The following is an article from the Pictorial Living Magazine
from the May 29, 1960 Sunday Edition of Chicago’s American
Newspaper. It was sent to us by ESKET BAXTER, Creston, Illinois. We
thank him.
Way back when, before educational television and before Karl
Marx, a young Scot with almost no schooling helped to start a
His name was James Watt, and the revolution was an industrial
one. With his invention of the steam engine and its gradual
adoption, mechanical energy began replacing muscular energy.
Watt, 33 years old and in debt, patented his contraption in
1769. Despite the distance in time and space, one of his creations
still lives and right here near Chicago.
The Watt engine, built in 1799 in Birmingham, England, for a
textile mill, is now being displayed in the Hall of Progress, 254
N. Laurel Ave., Des Plaines. The engine operated in that mill and
several other factories until 1945, which means it had a useful
life of more than 145 years.
In a sense, of course, it’s still useful, enabling school
children, students and other interested persons to see a device
that in this day and and age, is somewhat akin to a dinsaur.
The engine is one of a number of worthwhile exhibits in the
Hall, which is open free from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday thru
Friday. The exhibition is sponsored by the Do All company,
distributors of machine tools.
One of the most interesting features of all is a gigantic disc
affixed to the west wall. On the wall to the right is this
explanation:
‘Recorded in the 10 classifications of this symbolic
sunburst are principal inventions and new concepts which together
are responsible for our age of abundance.’
In each of the 10 segments, there are replicas of the items
mentioned. Some of the information included is, briefly:
1660 – 1st American printed newspaper.
1704- 1st advertisement in America
1867 – 1st practical typewriter.
1879 – Cash Register is invented
1897 – Diesel engine is developed
These are just samples chosen at random. Each segment, from
Agriculture and Food Production to Welfare of the Individual,
contains material that illuminates the viewer’s understanding
of the industrial revolution. This isn’t intended to
disillusion anyone, but the Watt engine whirring along there
isn’t fueled by coal, as it was in the old days. Here it’s
actuated by a concealed electric motor.
