ASME's History and Heritage program celebrates and landmarks the significant contributions of mechan
Since the invention of the wheel, mechanical innovation has critically influenced the development of civilization and industry as well as public welfare, safety and comfort. Through its History and Heritage program, ASME encourages public understanding of mechanical engineering, fosters the preservation of this heritage and helps engineers become more involved in all aspects of history.
Operating as usual
Today is —the 53rd anniversary of one of the most amazing feats of engineering of all time! On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 became the first spaceflight to successfully land people on the moon. Did you know that Apollo's command module, lunar module, the Saturn V rocket that carried Apollo 11 to space, and the space suit worn by astronauts on the moon are all ?
📸: NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
The Roebling 80-ton wire rope machine, an , was the largest wire-rope closing machine in its time! How much do you know about this device? Take the quiz and tell us how you scored in the comments: https://www.asme.org/topics-resources/content/quiz-5-questions-about-the-roebling-wire-rope-machine
🎉 🎈 🎂 Happy birthday to the Disneyland Resort Monorail System! It opened on this day in 1959 and became an in 1986.
Walt Disney considered the Disneyland Monorail System a futuristic form of public transportation. While monorails never became a widespread way to get around, Disney was on to something—the Disneyland system was the first monorail operating daily in the Western Hemisphere and the first monorail system in the United States!
The trains run on pneumatic tires that support the weight of the vehicles, with additional tires along the track to guide and stabilize the train. Initially running eight-tenths of a mile, the track is now 2.5 miles long, and trains reach speeds of 35 MPH. It's estimated that a billion people have ridden the monorail since its opening.
📸 : Wikimedia Commons/HarshLight; Wikimedia Commons/EditorASC; Wikimedia Commons/EditorASC; Wikimedia Commons/Patrick Pelletier; Wikimedia Commons/Carterhawk; Wikimedia Commons/Patrick Pelletier; Wikimedia Commons/Hawaiian717; Wikimedia Commons/JonnyboyCA; Wikimedia Commons/Kim Pedersen
Let's travel back in time to 1880 for a bit of ASME history that you may not know about...
What you're looking at is the Edwin A. Stevens Building at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, where one of the first official ASME meetings was held!
Stevens Institute of Technology's first professor of mechanical engineering, Robert Thurston, was a trailblazer in the engineering industry. Inspired by his mission, Dr. Henry Morton, Stevens' first president, invited Thurston and other early leaders to host an "organizational" ASME meeting at the school.
During this meeting, Thurston was announced as our first official president, paving the way for our modern-day ASME leaders!
📸 : Lea Porcellii; Stevens Institute of Technology
How much do you know about the Watt Steam Engine? Test your knowledge: https://bit.ly/3j9SD8g
📸 : Wikimedia Commons/DigbyDalton
Who would have thought that an would be a relaxing place for a walk? Exploring the Great Falls Raceway and Power System, also known as ASME Landmark #28, makes for a fun weekend activity if you live in the Tri-State area of the U.S.!
Which ASME Landmark should we head to next?
It's been more than a century since ASME first developed steam tables! The tables are still a vital tool for engineers today, and in December 2021, the steam tables were designated as an .
ASME history was made on this day in 1880! We can't help but think of how much we've grown since then.
Undoubtedly one of the most influential inventions of all time, Johannes Gutenberg's printing press paved the way for modern-day printing.
You may know about the printing processes of today, but how much do you know about where they began? https://www.asme.org/topics-resources/content/quiz-what-do-you-know-about-the-earliest-printing-press
There's a new ! "Reflection on the Motive of Fire and Power," the 1824 work by Nicholas Sadi Carnot, was one of the first attempts to study heat engines. Watch as Dick Pawliger, P.E., explains the book's significance.
Today is ! If you could go back in time to see an , what would you pick?
