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John Ramsbottom (engineer)

December 15, 2023

John Ramsbottom (11 September 1814 – 20 May 1897) was an English mechanical engineer. Born in Todmorden, then on the county border of Yorkshire and Lancashire. He was the Chief Mechanical Engineer for the London and North Western Railway for 14 years. He created many inventions for railways but his main legacy is the split metal piston ring, virtually all reciprocating engines continue to use these today.

John Ramsbottom
1879 by William Percy (1820–1893), with a model of his water scoop
Born11 September 1814
Todmorden, Yorkshire, England
Died20 May 1897 (1897-05-21) (aged 82)
Alderley Edge, Cheshire, England
NationalityEnglish
OccupationEngineer
Engineering career
DisciplineMechanical engineering

Early life edit

John Ramsbottom was born on 11 September 1814 in Todmorden. He was the third child of six and the youngest son.[1] His parents were Henry and Sarah Ramsbottom, Henry was a cotton spinner. His grandfather was John Ramsbottom, a tailor.[2]

He had little in the way of schooling having "a short time spent in a dame's school he went to four schoolmasters in succession, then to a baptist minister, then to a colleague of the latter, who taught him as far as simple equations".[3]

Todmorden edit

His grandfather and father leased land in the Salford area of Todmorden, and in 1804-1805 established the "Steam Factory", the first steam powered cotton spinning mill in Todmorden.[a][4]

His father gave him a lathe which he used to construct models of various steam engines for his own education and to entertain friends. He used these skills in the workplace rebuilding and modifying the mill engine. He was interested in other technologies, installing the 'new' coal gas illumination in the mill and manufacturing a machine to produce cut nails.[3] In partnership with his uncle, Richard Holt, he took out a patent (No. 6644) in 1834 for an improvement to a power loom, described in Pennie (2007) as a "vertical loom and weft-fork".[5][6] In 1836 he took out another patent (No. 6975) for "roving, spinning and doubling of fibres".[5]

Manchester edit

In 1839 he went as a journeyman to Sharp, Roberts & Co. in Manchester. The company manufactured textile machinery and machine tools at their Atlas Works in Manchester.[7] By the time Ramsbottom joined them they were also a successful manufacturer of steam locomotives and here he "gained practical knowledge of the design and construction of steam locomotives".[8]

Three years later, in May 1842, on the recommendation of Charles Beyer (later to become co-founder of Beyer, Peacock and Company in 1854) Ramsbottom was appointed locomotive superintendent of the newly opened Manchester and Birmingham Railway (M&BR) at their new works at Longsight, Manchester. In November 1843 he was promoted to take charge of the newly formed locomotive and rolling stock department when the M&BR separated their civil and mechanical engineering departments, at a salary of £170.[9][10]

In 1846 the M&BR merged and became part of the London and North Western Railway (L&NWR), and Ramsbottom became District Superintendent North Eastern Division, remaining at Longsight at an increased salary of £300.[11][9]

 
Water scoop

Crewe edit

In 1857 the North and North Eastern divisions of the L&NWR were amalgamated into the Northern Division (lines north of Rugby), Ramsbottom became Northern locomotive superintendent, based at Crewe works.[11]

In 1862 the L&NWR Northern and Southern divisions were amalgamated with Ramsbottom becoming Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) for the whole system. Shortly after a Bessemer Steel Works was authorised for installation at Crewe so that the L&NWR could produce its own steel for locomotive construction and rails.[12]

During his time as CME he oversaw the enlargement and modernisation of Crewe works, he was responsible for the bulk production of cheap but capable locomotives, introduced ancillary works including the steel plant and a brickworks, and installed an internal narrow-gauge railway to facilitate the movement of material.[13][14]

Post L&NWR edit

Ramsbottom retired in 1871 ostensibly because of ill health but likely because his request for a salary increase was turned down by the L&NWR Board of Directors.[15] The L&NWR continued to pay Ramsbottom an annual stipend of £1,000 for several years after he left, valuing his expertise as a consultant if not as an employee.[16]

However, in 1883 Ramsbottom became a consulting engineer and a director of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR), where his major legacy was the establishment of Horwich Works on a greenfield site near Bolton.[17]

Locomotive designs edit

Main article: Locomotives of the London and North Western Railway

During his time at Crewe he was responsible for the design and production of the following locomotives;

He laid the foundation for the L&NWR engine design by adopting inside frames, his safety valves, screw reversing gear and left-hand drive.[18]

