Russell, Ben (Author)
Among the many treasures in the collections of the Science Museum in London is the complete workshop of the Scottish engineer James Watt (1736-1819), acquired in its entirety from the attic of Watt's Birmingham home in 1924, where it had been left as an industrial shrine since his death in 1819. Though Watt is best known for his pioneering work on the steam engine, the workshop contains very few engine-related items. Instead, it is filled with jars of chemicals, sculpture-copying machines and materials, a profusion of pieces of scientific and even musical instruments, and objects and evidence from Watt's many diverse projects. This book explores Watt's early years and interests as well as his highly successful 25-year partnership with the industrialist Matthew Boulton. But while traditional biographies of Watt concentrate on the steam engine, James Watt: Making the World Anew tells a richer story: it explores the processes by which ephemeral ideas were transformed into tangible artefacts, and places Watt within the context of Britain's early industrial transformation. Watt's work is emblematic of a wider culture of multi-faceted artisanship, and this book probes the motivation for making things, looking not only at what was produced but also why. It draws on a rich range of resources--from archival material and biographies on Watt to objects themselves, and sources from fields as diverse as ceramics, antique systems of proportion, sculpture and machine making.This book uses Watt's life as a lens through which the broader practices of manufacturing in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries are explored. Generously illustrated, James Watt is a unique, expansive exploration of the engineer's career.
...MoreReview Leslie Tomory (2016) Review of "James Watt: Making the World Anew". Ambix: Journal of the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry (pp. 192-193).
Review Richard L. Hills (2015) Review of "James Watt: Making the World Anew". International Journal for the History of Engineering and Technology (pp. 304-305).
Review Iwan Rhys Morus (2016) Review of "James Watt: Making the World Anew". Isis: International Review Devoted to the History of Science and Its Cultural Influences (pp. 397-398).
Review Fara, Patricia (2015) Review of "James Watt: Making the World Anew". British Journal for the History of Science (p. 694).
Book
Caroline Archer-Parré;
Malcolm Dick;
(2020)
James Watt (1736-1819): Culture, Innovation and Enlightenment
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Book
Jones, Peter;
(2008)
Industrial Enlightenment: Science, Technology and Culture in Birmingham and the West Midlands, 1760--1820
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Article
Hills, Richard L.;
(2006)
The Importance of Steam Power during the Nineteenth Century
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Article
Naegel, Paul;
Teissier, Pierre;
(2013)
Obtaining a Royal Privilege in France for the Watt Engine, 1776--1786
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Article
Broom, C. Ian;
(2007)
The History of Crofton Pumping Station on the Kennet and Avon Canal
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Book
Hills, Richard L.;
(2005)
James Watt, Volume 2: The Years of Toil, 1775-1785
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Article
Cohen, H. Floris;
(2009)
The Rise of Modern Science as a Fundamental Pre-Condition for the Industrial Revolution
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Article
Miller, David Philip;
(2011)
The Mysterious Case of James Watt's “1785 Steam Indicator”: Forgery or Folklore in the History of an Instrument?
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Book
Kanefsky, John;
(1978)
Boulton and Watt and the development of the steam engine: A reassessment
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Book
Boulton, Matthew;
Watt, James;
(1981)
The selected papers of Boulton and Watt. Edited by Tann, Jennifer. Vol. 1: The engine partnership
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Book
Hills, Richard Leslie;
(2002)
James Watt, Volume 1: His Time in Scotland, 1736--1774
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Article
Schneider, Ivo;
(1996)
Rashomon, oder Georg Reichenbach: Der geheimnisvolle Aufenthalt des späteren Ingenieurs im Jahr 1791 bei Boulton & Watt in Soho
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Book
Trinder, Barrie Stuart;
(2013)
Britain's Industrial Revolution: The Making of a Manufacturing People, 1700--1870
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Article
Tann, Jennifer;
(1977-78 (pub. 1979))
Boulton and Watt's organisation of steam engine production before the opening of Soho Foundry
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Article
Corfield, Brian;
(2013)
Thomas Newcomen the Man
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Book
David Philip Miller;
(2019)
The Life and Legend of James Watt: Collaboration, Natural Philosophy, and the Improvement of the Steam Engine
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Thesis
Nuvolari, Alessandro;
(2004)
The Making of Steam Power Technology: A Study of Technical Change during the British Industrial Revolution
(/isis/citation/CBB001562110/)
Book
Lafuente, Antonio;
Cardoso, Ana María;
Saraiva, Tiago;
(2007)
Maquinismo ibérico
(/isis/citation/CBB001032911/)
Article
Tomory, Leslie;
(2013)
Fostering a New Industry in the Industrial Revolution: Boulton and Watt and Gaslight, 1800--1812
(/isis/citation/CBB001252899/)
Book
Paolo Bossi;
Santino Langé;
Francesco Repishti;
(2007)
Ingegneri ducali e camerali nel Ducato e nello Stato di Milano (1450-1706): dizionario biobibliografico
(/isis/citation/CBB048822128/)
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