Background
Thomas Blanchard was born on June 24, 1788, in Sutton, Massachussets, United States, the son of Samuel and Susanna (Tenney) Blanchard. He came of very old New England stock, and his father was a farmer.
- Photos
- Works
- Photos
- Works
Thomas Blanchard
Edit ProfileCareer
Early in life he evinced a fondness for mechanical subjects, his tools being limited to a knife and a gimlet. At the age of thirteen he invented an apple-parer which made him a favorite at the "paring bees" of the neighborhood. When quite young he went to reside with an elder brother who made tacks by hand. The youthful Thomas invented a counter with a bell for keeping tally on production. He worked on a tack-making machine which could turn out 500 tacks a minute - one of the first automatic machines. The perfecting of this device required several years' labor. He sold his patent rights for this invention for $5, 000-a large sum for that period. Next he turned his attention to the turning of gun barrels. He devised a lathe which not only turned the barrel externally but, when the breech was reached, by means of a special mechanism cut both the flat and oval portions. Here we have an important step - one machine performing two dissimilar operations.
Blanchard now entered the employ of the great Springfield Arsenal, for which he invented a machine which would not only cut in a straight line but would bore and mortise so neatly that when the operation was complete the lock would fit closely to the stock. While puzzling over the problem of how to turn a gun-stock, the whole principle of turning irregular forms from a pattern burst upon Blanchard's mind. Models were constructed which worked so well that a shoe last, a gun-stock, spokes of wheels, hat-blocks, or other articles of irregular shape could be produced at will. The invention consisted of a friction-wheel which touched the pattern and a cutting-wheel secured to the same shaft. A large driving drum allowed the belt which turned the two wheels to slide up and down so that power was supplied irrespective of the position of the cutting-wheel to the wood being shaped. The friction-wheel followed the contour of the pattern and pushed the cutting-wheel in and out of contact with the wood being machined. The machine not only duplicated but made articles longer or shorter, larger or smaller, and right and left. The importance of this invention can hardly be overestimated and many machine tools, as well as woodworking machinery, depend on this principle; even dies for medals employ the same idea.
Blanchard worked for the Government for five years and in the meantime his invention was extensively pirated. He received a royalty of "nine cents" on each musket produced at Harper's Ferry and Springfield. When his patent expired in 1833 he petitioned Congress for a renewal which was granted on the ground that this was an original machine, standing among the "first American inventions. " The renewal was granted in 1834. This patent contained mistakes which well-nigh caused Blanchard to lose all his rights; but Congress finally rectified the mistakes and Blanchard was upheld in the courts.
In 1826 he tried to promote a company to build railroads. The legislature of Massachusetts approved the plan, but capitalists considered it visionary. Blanchard went to New York and tried to get Gov. Clinton interested, proposing to build a railroad from Albany to Schenectady; but Clinton was of the opinion that it was too soon after the completion of the Erie Canal. Finding himself ahead of the times, Blanchard abandoned the project, and devoted his attention to steam navigation of rivers where there were shoal rapids. He constructed a boat with a stern wheel placed far astern where the greatest eddy is found; this boat made trips between Hartford and Springfield.
Achievements
-
Thomas Blanchard was an outstanding person. He invented the major technological innovation known as interchangeable parts. He also invented machines for cutting and folding envelopes. He built the first steam carriage and designed and built several kinds of shallow-draft steamers which were introduced on western rivers, making the upstream trip possible, - a type of boat which later came into universal use. In the whole Blanchard was awarded over twenty-five patents for his creations.
