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Bray's Traction-engine, 1858. Creator: Unknown
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Bray's Traction-engine, 1858. Creator: Unknown
Bray's Traction-engine, 1858....thousands of spectators...seemed much interested and astonished on seeing a steam-engine traversing the streets of London...Attached was a truck, or platform, on wheels, loaded with heavy packages of several tons weight, and thus proceeded from the manufactory of Maudslay and Field along the Westminster-road to their wharf close to Westminster-bridge...The engine is the invention of a gentleman named Bray, who has obtained a patent. It is adapted to travel up hill or down, and its speed may he increased at pleasure...Those immense masses of ironwork produced in the workshops of Maudslay and Field...machinery weighing many tons, when required to be removed, being placed on trucks, had to be drawn by...[up to] sixteen horses...[Here is a] motive force, occupying no more room than a van or a common omnibus, performing the same work with an economy of space most desirable in crowded thoroughfares, and doubtless with a great saving...this invention may be used for carrying passengers in our streets, for drawing heavily-laden carts or waggons on the highway or dragging ploughs in the fields, and for performing other necessary and important services which no animal force could sustain or accomplish'. From "Illustrated London News", 1858
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Media ID 36376304
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City Of Westminster London England Crowds Engine Freight Goods Invention Locomotion Locomotive Movement Novelty Steam Steam Engine Steam Power Thoroughfare Traction Engine Westminster London England
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EDITORS COMMENTS
Bray's Traction-engine, 1858: A Revolutionary Invention in Transportation This photograph captures the moment when Bray's Traction-engine, an engineering marvel of its time, made its way through the bustling streets of London. The image, taken from the pages of the Illustrated London News in 1858, shows the engine in motion, surrounded by thousands of curious spectators who seemed much interested and astonished by this new mode of transportation. The engine, the brainchild of a gentleman named Bray, was a groundbreaking invention that had recently been patented. It was a traction engine, meaning it moved by transmitting its power to the ground via treaded wheels, rather than relying on animals or steam to pull it. The engine was attached to a truck or platform, loaded with heavy packages of several tons weight, and was able to traverse uphill or downhill at variable speeds. The immense masses of ironwork that produced in the workshops of Maudslay and Field, the engine's manufacturers, had previously required the use of up to sixteen horses to transport them. However, with Bray's invention, a motive force occupying no more room than a van or a common omnibus was now performing the same work with an economy of space most desirable in crowded thoroughfares. This invention promised to revolutionize the way heavy loads were transported and could potentially be used for carrying passengers, drawing heavily-laden carts or wagons, and even plowing fields. The traction engine's impact on transportation was significant, paving the way for the development of larger and more efficient steam-powered vehicles. This photograph serves as a testament to the ingenuity and innovation of the Victorian era and the transformative power of technology.
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