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226:, in 1844 with hopes of finding funding to perfect his sewing machine. In Providence, he found work in the shop of Fairbanks, Bancroft & Company as a draftsman. However, he soon abandoned work on sewing machines to focus on a new endeavor, improving the stationary steam engine, which at the time was an innefficient or supplemental alternative to water power.
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393:, and he was chosen one of the executive committee appointed to look after the preliminaries. Upon the great task of arranging the exposition, he worked with his usual indefatigable energy and it was his suggestion that the Centennial Board of Finance be organized, a body which had no little to do with the insurance of the financial success of the exhibition.
282:. Corliss directed both the business and research sides of this company, and over the years invented many assembly line improvements such as a bevel-gear cutter. Europe eventually became a great purchaser of the Corliss engine and it was copied by the engine builders who placed upon their imitations the name of the American builder.
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340:, "A mechanism as beautiful as the human hand. It releases or retains its grasp on the feeding valve, and gives a greater or less dose of steam in nice proportion to each varying want. The American engine of Corliss everywhere tells of wise forethought, judicious proportions and execution and exquisite contrivance."
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In 1848, Corliss entered into a partnership with John
Barstow and E.J. Nightingale under the name Corliss, Nightingale & Company. During the same year, the company built the first engine utilizing Corliss' improvements, which except for various technical improvements later on, was essentially the
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would revolve, and the
Corliss Engine Works was one of the very few plants in the country with the necessary machinery to 'turn' up the large ring. When Corliss found out what the tooling was for, he put aside other business and worked his plant day and night to get this important ring completed and
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The dramatic improvement in fuel efficiency of the
Corliss engine was a major selling point to manufacturers, particularly during the early years. Similar to other engine makers of the day, the Corliss Steam Engine Company often negotiated the selling price of their machines on the projected savings
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of its time. The
Corliss engine is widely considered one of the more notable engineering achievements of the 19th century. It provided a reliable, efficient source of industrial power, enabling the expansion of new factories to areas which did not readily possess reliable or abundant water power.
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Corliss' 1849 patent expired in 1870 after it was extended by U.S. Patent reissue 200 on May 13, 1851, and U.S. Patent reissues 758 and 763 on July 12, 1859. After 1870, numerous other companies began to manufacture
Corliss engines. Among them, the William A. Harris Steam Engine Company, the
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for the year 1878, the most coveted prize for mechanical achievement awarded in Europe. He received this honor by a peculiar coincidence, on the thirtieth anniversary of the granting of his first patent. In 1886, the King of
Belgium made Corliss an officer in the
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During this time, Corliss became more interested in mechanical endeavors. Around 1841, he decided to give his whole attention to these new tasks, and in 1842 obtained a patent on a machine for sewing boots, shoes and heavy leather.
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This engine, unequaled in size at that time, was installed by
Corliss at a cost of one hundred thousand dollars to himself and without additional expenditure to the exposition. The great engine was afterwards used to operate the
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It was also in his own department as engineer that
Corliss contributed largely to the success of the great fair, and it was he that supplied, after the plans of all other competitors proved inadequate, the great fourteen hundred
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The
Corliss Steam Engine Company was purchased by the International Power Company in 1900. In 1905 it was purchased by the American and British Manufacturing Company. In 1925 the company merged into Franklin Machine Company.
453:. In general, these machines were referred to as "Corliss" engines regardless of who made them. The "Corliss-type" engine became particularly popular in Europe. Amusingly, Corliss received the Grand Diploma of Honor by the
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Detail of a
Corliss-type valvegear showing the path of high-pressure steam (in red) and low-pressure steam (in blue). With each stroke, the four valves alternate opening and closing, driving the piston back and
247:, where the company would expand greatly in the years to follow. By the time of Corliss' death in 1888, the plant would cover about 5 acres (2 ha) and the company would employ over 1,000 people.
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in Providence until he joined the Charles Street Church at its founding in 1865. He was keenly interested in the cause of religion and gave liberally both to his own and to other churches.
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359:, the president of the academy, remarked, "No invention since Watt's time has so enhanced the efficiency of the steam engine as this for which the Rumford medal is now presented."
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in Greenwich. He organized other local builders in erection of a replacement structure. After graduating from Castleton in 1838, he established his own general store in town of
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Despite the competition, Corliss would continue to remain active within his company, directing changes to his basic design as market or customer needs dictated.
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Another honor, perhaps the greatest of all was given to him by the Institute of France by public proclamation, March 10, 1879, of the
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border. The son of a physician, he attended local schools until age 14, when he began working in a general store in the town of
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591:"Eminent engineers: brief biographies of thirty-two of the inventors and engineers who did most to further mechanical progress"
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Corliss gained international acclaim for his achievements during the late 19th century and is perhaps best known for the
506:. Corliss Street in Providence, located near the former site of the Corliss factory, is also named in his honor, as is
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263:. In 1856 the Corliss Steam Engine Company was incorporated with George Corliss as president, and his younger brother,
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Corliss displayed early signs of his mechanical abilities in 1837, after a flood washed away a bridge over the
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of years later. Corliss and his associates erected a new factory at the junction of Charles Street and the
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George Henry Corliss was born June 2, 1817, the second child of Dr. Hiram and Susan (Sheldon) Corliss, at
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By the late 1860s, Corliss began to be recognized internationally for his accomplishments. At the
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The Corliss Steam Engine Company supplied the United States government with machinery during the
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was being constructed in 1861, it was found a large ring must be made, upon which the turret of
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Corliss was also active within the community. He was elected three consecutive times to the
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Corliss' first wife Phebe died on March 5, 1859. In December, 1866, he married Emily Shaw.
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A GENERAL PURPOSE TECHNOLOGY AT WORK: THE CORLISS STEAM ENGINE IN THE LATE 19TH CENTURY US
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where he remained for three years. In January 1839 he married Phebe F. Frost, a native of
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683:"William A. Harris Steam Engine Co. – New England Wireless & Steam Museum"
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for use in cotton mills. By 1864, valves for the engines were being made at
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Corliss died on February 21, 1888, at the age of 70. He is buried at
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History of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, NY
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The Corliss engine at the New England Wireless and Steam Museum
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On March 10, 1849, Corliss was granted US Patent #6162 for his
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is on the left and connects to the piston which drives the
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appointed Corliss its commissioner to take charge of the
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patented his first steam engine, Corliss was awarded the
131:(June 2, 1817 – February 21, 1888) was an American
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engine which supplied the power used in Machinery Hall.
215:. Together they had two children, Maria and George, Jr.
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593:. The Derry-Collard company – via Google Books.
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632:"What If the World Ran on Steam - The Henry Ford"
433:. In the matter of his religious belief he was a
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270:By 1859, Corliss engines were being exported to
494:The house he built in 1875 on the east side of
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576:: The American Historical Society, Inc., 1920:
343:On January 11, 1870, one hundred years after
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605:"George Henry Corliss Biography (1817-1888)"
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659:. Smithsonian Institution. Archived from
16:American mechanical engineer and inventor
413:until 1910, when it was sold for scrap.
152:, which was the centerpiece of the 1876
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447:Worthington Pump and Machinery Company
191:A typical Corliss engine. The Corliss
715:"National Inventors Hall of Fame bio"
353:American Academy of Arts and Sciences
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180:. In 1834 he entered the academy at
321:on time and delivered to New York.
302:'s turret, that Corliss help build
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807:American Civil War industrialists
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832:Engineers from New York (state)
827:19th-century American inventors
812:American steam engine engineers
589:Goddard, Dwight (May 5, 2019).
515:National Inventors Hall of Fame
822:Burials at Swan Point Cemetery
513:Corliss was inducted into the
487:, with his second wife Emily.
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439:Central Congregational Church
423:Rhode Island General Assembly
817:People from Easton, New York
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108:Improvements to steam engine
100:Corliss Steam Engine Company
425:as the Representative from
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621:Eminent Engineers, p. 116.
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761:Corliss Steam Engine Info
704:Eminent Engineers, p. 115
695:Eminent Engineers, p. 121
184:, and graduated in 1838.
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773:1918 Biographical Sketch
224:Providence, Rhode Island
72:Providence, Rhode Island
213:Canterbury, Connecticut
145:stationary steam engine
766:July 22, 2013, at the
543:Corliss-Brackett House
500:Corliss-Brackett House
498:, is now known as the
417:Late career and legacy
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751:at Wikimedia Commons
387:Centennial Exposition
381:In 1872 the State of
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363:Centennial Exposition
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154:Centennial Exposition
778:George Henry Corliss
749:George Henry Corliss
636:www.thehenryford.org
237:Corliss steam engine
141:Corliss steam engine
139:, who developed the
129:George Henry Corliss
508:Corliss High School
481:Swan Point Cemetery
178:Greenwich, New York
133:mechanical engineer
92:Mechanical engineer
83:Swan Point Cemetery
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334:John Scott Russell
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182:Castleton, Vermont
747:Media related to
455:Vienna Exposition
435:Congregationalist
407:Pullman Car Works
376:Centennial Engine
326:1867 World's Fair
222:Corliss moved to
150:Centennial Engine
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64:February 21, 1888
25:George H. Corliss
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372:Stereograph
205:Batten Kill
172:, near the
791:Categories
549:References
496:Providence
485:Providence
399:horsepower
345:James Watt
338:valve gear
296:Detail of
261:valve gear
245:Providence
193:valve gear
164:Early life
89:Occupation
46:1817-06-02
517:in 2006.
308:Civil War
286:in coal.
209:Greenwich
113:Signature
764:Archived
641:June 11,
521:See also
328:held at
272:Scotland
241:railroad
197:flywheel
137:inventor
97:Employer
725:June 4,
411:Chicago
351:by the
318:Monitor
313:Monitor
310:. When
299:Monitor
265:William
174:Vermont
459:Vienna
230:Career
330:Paris
255:forth
727:2011
669:2009
643:2019
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