📸 : Apollo 11 space suit and Saturn V rocket: Wikimedia Commons; Disneyland Monorail: Wikimedia Commons/EditorASC; Southern Pacific #4249 steam engine: Wikimedia Commons/Neil916; Antikythera mechanism: Wikimedia Commons/Marsyas
December 6, 1877, was a historic day for No. 68!
On this day many years ago, inventor Thomas Edison put tinfoil around the cylinder of his phonograph, turned the handle of the shaft, and sang a verse of "Mary Had a Little Lamb" into one of the diaphragms. To everyone's surprise, the device played back the recording clearly.
Although Edison set this invention to the side in 1878 to work on the incandescent light bulb, he continued to improve the device years later alongside inventors such as Alexander Graham Bell and Charles Tainter.
We're sure that Edison would be amazed that we now have compact smartphones with the ability to record and replay sounds!
Looking for a great gift for the engineer in your life? We can't speak for Norma Jeane Dougherty, better known as Marilyn Monroe, but we recommend ASME's new book, "Chronicles of Mechanical Engineering in the United States," edited by Thomas H. Fehring, P.E. and Terry S. Reynolds, Ph.D. The book covers significant early engineers, ASME's history, and more!
Buy the book today:
🔗 ASME.org: https://bit.ly/3lt7ay7
🔗 Amazon.com: https://amzn.to/37kNsw4
Do you recognize the woman in this photo? Before she became world famous, Marilyn Monroe—then called Norma Jeane Dougherty—worked at the Radioplane Company factory in Van Nuys, California. She was photographed there in 1945 with the engine from Radioplane's OQ-3 drone.
Learn more about the history of mechanical engineering in the United States, the history of ASME, significant early engineers, and more, in ASME's new book, "Chronicles of Mechanical Engineering in the United States," edited by Thomas H. Fehring, P.E. and Terry S. Reynolds, Ph.D.
Buy the book today:
🔗 ASME.org, with a discount for ASME members: https://bit.ly/3lt7ay7
🔗 Amazon.com: https://amzn.to/37kNsw4
📸 : Wikimedia Commons
This is where the modern petroleum industry began! The Drake Well in Pennsylvania was the first commercial oil well in the United States. It was built in 1859 by Edwin Drake, a former railroad conductor, by drilling through the soil with a 6-horsepower steam engine. Drake inserted a 32-foot-long cast iron pipe into the drilled hole and drilled inside it, protecting the hole from collapse. Eventually, the well reached its maximum depth of 69.5 feet.
Unfortunately, Drake’s well sparked an oil boom in Pennsylvania, and he never turned a profit. The well ran dry in 1861. Over the ensuing years, Drake’s unsuccessful investments in oil stocks left him impoverished. In honor of his contributions to Pennsylvania’s economic success, the state awarded him an annual income of $1,500.
Drake’s well became an in 1979, and today you can visit a replica of Drake's setup at the Drake Well Museum and Park in Titusville, Pennsylvania.
📸 : All Wikimedia Commons; photos 1 and 2 Wikimedia Commons/By Niagara - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0
🚀 Today in 1967, the Saturn V rocket launched for the first time. Designed as part of NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration Apollo program, this rocket was designed to be larger and more powerful than any rocket previously attempted.
Developed at a cost of more than $7 billion, the Saturn V rocket was built based on F-1 and J-2 engines, and the final version stood 363 feet tall and weighed 6.1 million pounds when fully loaded. More than 50 years after its first launch on November 9., 1967, the Saturn V is still the tallest, heaviest, and most powerful rocket ever operated.
The Saturn V rocket had three stages:
1️⃣ The first stage weighed 300,000 pounds, measured 33 feet in diameter and 138 feet long, and powered the launch to an altitude of about 200,000 feet.
2️⃣ The second stage generated a total thrust of one million pounds. It weighed 95,000 pounds empty—and more than a million pounds when loaded with the 260,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen and 83,000 gallons of liquid oxygen it burned during flight.
3️⃣ The third stage had two burns: the first, lasting 2.75 minutes, put the vehicle into a circular orbit, and the second, with a duration of 5.2 minutes, positioned it for lunar intercept.
