James Salisbury Brown was an American inventor and manufacturer. He made significant contributions to textile industry of the United States by adaptation to American practise of the Sharpe and Roberts self-acting mule, originally imported from England in 1840 and by his other inventions.
Background
James Salisbury Brown was born on December 23, 1802 and was the only son of Sylvanus and Ruth (Salisbury) Brown, of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. His youth was spent in an industrious home environment, as evidenced by the fact that when he was fifteen he had not only finished the school curriculum but also had partially completed his apprenticeship of pattern-making under the instruction of his father. This he accomplished in spite of the fact that he had the use of but one eye, the other having been almost totally destroyed in an accident when he was six years old.
Career
In 1817 Brown began work at his trade in the cotton-machinery manufactory of David Wilkinson at Pawtucket and remained there for two years, leaving to go to work in the plant of Pitcher & Gay, another firm of cotton-machinery manufacturers. Within a year, when eighteen, he patented an improvement for the slide rest invented by his father, which permitted the height of the tool to be adjusted while the lathe was in motion.
Four years later upon the retirement of Gay from the firm. Brown was taken into partnership and as Pitcher & Brown they continued in business until 1842 when Pitcher retired and Brown continued alone until his son was old enough to join him. Pitcher & Brown had a successful and constantly growing business which did not, however, prevent Brown from pursuing his inventive bent.
Thus in 1830 he devised another useful tool--a cutter for cutting bevel gears. Its feature was that it required no change of the head stock to make the proper taper in going once around the wheel. Again in 1838 he patented a specialized drilling machine, and in 1842 devised a number of improvements on the Blanchard lathe for turning irregular forms.
Shortly after gaining control of the business in 1842, Brown planned and built an entirely new establishment, the first unit of which, the foundry, was completed in 1847.
Two years later the main machine shop was erected, being 400 by 60 feet in size, and in 1859 a pattern house was added. To man the plant fully required three hundred men and it was recognized in 1860 as one of the largest and most complete establishments of its kind in the United States.
An interesting fact in connection with the construction of his mill and indicative of Brown's thoroughness is that, not finding the proper quality of bricks suited to his purpose, he bought an island in the Pawtucket River having a fine bed of clay, erected a plant, and made his own bricks.
Upon the outbreak of the Civil War Brown turned his whole plant over to the manufacture of guns and gun-making machinery, using particularly to turn gun barrels his improved lathe, originally designed for the turning of rolls for cotton machinery. His later inventions included a machine for grinding file blanks, a tempering furnace for files, and finally an improved spinning mule, patented on March 7, 1876.
About five years before his death Brown became nearly blind, but otherwise enjoyed to the very end the most robust health. His business relations were of the best, and he had the reputation of making every sacrifice to produce the best tools and machines.
Achievements
Connections
In 1829 Brown was married to Sarah Phillips Gridley. By her he had two daughters and one son, James, who inherited and carried on the Brown Machine Works.