Maritime History of the Great Lakes

The Novelty and the Compound Marine Engine in Central Canada

Publication
The Northern Mariner / Le marin du nord (St. John's, NL), Oct 2009, p. 413-424
Description
Creator
Lewis, Walter, Author
Media Type
Text
Item Type
Articles
Description
The compound marine steam engine, although developed as early as the 1820s, did not see widespread use on the Great Lakes until the late 1860s. This article helps explain why, by analyzing archival resources on the steamer Novelty, which served most of her career between Kingston and the Bay of Quinté in the 1850s. She was the first steamer equipped with a compound engine to operate on the Canadian coasts of the Great Lakes and suffered a series of mechanical failures and other mishaps before her loss in a collision with another ship. Her innovative machinery seems to have gone well beyond the technical capacity of its crew and the Kingston Foundry, the company contracted to keep its machines in working order.
Date of Publication
Oct 2009
Date Of Event
1847-1858
Subject(s)
Steam engines
Marine Engineers
Language of Item
English
Geographic Coverage
  • Bay of Quinte
    Ontario, Canada
    Latitude: 44.143611 Longitude: -77.255833
  • Kingston Harbour
    Ontario, Canada
    Latitude: 44.231388 Longitude: -76.473888
  • Québec
    Quebec, Canada
    Latitude: 46.81228 Longitude: -71.21454
Copyright Statement
Protected by copyright: Uses other than research or private study require the permission of the rights holder(s). Responsibility for obtaining permissions and for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Copyright Holder
Canadian Nautical Research Society
Recommended Citation
The Northern Mariner/le marin du nord, XIX No. 4, (October 2009), 413-424
Contact
Canadian Nautical Research Society

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The Novelty and the Compound Marine Engine in Central Canada


The compound marine steam engine, although developed as early as the 1820s, did not see widespread use on the Great Lakes until the late 1860s. This article helps explain why, by analyzing archival resources on the steamer Novelty, which served most of her career between Kingston and the Bay of Quinté in the 1850s. She was the first steamer equipped with a compound engine to operate on the Canadian coasts of the Great Lakes and suffered a series of mechanical failures and other mishaps before her loss in a collision with another ship. Her innovative machinery seems to have gone well beyond the technical capacity of its crew and the Kingston Foundry, the company contracted to keep its machines in working order.