1663-1729

English Inventor

Thomas Newcomen is often acclaimed as the inventor of the steam engine. An ironmonger by training, he converted Thomas Savery's primitive steam pump into a true, if inefficient, source of motive power. Originally developed to remove water from coal mines, the steam engine, as further refined by James Watt, provided the first reliable source of mechanical energy other than muscle, wind, or water power, and thus provided the key technical stimulus for revolutions in both transportation and industrial production.

Thomas Newcomen was born into a family of religious dissenters in Dartmouth, Devonshire, England. Nothing is known with certainty about his education or training, but it appears he entered into business in 1685 as an ironmonger (blacksmith and dealer in metals) with a partner, John Calley, a plumber and a fellow member of the Baptist sect. How Newcomen came to be interested in developing a...