James Watt

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Watt was born on 19 February, 1736 and died on 19 August 1819 at Birmingham.

As a child he was often sick. That is why he did not attend school. His mother taught him how to read and write. He often had headaches, so they thought that he was retarded. Watt traveled to England. He spent the first year as an apprentice and he learned how to use tools. He became a mechanic. In 1756 he came back to Scotland. There he met Joseph Black. Joseph told him something about heat. Watt started to think how to make a machine better than those that were used then. In 1764, at the university, he got one of Newcomms machines that could not be repaired before. He repaired that machine without any problem. But he was not satisfied with this machine.

In one of Newcomms machines they had to cool a steam cylinder. But steam in the cylinder was constantly condensing, so a lot steam had to be used. All that steam was wasted. Watt made a new condenser. In it he collected the steam so that there was no lose. It was not until 1769 when he finished the best steam machine ever built. Even more, his steam machine was working faster than any other.

This unique steam machine became the first modern machine that transformed energy from fuels into mechanical energy. Watt was given a doctor title at the University of Glasgow and was accepted in the Royal Society. In 1800 he retired.

Author: Marko Sabotin, 3C