Although the Saturn V was retired in 1973 after launching Skylab, it is still the only launch vehicle ever to take humans beyond a low earth orbit.
In July 1980, ASME declared the rockets an . Today, Saturn V rockets are on display at NASA facilities in Alabama, Texas, Florida, and Mississippi, and at the National Air and Space Museum () in Washington, DC.
📷 : Photos, all courtesy NASA
1) The Skylab launch, May 14, 1973
2) The Apollo 15 launch, July 26, 1971
3) The first stage of the Apollo 8 Saturn V in the Vehicle Assembly Building, February 1, 1968
4) Dr. Wernher Von Braun with the five F-1 engines used by the Saturn V, 1969
5) Saturn V schematic
Happy 117th birthday to the New York City subway, which opened on this day in 1904! The Interborough Rapid Transit system, the initial segment of NYC's subway network, was named an in 1978.
🚇 In 1904, there were 9 miles of routes; today, there are 248 miles of routes, with 850 miles of track.
🚇 In 1904, there were 28 stations; today, there are 472.
🚇 In 1904, subway fare was 5 cents; today, a ride on the subway runs $2.75.
Read the landmark report here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks/31-interborough-rapid-trasit-system
🎥 The Library of Congress; filmed in 1905
Ever wondered how pineapples were sliced and canned? Since 1913, the process has been automated! The earliest machines took one location from 15 pineapples a minute when cut by hand to more than 50 when cut by machine. While machines have grown more sophisticated in the century since their invention, the newest ones are still based on the principles of the first pineapple slicing machine, which was patented by Henry Ginaca in 1912. Ginaca's creation was named an in 1993.
Read ASME's landmark report here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks/167-ginaca-pineapple-processing-machine
Good news -- The Big Surf Waterpark, an , will likely reopen for the 2022 season! Here's a bit of history to know before you buy your tickets:
The waterpark was inspired by the surfers that construction engineer Phil Dexter saw on his daily commute home from work. Dexter later created his own wave pool in 1966 right in his own backyard, which paved the way for the Big Surf AZ.
The waterpark houses the U.S.'s first wave pool with a singular traveling wave, to open in 1969 in Tempe, Arizona. The waterpark later became an in 2013 and is still open today.
The waterpark uses 15 gates that empty water into a 2.5 acre lagoon with contours that replicate a natural beach. Its waves are produced by pumping water to a pre-selected height and are released through underwater gates.
The water released breaks over a baffle (similar to a natural reef), forming one wave per cycle. Water is then recirculated to the lagoon through pumps.
While Big Surf still operates as a waterpark today, it's also served as a concert venue to host musical acts like Pink Floyd, Elton John, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Beach Boys, Chicago, Sting, Rod Stewart, and more!
Ready for a quiz on the Big Surf Waterpark? Here you go: https://www.asme.org/topics-resources/content/quiz-what-do-you-know-about-the-big-surf-waterpark
Do you use a ballpoint pen to take notes at work, at university, or even to write out your grocery list? You can thank László Bíró, who invented these handy devices back in 1938!
Here's a quick history of Bíró's invention:
As a journalist, Bíró noticed that the ink used in newspaper printing dried quickly and smudge-free, but was too viscous to flow through the tips of traditional fountain pens. The solution? A new type of pen featuring a tip with a ball that turns into a socket, picks up ink from a cartridge, and then rolls to deposit it onto paper.
In 1945, manufacturer Marcel B**h bought the patent from Bíró for the pen, which soon became the main product of his BIC company, which you're probably familiar with! Many years later in 2005, a collection of some of Bíró's earliest models was highlighted as an .
How much space does an airplane take up? For the US Navy during World War II, the answer was: too much. The Navy needed to reduce the amount of floor space used by planes on its aircraft carriers, so they turned to the engineers at Grumman for a solution—a solution that would become an .
