POWER AT SEA

The evolution from sail to steam power was rife with danger and uncertainly as man learned how to master the strange elements of a totally new science.


In 1819, a small packet ship crossed the Atlantic Ocean from Savannah, Georgia, to Liverpool,
England. It was a rather unremarkable voyage by what was for all intents and purposed a sailing packet of 380-tons burden carrying the normal suite of sails. The most notable aspect of this little ship was that she was fitted with a rudimentary auxiliary steam engine, which was utilized to a small extent on the crossing. This passage has habitually been hyped as the inauguration of the steam age in nautical history.

This is a "TWO PART" article

PART I

PART II

I