(FITCH, John) HUTCHINGS, John “Honor to whom honor is due”. Origin of steam navigation. New York, 1846
Lithograph, with letterpress, 3 vignettes of Fitch’s vessels and a plan of the Collect Pond near Broadway. 38 x 48cm (whole sheet). Neatly repaired for tear at upper lh corner. Mounted in acid-free boards. The American engineer, John Fitch, was one of the leading pioneers in the development of steam for powering vessels and the present charming broadsheet celebrates his achievement. Between 1785 and 1788 Fitch built several steamboats on the Delaware River, of which the first one, “Perseverance”, is illustrated here. In 1796 or 1797 he experimented with a further vessel using paddlewheels and screw-propellers on the Collect Pond in New York City, near Broadway. This vessel is also illustrated here with a detailed description of its engine. John Hutchings, who produced this item, as a lad “assisted Mr. Fitch in steering the boat, and otherwise attending to the working of the engine”. Hutchings also states that Fulton and Livingston, responsible for “Clermont”, which began the age of steam navigation, came to Collect Pond several times and he includes them, as well as himself and Fitch on the vignette of the Collect Pond vessel. A rare and unusual item.
£450
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