Innovations edit

 
Sectioned view of a Ramsbottom safety valve

Ramsbottom applied for 24 patents between 1834 and 1880 of which 23 were approved, they are listed below:[b]

  • 1834 -In partnership with his uncle, Richard Holt, he took out patent No. 6644 for an improvement to a power loom, described in Pennie (2007) as a "Vertical loom and weft-fork".[5][6]
  • 1836 - he took out patent No. 6975 for "Roving, spinning and doubling of fibres".[5]
  • 1848 - In partnership with William Baker patent No. 12384 "Railway wheels, and turntables with thrust races."[5]
  • 1852 - he invented the split piston ring, which provided a tight seal of the piston against the cylinder with low friction described in patent No. 767 as "Metallic piston and piston rings, and hydraulic throttle vale.[19][5]
  • 1854 - Patent No. 309 for a "Hydraulic hoist for rolling stock."[5]
  • 1854 - Patent No. 408 for "Improvements in welding."[5]
  • 1855 - Patent No. 322 for "Piston ring improvements."[5]
  • 1855 - The Ramsbottom tamper-proof safety valve was introduced, patent No. 1299 was for "Safety valves, and feed water cistern.".[c][5]
  • 1857 - Patent No. 1047 for "Wrought iron rail chair."[5]
  • 1860 - He patented a design for a water trough and water pick-up apparatus (patent No. 1527 "Water trough and scoop"), introducing the first one on 23 June 1860 at Mochdre, Conwy, on the London & North Western Railway's (L&NWR) North Wales Coast Line, midway between Chester and Holyhead.[5][22][23] Finding that the system was at its most efficient at 40 miles per hour (64 km/h) he invented a speed indicator![11][24]
  • 1860 - He introduced the "Displacement lubricator", patent No. 2460.[25]
  • 1863 - Patent No. 924 saw improvements in the design of steam hammers with the invention of a "Duplex steam hammer & cogging mill" which negated the requirement to provide an anvil ten times the weight of the hammer.[5][26]
  • 1864 - Ramsbottom patented, No. 48, a system for the "Manufacture of hoops and tyres".[5]
  • 1864 - Patent No. 3073 saw "Bessemer Converter improvements".[5]
  • 1865 - Patent No. 89 brought "Steam hammer improvements", No. 375 introduced "Hammering and rolling machinery", No. 736 saw improvements to 1863, No. 924, No. 1425 brought improvements to 1864, No. 48 and No. 1975 saw "Improvement processes for hoops and tyres".[5]
  • 1867 - Patent N. 342 for "Supporting ingots for steam hammer" and No. 386 "Traverser for rolling stock".[5]
  • 1869 - Patent No. 820 was for "Ventilating tunnels", which introduced a mechanical ventilation system that was used in the tunnel between Liverpool Lime Street and Edge Hill, Ramsbottom presented a paper to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers on this subject.[27][28]
  • 1880 - Patent No. 1060 for "Trip gear for steam and gas engines".[5]

The patent application that did not get past the provisional stage of the process was applied for in 1868 for "Communication cord".[5]

Publications edit

Ramsbottom presented twelve papers to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers which were published in the Institution's Journal as follows:[d]

 
Machinery; a double-action steam hammer. Engraving by J. W. Wellcome V0024560
  • 1847 - On an improved locomotive boiler.[30]
  • 1853 - Description of an improved coking crane for supplying locomotives.[31]
  • 1854 - On an improved piston for steam engines.[32]
  • 1855 - On the construction of packing rings for pistons.[33]
  • 1856 - On an improved safety valve.[34]
  • 1857 - Description of a safety escape pipe for steam boilers.[35]
  • 1861 - Description of a method of supplying water to locomotive tenders whilst running.[36]
  • 1864 - On the improved traversing cranes at Crewe Locomotive Works.[37]
  • 1866 - Description of an improved reversing rolling mill.[38]
  • 1866 - On an improved mode of manufacture of steel tyres.[39]
  • 1867 - Description of a 30-ton horizontal steam hammer.[40]
  • 1871 - On the mechanical ventilation of the Liverpool Passenger Tunnel on the London and North Western Railway.[41]

Appointments edit

He was president of the Crewe Mechanics Institute from 1857 to 1871.[42] He was a founder member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in 1847 and became its president in 1870-71.[43] Ramsbottom became a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1866.[44]

Ramsbottom was appointed a life governor of Owens College in Manchester (now the University of Manchester) where he assisted in expanding the mechanical engineering department.[45] His interest in the College was such that he established a scholarship, tenable for two years to be competed for by young men employed in the locomotive department of the L&NWR.[16] He was a director of Beyer-Peacock from 1885 where his two sons John and George held positions. He took up a directorship in the L&YR in 1885 after working as a consultant for them on their new locomotive works.[46][17] In 1890 he received an honorary degree of Master of Engineering from Dublin University.[17]

Family edit

He married Mary Peckett, the eldest daughter of William Peckett, a Quaker linen manufacturer of Barnsley on 29 April 1851.[47] They lived near Longsight depot where Ramsbottom was based at the time, their son William Henry was born here on 28 February 1852.[47]

Shortly after he moved to Crewe in 1857 his wife, who was still at Longsight, died of "venous congestion of the lungs".[48]

He married again on 12 April 1859 to Mary Anne Goodfellow and they had a son, John Goodfellow, in 1860, daughters Margaret Holt in 1861, Jane in 1863, Mary Edith in 1865, a son George Holt in 1868, daughters Eliza in 1874 and Hannah Mary in 1878. Margaret and Eliza died as children.[49]

References edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ The Salford area of Todmorden was The Cradle of Todmorden Industry according to Pennie (2007). The area was ideally placed being adjacent to the Rochdale canal which had opened in 1804.[4]
  2. ^ Pennie (2007) notes that this list is shorter than others and explains this by commenting that there were three engineers with the name "John Ramsbottom" during this period and it is only possible to work out which of them is responsible for each application by detailed examination of the applications.[5]
  3. ^ Illustrations of Ramsbottom design are available in Henley's Encyclopedia of Practical Engineering (1908) and Tuplin (1974).[20][21]
  4. ^ There are some discrepencies between the dates used in Pennie (2007) and the journal dates.[29]

Citations edit

  1. ^ Pennie 2007, pp. 4 & 90.
  2. ^ Pennie 2007, p. 4.
  3. ^ a b ImechE Obituary 1897.
  4. ^ a b Pennie 2007, pp. 4–5.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Pennie 2007, p. 70.
  6. ^ a b Reed 1982, p. 224.
  7. ^ Lowe 1984, p. 576.
  8. ^ ICE Obituary 1897, p. 382.
  9. ^ a b Pennie 2007, p. 14.
  10. ^ Reed 1982, pp. 224–225.
  11. ^ a b c Marshall 1978, p. 175.
  12. ^ Nock 1960, p. 52.
  13. ^ Reed 1996, p. 78.
  14. ^ Talbot & Taylor 2005, p. 4.
  15. ^ Pennie 2007, pp. 32–34.
  16. ^ a b Pennie 2007, p. 48.
  17. ^ a b c Marshall 1978, p. 176.
  18. ^ Baxter 1978, pp. 4–5.
  19. ^ Weaver 1997, p. 416.
  20. ^ Horner 1908.
  21. ^ Tuplin 1974, p. 35.
  22. ^ Stoker 1901, pp. 219–225.
  23. ^ Baughan 1980, p. 30.
  24. ^ Clements 1997, p. 557.
  25. ^ Pennie 2007, pp. 70–71.
  26. ^ Tomkins 1878, p. 343.
  27. ^ Pennie 2007, pp. 30–31 & 70.
  28. ^ Ramsbottom 1871, pp. 22–35.
  29. ^ Pennie 2007, p. 72.
  30. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1847). "On an Improved Locomotive Boiler". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 1: 3–11. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1847_001_043_02.
  31. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1853). "Description of an Improved Coking Crane for Supplying Locomotive Engines". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 4: 122–126. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1853_004_021_02.
  32. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1854). "On an Improved Piston for Steam-Engines". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 5: 70–74. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1854_005_012_02.
  33. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1855). "On the Construction of Packing Rings for Pistons". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 6: 206–208. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1855_006_029_02.
  34. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1856). "On an Improved Safety Valve". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 7: 37–47. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1856_007_009_02.
  35. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1857). "Description of a Safety Escape Pipe for Steam Boilers". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 8: 179–183. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1857_008_024_02.
  36. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1861). "Description of a Method of Supplying Water to Locomotive Tenders Whilst Running". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 12: 43–52. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1861_012_008_02.
  37. ^ Ramsbottom, Joh n (1864). "On the Improved Traversing Cranes at Crewe Locomotive Works". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 15: 44–58. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1864_015_009_02.
  38. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1866a). "Description of an Improved Reversing Rolling Mill". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 17: 115–129. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1866_017_014_02.
  39. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1866b). "On an Improved Mode of Manufacture of Steel Tyres". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 17: 186–198. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1866_017_017_02.
  40. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1867). "Description of a 30-Ton Horizontal Duplex Hammer". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 18: 218–231. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1867_018_016_02.
  41. ^ Ramsbottom, John (1871). "On the mechanical ventilation of the Liverpool passenger tunnel on the London and North Western Railway". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 22 (1): 22–35. doi:10.1243/PIME_PROC_1871_022_007_02.
  42. ^ Pennie 2007, p. 30.
  43. ^ Pullin 1997, pp. 259 & 261.
  44. ^ Pennie 2007, p. 92.
  45. ^ Pennie 2007, p. 49.
  46. ^ Pennie 2007, p. 93.
  47. ^ a b Pennie 2007, p. 16.
  48. ^ Pennie 2007, p. 22.
  49. ^ Pennie 2007, pp. 91–92.

Bibliography edit

  • Baughan, Peter. E. (1980). A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain. Vol. 11 North and Mid Wales. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. ISBN 0-7153-7850-3.
  • Baxter, Bertram (1978). Baxter, David (ed.). British Locomotive Catalogue 1825–1923, Volume 2A: London and North Western Railway and its constituent companies. Ashbourne, Derbyshire: Moorland Publishing Company. ISBN 0-903485-51-6.
  • Carpenter, George W. (2006). "Ramsbottom, John". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/37881. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  • Chacksfield, J. E. (2007). F.W. Webb : in the right place at the right time. Usk: Oakwood Press. ISBN 978-0-85361-657-3. OCLC 248964565.
  • Clements, Fred (1997). "Water supplies". In Simmons, Jack; Biddle, Gordon (eds.). The Oxford Companion to British Railway History From 1603 to the 1990s (1st ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 557–558. ISBN 0-19-211697-5.
  • Hambleton, F. C. (1937). John Ramsbottom : the father of the modern locomotive. OCLC 504343052.
  • Holland, Julian (2012). The steam age. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. ISBN 9781446301937. OCLC 1200555759.
  • Horner, Joseph G., ed. (1908). "Safety Valve, Ramsbottom Valves". Henley's Encyclopedia of Practical Engineering. Vol. VII. New York: The Normal W. Henley Publishing Company.
  • "John Ramsbottom Obituary". Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 129 (1897): 382–385. 1897. doi:10.1680/imotp.1897.19380.
  • "John Ramsbottom Obituary". Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. 52: 236–41. 1897.
  • Lowe, James Wensley (1984). British steam locomotive builders. Leicestershire: TEE Publishers. ISBN 0-905100-57-3. OCLC 39757689.
  • Marshall, John (1978). A Biographical Dictionary of Railway Engineers. David & Charles. ISBN 978-0-7153-7489-4.
  • Nock, O.S. (1960). The London & North Western Railway. Ian Allan.
  • Pennie, Robin (2007). John Ramsbottom : a Victorian engineering giant. Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Society. ISBN 978-0-9559467-0-7. OCLC 277067657.
  • Pullin, John (1997). Progress through mechanical engineering : the first 150 years of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. London: Quiller Press. ISBN 9781899163281.
  • Reed, Brian (1982). Crewe locomotive works and its men. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. ISBN 9780715382288. OCLC 1244597249.
  • Reed, Malcolm C. (1996). The London & North Western Railway: A History. Atlantic Transport. ISBN 978-0-906899-66-3.
  • Stoker, Gilbert J. (March 1901). "Locomotive Water Supply: Ramsbottom's Pick-Up Apparatus". The Railway Magazine. Vol. VIII, no. 45. London, England. pp. 219–225.
  • Talbot, Edward; Taylor, Clive (2005). The Crewe Works narrow gauge system (2nd ed.). Derby: London and North-Western Railway Society. ISBN 0-9546951-1-9. OCLC 1280704655.
  • Tomkins, Edward (1878). Principles of Machine Construction: Being an Application of Geometrical Drawing for the Representation of Machinery. G.P. Putnam's Sons.
  • Tuplin, William Alfred (1974). The steam locomotive : its form and function. New York: Charles Scribner and Sons. ISBN 9780684137490. OCLC 59161197.
  • Weaver, Rodney (1997). "Ramsbottom, John". In Simmons, Jack; Biddle, Gordon (eds.). The Oxford Companion to British Railway History From 1603 to the 1990s (1st ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 416. ISBN 0-19-211697-5.

External links edit

  • "John Ramsbottom: locomotive engineer".
Business positions
Preceded by Chief Mechanical Engineer of the
London and North Western Railway
1857–1871 		Succeeded by
Professional and academic associations
Preceded by President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers
1870–1871 		Succeeded by

December 15, 2023
john, ramsbottom, engineer, john, ramsbottom, september, 1814, 1897, english, mechanical, engineer, born, todmorden, then, county, border, yorkshire, lancashire, chief, mechanical, engineer, london, north, western, railway, years, created, many, inventions, ra. John Ramsbottom 11 September 1814 20 May 1897 was an English mechanical engineer Born in Todmorden then on the county border of Yorkshire and Lancashire He was the Chief Mechanical Engineer for the London and North Western Railway for 14 years He created many inventions for railways but his main legacy is the split metal piston ring virtually all reciprocating engines continue to use these today John Ramsbottom1879 by William Percy 1820 1893 with a model of his water scoopBorn11 September 1814Todmorden Yorkshire EnglandDied20 May 1897 1897 05 21 aged 82 Alderley Edge Cheshire EnglandNationalityEnglishOccupationEngineerEngineering careerDisciplineMechanical engineering Contents 1 Early life 2 Todmorden 3 Manchester 4 Crewe 5 Post L amp NWR 6 Locomotive designs 7 Innovations 8 Publications 9 Appointments 10 Family 11 References 11 1 Notes 11 2 Citations 11 3 Bibliography 12 External linksEarly life editJohn Ramsbottom was born on 11 September 1814 in Todmorden He was the third child of six and the youngest son 1 His parents were Henry and Sarah Ramsbottom Henry was a cotton spinner His grandfather was John Ramsbottom a tailor 2 He had little in the way of schooling having a short time spent in a dame s school he went to four schoolmasters in succession then to a baptist minister then to a colleague of the latter who taught him as far as simple equations 3 Todmorden editHis grandfather and father leased land in the Salford area of Todmorden and in 1804 1805 established the Steam Factory the first steam powered cotton spinning mill in Todmorden a 4 His father gave him a lathe which he used to construct models of various steam engines for his own education and to entertain friends He used these skills in the workplace rebuilding and modifying the mill engine He was interested in other technologies installing the new coal gas illumination in the mill and manufacturing a machine to produce cut nails 3 In partnership with his uncle Richard Holt he took out a patent No 6644 in 1834 for an improvement to a power loom described in Pennie 2007 as a vertical loom and weft fork 5 6 In 1836 he took out another patent No 6975 for roving spinning and doubling of fibres 5 Manchester editIn 1839 he went as a journeyman to Sharp Roberts amp Co in Manchester The company manufactured textile machinery and machine tools at their Atlas Works in Manchester 7 By the time Ramsbottom joined them they were also a successful manufacturer of steam locomotives and here he gained practical knowledge of the design and construction of steam locomotives 8 Three years later in May 1842 on the recommendation of Charles Beyer later to become co founder of Beyer Peacock and Company in 1854 Ramsbottom was appointed locomotive superintendent of the newly opened Manchester and Birmingham Railway M amp BR at their new works at Longsight Manchester In November 1843 he was promoted to take charge of the newly formed locomotive and rolling stock department when the M amp BR separated their civil and mechanical engineering departments at a salary of 170 9 10 In 1846 the M amp BR merged and became part of the London and North Western Railway L amp NWR and Ramsbottom became District Superintendent North Eastern Division remaining at Longsight at an increased salary of 300 11 9 nbsp Water scoopCrewe editIn 1857 the North and North Eastern divisions of the L amp NWR were amalgamated into the Northern Division lines north of Rugby Ramsbottom became Northern locomotive superintendent based at Crewe works 11 In 1862 the L amp NWR Northern and Southern divisions were amalgamated with Ramsbottom becoming Chief Mechanical Engineer CME for the whole system Shortly after a Bessemer Steel Works was authorised for installation at Crewe so that the L amp NWR could produce its own steel for locomotive construction and rails 12 During his time as CME he oversaw the enlargement and modernisation of Crewe works he was responsible for the bulk production of cheap but capable locomotives introduced ancillary works including the steel plant and a brickworks and installed an internal narrow gauge railway to facilitate the movement of material 13 14 Post L amp NWR editRamsbottom retired in 1871 ostensibly because of ill health but likely because his request for a salary increase was turned down by the L amp NWR Board of Directors 15 The L amp NWR continued to pay Ramsbottom an annual stipend of 1 000 for several years after he left valuing his expertise as a consultant if not as an employee 16 However in 1883 Ramsbottom became a consulting engineer and a director of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway L amp YR where his major legacy was the establishment of Horwich Works on a greenfield site near Bolton 17 Locomotive designs editMain article Locomotives of the London and North Western Railway During his time at Crewe he was responsible for the design and production of the following locomotives L amp NWR 2 2 2 Cornwall rebuilt to his design in 1858 L amp NWR DX Goods class 0 6 0 L amp NWR Lady of the Lake Class 2 2 2 L amp NWR 4ft Shunter 0 4 0ST L amp NWR Samson Class 2 4 0 L amp NWR Newton Class 2 4 0 L amp NWR Special Tank 0 6 0STHe laid the foundation for the L amp NWR engine design by adopting inside frames his safety valves screw reversing gear and left hand drive 18 Innovations edit nbsp Sectioned view of a Ramsbottom safety valveRamsbottom applied for 24 patents between 1834 and 1880 of which 23 were approved they are listed below b 1834 In partnership with his uncle Richard Holt he took out patent No 6644 for an improvement to a power loom described in Pennie 2007 as a Vertical loom and weft fork 5 6 1836 he took out patent No 6975 for Roving spinning and doubling of fibres 5 1848 In partnership with William Baker patent No 12384 Railway wheels and turntables with thrust races 5 1852 he invented the split piston ring which provided a tight seal of the piston against the cylinder with low friction described in patent No 767 as Metallic piston and piston rings and hydraulic throttle vale 19 5 1854 Patent No 309 for a Hydraulic hoist for rolling stock 5 1854 Patent No 408 for Improvements in welding 5 1855 Patent No 322 for Piston ring improvements 5 1855 The Ramsbottom tamper proof safety valve was introduced patent No 1299 was for Safety valves and feed water cistern c 5 1857 Patent No 1047 for Wrought iron rail chair 5 1860 He patented a design for a water trough and water pick up apparatus patent No 1527 Water trough and scoop introducing the first one on 23 June 1860 at Mochdre Conwy on the London amp North Western Railway s L amp NWR North Wales Coast Line midway between Chester and Holyhead 5 22 23 Finding that the system was at its most efficient at 40 miles per hour 64 km h he invented a speed indicator 11 24 1860 He introduced the Displacement lubricator patent No 2460 25 1863 Patent No 924 saw improvements in the design of steam hammers with the invention of a Duplex steam hammer amp cogging mill which negated the requirement to provide an anvil ten times the weight of the hammer 5 26 1864 Ramsbottom patented No 48 a system for the Manufacture of hoops and tyres 5 1864 Patent No 3073 saw Bessemer Converter improvements 5 1865 Patent No 89 brought Steam hammer improvements No 375 introduced Hammering and rolling machinery No 736 saw improvements to 1863 No 924 No 1425 brought improvements to 1864 No 48 and No 1975 saw Improvement processes for hoops and tyres 5 1867 Patent N 342 for Supporting ingots for steam hammer and No 386 Traverser for rolling stock 5 1869 Patent No 820 was for Ventilating tunnels which introduced a mechanical ventilation system that was used in the tunnel between Liverpool Lime Street and Edge Hill Ramsbottom presented a paper to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers on this subject 27 28 1880 Patent No 1060 for Trip gear for steam and gas engines 5 The patent application that did not get past the provisional stage of the process was applied for in 1868 for Communication cord 5 Publications editRamsbottom presented twelve papers to the Institution of Mechanical Engineers which were published in the Institution s Journal as follows d nbsp Machinery a double action steam hammer Engraving by J W Wellcome V00245601847 On an improved locomotive boiler 30 1853 Description of an improved coking crane for supplying locomotives 31 1854 On an improved piston for steam engines 32 1855 On the construction of packing rings for pistons 33 1856 On an improved safety valve 34 1857 Description of a safety escape pipe for steam boilers 35 1861 Description of a method of supplying water to locomotive tenders whilst running 36 1864 On the improved traversing cranes at Crewe Locomotive Works 37 1866 Description of an improved reversing rolling mill 38 1866 On an improved mode of manufacture of steel tyres 39 1867 Description of a 30 ton horizontal steam hammer 40 1871 On the mechanical ventilation of the Liverpool Passenger Tunnel on the London and North Western Railway 41 Appointments editHe was president of the Crewe Mechanics Institute from 1857 to 1871 42 He was a founder member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in 1847 and became its president in 1870 71 43 Ramsbottom became a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1866 44 Ramsbottom was appointed a life governor of Owens College in Manchester now the University of Manchester where he assisted in expanding the mechanical engineering department 45 His interest in the College was such that he established a scholarship tenable for two years to be competed for by young men employed in the locomotive department of the L amp NWR 16 He was a director of Beyer Peacock from 1885 where his two sons John and George held positions He took up a directorship in the L amp YR in 1885 after working as a consultant for them on their new locomotive works 46 17 In 1890 he received an honorary degree of Master of Engineering from Dublin University 17 Family editHe married Mary Peckett the eldest daughter of William Peckett a Quaker linen manufacturer of Barnsley on 29 April 1851 47 They lived near Longsight depot where Ramsbottom was based at the time their son William Henry was born here on 28 February 1852 47 Shortly after he moved to Crewe in 1857 his wife who was still at Longsight died of venous congestion of the lungs 48 He married again on 12 April 1859 to Mary Anne Goodfellow and they had a son John Goodfellow in 1860 daughters Margaret Holt in 1861 Jane in 1863 Mary Edith in 1865 a son George Holt in 1868 daughters Eliza in 1874 and Hannah Mary in 1878 Margaret and Eliza died as children 49 References editNotes edit The Salford area of Todmorden was The Cradle of Todmorden Industry according to Pennie 2007 The area was ideally placed being adjacent to the Rochdale canal which had opened in 1804 4 Pennie 2007 notes that this list is shorter than others and explains this by commenting that there were three engineers with the name John Ramsbottom during this period and it is only possible to work out which of them is responsible for each application by detailed examination of the applications 5 Illustrations of Ramsbottom design are available in Henley s Encyclopedia of Practical Engineering 1908 and Tuplin 1974 20 21 There are some discrepencies between the dates used in Pennie 2007 and the journal dates 29 Citations edit Pennie 2007 pp 4 amp 90 Pennie 2007 p 4 a b ImechE Obituary 1897 a b Pennie 2007 pp 4 5 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Pennie 2007 p 70 a b Reed 1982 p 224 Lowe 1984 p 576 ICE Obituary 1897 p 382 a b Pennie 2007 p 14 Reed 1982 pp 224 225 a b c Marshall 1978 p 175 Nock 1960 p 52 Reed 1996 p 78 Talbot amp Taylor 2005 p 4 Pennie 2007 pp 32 34 a b Pennie 2007 p 48 a b c Marshall 1978 p 176 Baxter 1978 pp 4 5 Weaver 1997 p 416 Horner 1908 Tuplin 1974 p 35 Stoker 1901 pp 219 225 Baughan 1980 p 30 Clements 1997 p 557 Pennie 2007 pp 70 71 Tomkins 1878 p 343 Pennie 2007 pp 30 31 amp 70 Ramsbottom 1871 pp 22 35 Pennie 2007 p 72 Ramsbottom John 1847 On an Improved Locomotive Boiler Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 1 3 11 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1847 001 043 02 Ramsbottom John 1853 Description of an Improved Coking Crane for Supplying Locomotive Engines Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 4 122 126 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1853 004 021 02 Ramsbottom John 1854 On an Improved Piston for Steam Engines Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 5 70 74 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1854 005 012 02 Ramsbottom John 1855 On the Construction of Packing Rings for Pistons Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 6 206 208 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1855 006 029 02 Ramsbottom John 1856 On an Improved Safety Valve Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 7 37 47 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1856 007 009 02 Ramsbottom John 1857 Description of a Safety Escape Pipe for Steam Boilers Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 8 179 183 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1857 008 024 02 Ramsbottom John 1861 Description of a Method of Supplying Water to Locomotive Tenders Whilst Running Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 12 43 52 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1861 012 008 02 Ramsbottom Joh n 1864 On the Improved Traversing Cranes at Crewe Locomotive Works Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 15 44 58 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1864 015 009 02 Ramsbottom John 1866a Description of an Improved Reversing Rolling Mill Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 17 115 129 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1866 017 014 02 Ramsbottom John 1866b On an Improved Mode of Manufacture of Steel Tyres Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 17 186 198 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1866 017 017 02 Ramsbottom John 1867 Description of a 30 Ton Horizontal Duplex Hammer Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 18 218 231 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1867 018 016 02 Ramsbottom John 1871 On the mechanical ventilation of the Liverpool passenger tunnel on the London and North Western Railway Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 22 1 22 35 doi 10 1243 PIME PROC 1871 022 007 02 Pennie 2007 p 30 Pullin 1997 pp 259 amp 261 Pennie 2007 p 92 Pennie 2007 p 49 Pennie 2007 p 93 a b Pennie 2007 p 16 Pennie 2007 p 22 Pennie 2007 pp 91 92 Bibliography edit Baughan Peter E 1980 A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain Vol 11 North and Mid Wales Newton Abbot David amp Charles ISBN 0 7153 7850 3 Baxter Bertram 1978 Baxter David ed British Locomotive Catalogue 1825 1923 Volume 2A London and North Western Railway and its constituent companies Ashbourne Derbyshire Moorland Publishing Company ISBN 0 903485 51 6 Carpenter George W 2006 Ramsbottom John Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online ed Oxford University Press doi 10 1093 ref odnb 37881 Subscription or UK public library membership required Chacksfield J E 2007 F W Webb in the right place at the right time Usk Oakwood Press ISBN 978 0 85361 657 3 OCLC 248964565 Clements Fred 1997 Water supplies In Simmons Jack Biddle Gordon eds The Oxford Companion to British Railway History From 1603 to the 1990s 1st ed Oxford Oxford University Press pp 557 558 ISBN 0 19 211697 5 Hambleton F C 1937 John Ramsbottom the father of the modern locomotive OCLC 504343052 Holland Julian 2012 The steam age Newton Abbot David amp Charles ISBN 9781446301937 OCLC 1200555759 Horner Joseph G ed 1908 Safety Valve Ramsbottom Valves Henley s Encyclopedia of Practical Engineering Vol VII New York The Normal W Henley Publishing Company John Ramsbottom Obituary Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers 129 1897 382 385 1897 doi 10 1680 imotp 1897 19380 John Ramsbottom Obituary Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers 52 236 41 1897 Lowe James Wensley 1984 British steam locomotive builders Leicestershire TEE Publishers ISBN 0 905100 57 3 OCLC 39757689 Marshall John 1978 A Biographical Dictionary of Railway Engineers David amp Charles ISBN 978 0 7153 7489 4 Nock O S 1960 The London amp North Western Railway Ian Allan Pennie Robin 2007 John Ramsbottom a Victorian engineering giant Lancashire amp Yorkshire Railway Society ISBN 978 0 9559467 0 7 OCLC 277067657 Pullin John 1997 Progress through mechanical engineering the first 150 years of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers London Quiller Press ISBN 9781899163281 Reed Brian 1982 Crewe locomotive works and its men Newton Abbot David amp Charles ISBN 9780715382288 OCLC 1244597249 Reed Malcolm C 1996 The London amp North Western Railway A History Atlantic Transport ISBN 978 0 906899 66 3 Stoker Gilbert J March 1901 Locomotive Water Supply Ramsbottom s Pick Up Apparatus The Railway Magazine Vol VIII no 45 London England pp 219 225 Talbot Edward Taylor Clive 2005 The Crewe Works narrow gauge system 2nd ed Derby London and North Western Railway Society ISBN 0 9546951 1 9 OCLC 1280704655 Tomkins Edward 1878 Principles of Machine Construction Being an Application of Geometrical Drawing for the Representation of Machinery G P Putnam s Sons Tuplin William Alfred 1974 The steam locomotive its form and function New York Charles Scribner and Sons ISBN 9780684137490 OCLC 59161197 Weaver Rodney 1997 Ramsbottom John In Simmons Jack Biddle Gordon eds The Oxford Companion to British Railway History From 1603 to the 1990s 1st ed Oxford Oxford University Press p 416 ISBN 0 19 211697 5 External links edit John Ramsbottom locomotive engineer Business positionsPreceded byFrancis Trevithick Chief Mechanical Engineer of the London and North Western Railway1857 1871 Succeeded byF W WebbProfessional and academic associationsPreceded byWilliam George Armstrong President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers1870 1871 Succeeded byCarl Wilhelm Siemens Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title John Ramsbottom engineer amp oldid 1189252336, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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