth-digging machines; he was instrumental in introducing the American to a canal company, which awarded him a sub-contract. But Fulton was not successful at this practical effort and he gave up the contract after a short time.[8]
As early as 1793, Fulton proposed plans for steam-powered vessels to both the United States and British governments. The firststeamships had appeared considerably earlier. The earliest steam-powered ship, in which the engine moved oars, was built byClaude de Jouffroy in France. CalledPalmipède, it was tested on theDoubs in 1776. In 1783, de Jouffroy builtPyroscaphe, the first paddle steamer, which sailed successfully on theSaône. The first successful trial run of a steamboat in America had been made by inventorJohn Fitch, on theDelaware River on August 22, 1787.William Symington had successfully tried steamboats in 1788, and it seems probable that Fulton was aware of these developments.
In Britain, Fulton met theDuke of Bridgewater, Francis Egerton, whose canal, the first to be constructed in the country, was being used for trials of a steam tug. Fulton became very enthusiastic about the canals, and wrote a 1796 treatise on canal construction, suggesting improvements to locks and other features. Working for the Duke of Bridgewater between 1796 and 1799, Fulton had a boat constructed in the Duke's timber yard, under the supervision of Benjamin Powell. After installation of the machinery supplied by the engineers Bateman and Sherratt of Salford, the boat was duly christenedBonaparte in honour of Fulton having served underNapoleon. After expensive trials, because of the configuration of the design, the team feared the paddles might damage the clay lining of the canal and eventually abandoned the experiment. In 1801, Bridgewater instead ordered eight vessels for his canal based onCharlotte Dundas, constructed by Symington.
In 1797, Fulton went toParis, where he was well known as an inventor. He studiedFrench andGerman, along with mathematics and chemistry. Fulton also exhibited the firstpanorama painting to be shown in Paris,Pierre Prévost'sVue de Paris depuis les Tuileries (1800), on what is still calledRue des Panoramas (Panorama Street) today.[9] While living in France, Fulton designed the first working muscle-powered submarine,Nautilus, between 1793 and 1797. He also experimented with torpedoes. When tested, his submarine operated underwater for 17 minutes in 25 feet of water. He asked the government to subsidize its construction, but he was turned down twice. Eventually, he approached theMinister of Marine and, in 1800, was granted permission to build.[10] The shipyard Perrier inRouen built it, and the submarine sailed first in July 1800 on theSeine River in the same city.
In France, Fulton metRobert R. Livingston, who was appointedU.S. Ambassador to France in 1801. He also had a scientifically curious mind, and the two men decided to collaborate on building a steamboat and to try operating it on the Seine. Fulton experimented with the water resistance of various hull shapes, made drawings and models, and had a steamboat constructed. At the first trial the boat ran perfectly, but the hull was later rebuilt and strengthened. On August 9, 1803, when this boat was driven up the River Seine, it sank. The boat was 66 feet (20 m) long, with an 8-foot (2.4 m) beam, and made between2+1⁄2 and3+1⁄2 knots (5 and 6 km/h) against the current.
In 1804, Fultonswitched allegiance and moved to Britain, where he was commissioned by Prime MinisterWilliam Pitt the Younger to build a range of weapons for use by theRoyal Navy duringNapoleon's invasion scares. Among his inventions were the world's first modern naval "torpedoes" (modern "mines"). These were tested, along with several other of his inventions, during the 1804Raid on Boulogne, but met with limited success. Although Fulton continued to develop his inventions with the British until 1806, the crushing naval victory by AdmiralHoratio Nelson at the 1805Battle of Trafalgar greatly reduced therisk of French invasion. Fulton was increasingly sidelined as a result.[2]
In 1806, Fulton returned to the United States. In 1807, he and Robert R. Livingston built the first commercially successful steamboat,North River Steamboat (later known asClermont). Livingston's shipping company began using it to carry passengers betweenNew York City and up the Hudson River to the state capitalAlbany.Clermont made the 150-nautical-mile (280 km) trip in 32 hours. Passengers on the maiden voyage included a lawyer Jones and his family fromBethlehem, Pennsylvania. His infant daughter Alexandra Jones later served as aUnion nurse on a steamboat hospital in theAmerican Civil War.[11]
The Clermont was the first successful steamboat in America. While it was being built people called it "Fulton's Folly". The Clermont had sails as well as a steam engine. At each end of the boat was a short mast with a small square sail that could be unfurled when needed. The engine was in the center of the boat and was surrounded by cord wood. The engine was 24-horsepower. Above the engine was a tall and slender smoke stack. On each side was a big paddle wheel that was open and uncovered. The diameter of the paddle wheels was 15 feet (4.6 m). The boat itself was 136 feet (41 m) long and 18 feet (5.5 m) wide. Its displacement was 160 tons.[12] Fulton received two patents for his steamboat, one in 1809 and the other in 1811.[13]
Fulton's final design was thefloating batteryDemologos. This, the first steam-driven warship in the world, was built for theUnited States Navy for theWar of 1812. The heavy vessel was not completed until after Fulton's death and was named in his honor.