Grumman’s engineers developed the Sto-Wing folding system, which allowed a plane’s wings to fold upward. The idea of a folding wing system wasn’t new—engineers in the 1920s had tried it—but the systems had never been produced safely or reliably.
Initial designs for the wing-folding systems were hydraulic-powered, but they added too much weight to the planes. The final design was operated manually, with locks that held the wings in position. Once produced, the folding-wing planes increased the Navy’s carrying capacity by 50 percent.
The XF4F-4 Wildcat was Grumman’s first plane produced with the Sto-Wing system. Today, you can see one of these on display at Air Zoo _ in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Read the ASME landmark report here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks/238-grumman-wildcat-sto-wing-wing-folding
📸 : comparison of Grumman’s F4F plane with folded and unfolded wings; Grumman F6F with folded wings; Grumman E1 tracer; and the Grumman E-2 Hawkeye; all via Wikimedia Commons
These photos never fail to blow us away!
What you're looking at is the propulsion wind tunnel (PWT) at the U.S. Air Force's Arnold Engineering Development Complex, which is known as the world's first large-scale facility for testing jet and rocket engines in simulated high-speed flight conditions.
The facility is made up of three wind tunnels that can achieve air speeds up to Mach 4.75 at altitudes up to 150,000 feet -- the 16-foot transonic (16T), 16-foot supersonic (16S), and the aerodynamic 4-foot transonic (4T).
Nearly every major aircraft and its associated hardware used by the US military for nearly 30 years has been tested for aerodynamic performance at this !
Photos via United States Air Force and ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers)
Third time's the charm! This is the first commercially successful tractor powered by an internal combustion engine, but it was the third model built by Charles W. Hart and Charles H. Parr. Other companies had pioneered steam-powered tractors, but they were too heavy to travel on roads and bridges. In 1901, Hart and Parr released their model, and a total of 3,798 tractors were built.
Learn more about engineering innovations like this one, visionaries like Hart and Parr, and more in ASME's new book, "Chronicles of Mechanical Engineering in the United States," edited by Thomas H. Fehring, P.E. and Terry S. Reynolds, Ph.D.
Buy the book today:
🔗 ASME.org, with a discount for ASME members: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/ebooks/book/278/Chronicles-of-Mechanical-Engineering-in-the-United
🔗 Amazon.com Kindle edition: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0973DYTQ8/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i0
Some ASME history here—a look at how A17 and the Empire State Building are connected!
For we're going way back...all the way to 1908! Thanks to our History and Heritage Commitee, we got our hands on an issue of Scientific American dating back to December 8, 1908. We've selected a few ads, excerpts, and photos to share here. It's amazing how much some technology has changed, and how some things haven't changed much at all!
Would you ever pose for a photo with a nuclear reactor? These engineers are doing just that! They're standing next to a vertical reactor at what's now the Idaho National Laboratory. The reactor weighed a whopping 297 tons, and was situated in the lab's "hot shop," where reactors were maintained and studied. In addition to the lab's groundbreaking work on reactors, it tested nuclear propulsion for aircraft, which the Soviets were also thought to be working on.
Much of our knowledge about how reactors behave was discovered at INL. Learn more about the successes and failures of nuclear power development and other key milestones in engineering history in ASME's new book, "Chronicles of Mechanical Engineering in the United States," edited by Thomas H. Fehring, P.E. and Terry S. Reynolds, Ph.D.
Buy the book today:
🔗 ASME.org, with a discount for ASME members: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/ebooks/book/278/Chronicles-of-Mechanical-Engineering-in-the-United
🔗 Amazon.com Kindle edition: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0973DYTQ8/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i0
📸 : Courtesy Idaho National Laboratory
How do you make a railway run uphill—and do it safely? Let’s take a look at the Pilatusbahn in Switzerland, the steepest cog railway in the world and an .
The railway’s route covers almost 3 miles (4.62 km) over a maximum gradient of 48%, but designing a rack railway on such a steep incline was not without its challenges. The railway was opened in 1889, and the cog systems used at the time would not work on a such a steep incline. Plus, Switzerland would not permit the railway to operate using a conventional system, fearing it was unsafe. So engineer Eduard Locher devised a unique system that turned the rack sideways, which served two purposes: the rack guided the steam-powered train cars, and it kept the cars locked to the mountainside.
The train still operates today, though now the carriages are electric rather than steam-powered. The Pilatusbahn was designated an ASME landmark in 2001.
You can read ASME's landmark report here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks/220-pilatusbahn
📸 : Wikimedia Commons; By Maria Feofilova - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0; By JuergenG, CC BY-SA 3.0; By Audriusa - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0
The year is 1926, and a new steam turbine-generator at the Lakeside Power Plant in St. Francis, Wisconsin, is starting up. Engineers Fred Dornbrook (left) and John Anderson are there, as is Anderson’s daughter Miriam, who was then the only female mechanical engineering student at the University of Wisconsin. It's an engineering marvel—a model for plants throughout the world and a landmark in the development of modern electric power.
Learn more about power development milestones in the United States, significant early engineers, and other engineering topics in ASME's new book, "Chronicles of Mechanical Engineering in the United States," edited by Thomas H. Fehring, P.E. and Terry S. Reynolds, Ph.D.
Buy the book today:
🔗 ASME.org, with a discount for ASME members: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/ebooks/book/278/Chronicles-of-Mechanical-Engineering-in-the-United
🔗 Amazon.com Kindle edition: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0973DYTQ8/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i0
📸 : We Energies
Carpet isn't as popular today as it once was, but for years, it was reserved only for the homes of very wealthy Americans. That was until 1928 when Ernest Moench designed his Carpet Tufting Apparatus which mechanized the long and expensive tufting process, bringing carpets to most American homes!
Cut-pile manufacturing consists of two techniques: repeated insertion of loops of thick fiber thread through a backing material and then cutting the exposed loops to produce the cut piles. This was the first to combine the techniques in one mechanized device.
Did you know that descendants of this machine are responsible for creating over three-quarters of all American carpets?
Do you recognize the woman in this photo? Before she became world famous, Marilyn Monroe—then called Norma Jeane Dougherty—worked at the Radioplane Company factory in Van Nuys, California. She was photographed there in 1945 with the engine from Radioplane's OQ-3 drone.
Learn more about the history of mechanical engineering in the United States, the history of ASME, significant early engineers, and more, in ASME's new book, "Chronicles of Mechanical Engineering in the United States," edited by Thomas H. Fehring, P.E. and Terry S. Reynolds, Ph.D.
Buy the book today:
🔗 ASME.org, with a discount for ASME members: https://bit.ly/3lt7ay7
🔗 Amazon.com: https://amzn.to/37kNsw4
📸 : Wikimedia Commons
Gustave Eiffel is probably most famous for the Paris tower that bears his name, but that was far from his only notable accomplishment. The aeronautical research Eiffel undertook later in his career produced the most accurate data of his time. Two of his experimental devices, the Eiffel Drop Test Machine and Wind Tunnel, became ASME's 237th landmark of mechanical engineering in 2005.
Read more about Eiffel's landmarks here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks/237-eiffel-drop-test-machine-and-wind-tunnel
Today is —and it's the 52nd anniversary of Apollo 11's successful landing on the moon! The Apollo 11 command module, lunar module, the Saturn V rocket that carried Apollo 11 to space, and the space suit worn by astronauts on the moon are all !
On July 20, 1969, NASA astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. took the lunar module to the moon's surface, while Michael Collins orbited the moon alone in the command module.
After eight days in space—including about 21 hours on the moon for Armstrong and Aldrin—the Apollo 11 crew splashed down in the Pacific Ocean.
Eventually, a total of six crews would walk on the moon before the final Apollo mission in 1972. More than 400,000 engineers worked on the Apollo program between 1961 and 1972. "When I was there working on it, it was more like, 'We've got a job to do, we're engineers, we can get the job done,'" engineer Peter Kachmar told ASME in 2019. "And I've come to realize what a tremendous feat it really was."
📸 : NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Commuting is back on the schedule for thousands of employees returning to in-person work.
For residents of New Jersey and surrounding areas, the Holland Tunnel, the world's first mechanically ventilated underwater tunnel, brings them across state lines and to offices across New York City!
Let's learn a bit about No. 93 🚗 📁
For a long time we've been sharing photos of videos of , but today we wanted to take a step back and explain what the landmarks program is! Check out the images below to learn a little more about the program, run by ASME's History and Heritage Committee, and check out the full list of landmarks here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks What engineering achievement would you add to the list?
📸: Saturn V rocket, NASA; Disneyland monorail, Wikimedia Commons; Monongahela Incline, Wendy Felton
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Who would have thought that an #ASMElandmark would be a relaxing place for a walk? Exploring the Great Falls Raceway and Power System, also known as ASME Landmark #28, makes for a fun weekend activity if you live in the Tri-State area of the U.S.! Which ASME Landmark should we head to next?
It's been more than a century since ASME first developed steam tables! The tables are still a vital tool for engineers today, and in December 2021, the steam tables were designated as an #ASMELandmark.
There's a new #ASMElandmark! "Reflection on the Motive of Fire and Power," the 1824 work by Nicholas Sadi Carnot, was one of the first attempts to study heat engines. Watch as Dick Pawliger, P.E., explains the book's significance.
Happy 117th birthday to the New York City subway, which opened on this day in 1904! The Interborough Rapid Transit system, the initial segment of NYC's subway network, was named an #ASMELandmark in 1978. 🚇 In 1904, there were 9 miles of routes; today, there are 248 miles of routes, with 850 miles of track. 🚇 In 1904, there were 28 stations; today, there are 472. 🚇 In 1904, subway fare was 5 cents; today, a ride on the subway runs $2.75. Read the landmark report here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks/31-interborough-rapid-trasit-system 🎥 The Library of Congress; filmed in 1905
Ever wondered how pineapples were sliced and canned? Since 1913, the process has been automated! The earliest machines took one location from 15 pineapples a minute when cut by hand to more than 50 when cut by machine. While machines have grown more sophisticated in the century since their invention, the newest ones are still based on the principles of the first pineapple slicing machine, which was patented by Henry Ginaca in 1912. Ginaca's creation was named an #ASMELandmark in 1993. Read ASME's landmark report here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks/167-ginaca-pineapple-processing-machine
Gustave Eiffel is probably most famous for the Paris tower that bears his name, but that was far from his only notable accomplishment. The aeronautical research Eiffel undertook later in his career produced the most accurate data of his time. Two of his experimental devices, the Eiffel Drop Test Machine and Wind Tunnel, became ASME's 237th landmark of mechanical engineering in 2005. Read more about Eiffel's landmarks here: https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history/landmarks/237-eiffel-drop-test-machine-and-wind-tunnel #ASMELandmarks
Commuting is back on the schedule for thousands of employees returning to in-person work. For residents of New Jersey and surrounding areas, the Holland Tunnel, the world's first mechanically ventilated underwater tunnel, brings them across state lines and to offices across New York City! Let's learn a bit about #ASMElandmark No. 93 🚗 📁
The Disneyland Monorail System, an #ASMELandmark, first operated on this day in 1959!
Mount Vernon Hotel Museum & Garden
E 61 Street StreetIntrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
W 46th Street and 12Th Avenue
Museum of Jewish Heritage - A Living Memorial
Battery Place
American Museum of Natural History
Central Park W
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Cultur
Malcolm X Boulevard
Ground Zero Museum Workshop: Images & Artifac
W 14th Street
Museum Team at Brooklyn Children's Museum
Brooklyn Avenue
Mount Vernon Hotel Museum & Garden
E 61 Street Street
Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
W 46th Street and 12Th Avenue