Sylvanus Brown was an American inventor and millwright. He is famous for his input into the successful operation in the Almy & Brown mill, which was the first instance of practical spinning by power in the United States.
Background
Sylvanus Brown was born on May 24, 1747 at Valley Falls, Rhode Island, the first son of Philip and Priscilla (Carpenter) Brown and a descendant in the sixth generation of John Browne, of Plymouth Colony.
Philip Brown mined ore and coal and manufactured iron at the blast furnace which had been operated by the family since its erection very early in the history of Rhode Island. At Philip's death the furnace was discontinued, and Sylvanus, then ten years old, was placed in the care of an uncle, a millwright, whose trade he learned and followed until he reached twenty-one, when he engaged in business for himself.
Career
At the outbreak of the Revolution Silvanus Brown enlisted in the Navy and served as master-at-arms on the Alfred, flagship of Esek Hopkins, first commodore of the Colonial navy. At the end of his naval service he was engaged at Providence by the State of Rhode Island to stock rifles made by the State, and afterward, by the governor of New Brunswick to superintend the construction and erection of the machinery for several grist and sawmills at St. John, N. B.
After the completion of this commission, followed by a short trip to Europe, Brown returned to Pawtucket where he established his machine shop and rapidly earned a reputation as a clever millwright.
In 1790 Samuel Slater, the English millwright, was engaged by William Almy and Smith Brown of Pawtucket to construct replicas of the Arkwright series of spinning machines. Sylvanus Brown was selected to assist Slater, and Brown's shop was used for the work. Brown agreed to work for one dollar a day and furnished bond not to divulge any of the secrets of construction.
Within the year the machines were completed and in successful operation in the Almy & Brown mill, the first instance of practical spinning by power in the United States.
Slater for this work is now known as the "father of American textile manufactures, " while most of the recognition of Sylvanus Brown is merely incidental in stories and accounts extolling Slater. It is a fact, however, that the skill of Brown was a large factor in the success of the machines, and many records credit him with finding and correcting the faults in the card teeth, a weak spot which gave Slater much trouble and nearly caused him to give up the undertaking.
From 1796 to 1801 he superintended furnaces at Scituate, Rhode Island, for John Brown, manufacturer of cannon, returning then to Pawtucket where he continued his millwright business until his death.
Achievements
Silvanus Brown was engaged in the construction of replicas of the Arkwright series of spinning machines assisting Samuel Slater and providing his own shop to be used for the work. Slater then, from memory, traced on timbers the outlines of the machine members which Brown cut out and assembled. After just one year the operation in the Almy & Brown mill was completed successfully and became the first instance of practical spinning by power in the United States.
Of great importance to the growth of the industry of Brown's development of the tools and machinery necessary to manufacture textile machinery rapidly and cheaply enough to supply the mills. In this connection Brown constructed and used a slide-crest lathe for turning straight rolls of uniform size some three years prior to the invention of the slide-rest by Maudslay who is generally credited with this achievement. Brown also built a practical machine for fluting the rolls mechanically and rapidly.
