Bell's Comet

How a Paddle Steamer Changed the Course of History

Nonfiction, Reference & Language, Transportation, Ships & Shipbuilding, History
Cover of the book Bell's Comet by P. J. G. Ransom, Amberley Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: P. J. G. Ransom ISBN: 9781445620107
Publisher: Amberley Publishing Publication: August 15, 2012
Imprint: Amberley Publishing Language: English
Author: P. J. G. Ransom
ISBN: 9781445620107
Publisher: Amberley Publishing
Publication: August 15, 2012
Imprint: Amberley Publishing
Language: English

The passenger steamer burst upon the early nineteenth century with all the suddenness and immediate widespread popularity of electronic communications in our own time. Leading the way was Henry Bell of Helensburgh. When he started to carry passengers down the Clyde in his little steamer Comet in 1812, he established the first viable steamer service in the Old World. And steamers were the first mechanised passenger transport: no longer were travellers dependent upon the muscles of people and animals or the fickle effects of winds, tides and currents. Many had attempted to build and operate steamers, but few had been successful - and they were far away in North America. However once Bell had shown the way, others rushed to follow. All this is covered in P. J. G. Ransom's new study of Bell and the Comet and their place in history, written to mark the Comet bicentenary in 2012. The author also shows that the direct influence of Bell extended more widely than has been generally supposed: as well as starting steamer services on the Firth of Clyde, he was instrumental in establishing them on the Firth of Forth, the west coast of Scotland, and along the Caledonian Canal as soon as it opened. Thomas Telford, engineer of the canal which was the greatest engineering work of the age, referred to him as 'the ingenious and enterprising Mr Henry Bell'.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The passenger steamer burst upon the early nineteenth century with all the suddenness and immediate widespread popularity of electronic communications in our own time. Leading the way was Henry Bell of Helensburgh. When he started to carry passengers down the Clyde in his little steamer Comet in 1812, he established the first viable steamer service in the Old World. And steamers were the first mechanised passenger transport: no longer were travellers dependent upon the muscles of people and animals or the fickle effects of winds, tides and currents. Many had attempted to build and operate steamers, but few had been successful - and they were far away in North America. However once Bell had shown the way, others rushed to follow. All this is covered in P. J. G. Ransom's new study of Bell and the Comet and their place in history, written to mark the Comet bicentenary in 2012. The author also shows that the direct influence of Bell extended more widely than has been generally supposed: as well as starting steamer services on the Firth of Clyde, he was instrumental in establishing them on the Firth of Forth, the west coast of Scotland, and along the Caledonian Canal as soon as it opened. Thomas Telford, engineer of the canal which was the greatest engineering work of the age, referred to him as 'the ingenious and enterprising Mr Henry Bell'.

More books from Amberley Publishing

Cover of the book 1944 The Second World War at Sea in Photographs by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book The Classic Guide to Tennis by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Kelvin Central Buses by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Royal Exiles by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Seventies Spotting Days Chasing the Westerns by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book London Docks in the 1960s by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book British Bricks by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Woolwich Through Time by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Industrial Locomotives & Railways of the South and West of England by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Torquay Through Time by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Rivenhall by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book The Distant Scene by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Kirkcaldy & Central Fife's Trams & Buses by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book Lee-on-the-Solent From Old Photographs by P. J. G. Ransom
Cover of the book The Final Few by P. J. G. Ransom
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy