While working on a railroad project in 1835, like all good inventors Otis thought there had to be a better way to move the dirt. He began to tinker and soon he developed the worlds's first steam shovel excavator. By today's standards it was a clumsy device, like modern day beta software, but it was revolutionary at the same time.
The bucket could be raised and lowered by a steam -powered chain hoist. The excavator was built to be supported by rails. To move the bucket from side to side, men on either side of the bucket would use ropes to move the bucket to where it needed to dig and release its material. They would also open the bucket door latch with rope. Pretty crude, but it worked.
Sadly, while working with his shovel for the Western Railroad of Massachusetts, Otis contracted Typhus fever and died on November 13, 1839, the same year he received his patent. He was only 26 years old. Too young to die, but his legacy lives on.
Pictures from Steam Shovels and Steam Shovel Work by E.A. Hermann in 1894.
The bucket could be raised and lowered by a steam -powered chain hoist. The excavator was built to be supported by rails. To move the bucket from side to side, men on either side of the bucket would use ropes to move the bucket to where it needed to dig and release its material. They would also open the bucket door latch with rope. Pretty crude, but it worked.
Sadly, while working with his shovel for the Western Railroad of Massachusetts, Otis contracted Typhus fever and died on November 13, 1839, the same year he received his patent. He was only 26 years old. Too young to die, but his legacy lives on.