From October 1811 to January 1812, Fulton, along with Livingston andNicholas Roosevelt (1767–1854), worked together on a joint project to build a new steamboat,New Orleans, sturdy enough to take down theOhio andMississippi rivers toNew Orleans, Louisiana. It traveled from industrialPittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where it was built, with stops atWheeling, West Virginia;Cincinnati, Ohio; past the "Falls of the Ohio" atLouisville, Kentucky; to nearCairo, Illinois, and the confluence with the Mississippi River; and down pastMemphis, Tennessee, andNatchez, Mississippi, to New Orleans some 90 miles (140 km) by river from theGulf of Mexico coast. This was less than a decade after the United States had acquired theLouisiana Territory fromFrance. These rivers were not well settled, mapped, or protected. By achieving this first breakthrough voyage and also proving the ability of the steamboat to travel upstream against powerful river currents, Fulton changed the entire trade and transportation outlook for the American heartland.
Prior to his marriage in 1808, Robert Fulton had a variety ofhomosexual andpolyamorous relationships.[15] Famous among them was aménage à trois with noted philanthropist couple Ruth andJoel Barlow while living in Paris with them for six years.[16] Letters between them reveal a sexual relationship among all three, including notes from American Revolutionary and patriot Joel Barlow requesting inbaby-talk language for him "to have a wonderful summer of sexual pleasure with his wife" while he was away, and, importantly, that "he must not let...his beautiful body be deranged, and if he does anything wrong, he'll come and cut off his penis."[15] After he left Paris, he lived for two years at the castle ofWilliam Courtenay, 9th Earl of Devon, a known homosexual, although there is no confirmedepistolary evidence of an explicit sexual relationship between them[15][17]
On January 8, 1808, Fulton marriedHarriet Livingston (1783–1826), the daughter ofWalter Livingston and niece ofRobert R. Livingston, prominent men in theHudson River area, whose family dated to thecolonial era.[3][18] During his marriage, he proposed a foursome with himself, his wife, and Ruth and Joel Barlow in Washington, DC, but Harriet rejected the offer.[15] Harriet, who was nineteen years his junior, was well educated and was an accomplished amateur painter and musician.[4] Together, they had four children:[19]
Robert Barlow Fulton (1808–1841), who died unmarried.[19]
Julia Fulton (1810–1848), who married lawyer Charles Blight ofPhiladelphia.[19]
Cornelia Livingston Fulton (1812–1893), who married lawyer Edward Charles Crary (1806–1848) in 1831.[18]
Mary Livingston Fulton (1813–1861), who married Robert Morris Ludlow (1812–1894), parents ofRobert Fulton Ludlow.[3]
Fulton died in 1815 in New York City fromtuberculosis (then known as "consumption"). He had been walking home on the frozen Hudson River when one of his friends,Thomas Addis Emmet, fell through the ice. In rescuing his friend, Fulton got soaked with icy water. He is believed to have contractedpneumonia. When he got home, his sickness worsened. He was diagnosed with consumption and died at 49 years old. After his death, his widow married Charles Augustus Dale on November 26, 1816.
Fulton Hall at theUnited States Merchant Marine Academy houses the Department of Marine Engineering and included laboratories for diesel and steam engineering, refrigeration, marine engineering, thermodynamics, materials testing, machine shop, mechanical engineering, welding, electrical machinery, control systems, electric circuits, engine room simulators and graphics.
Robert Fulton (with Samuel F. B. Morse) depicted on the reverse of the 1896 $2 Silver Certificate from theUnited States Treasury
20th Century-Fox's 1940 film,Little Old New York, based on a 1920 play byRida Johnson Young, is a fictionalized version of Fulton's life from his arrival in New York to the first sailing ofClermont. British actorRichard Greene starred as Fulton with Brenda Joyce as Harriet Livingston.Alice Faye andFred MacMurray played wharf friends who help Fulton overcome problems to realize his dream.
A fictionalized account of Fulton's role was produced byBBC television during the 1960s. In the first serial,Triton (1961,[27]re-made in 1968), two British naval officers, Captain Belwether and Lieutenant Lamb, are involved in spying on Fulton while he is working for the French. In the sequel,Pegasus (1969), they are surprised to find themselves working with Fulton after he changed sides. In the 1961 series, Fulton was played byReed De Rouen, in the 1968 and 1969 series he was played byRobert Cawdron.
A Robert Fulton cartoon character appears in the 1955Casper the Friendly Ghost short filmRed, White, and Boo.
AuthorJames McGee used Fulton's experiments in early submarine warfare (against wooden warships) as a major plot element in his 2006 novelRatcatcher.
Invasion (2009), the tenth novel in the "Kydd" naval warfare series byJulian Stockwin, uses Fulton and his submarine as an important plot element.[28]
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