Thomas Rickett from Buckingham, England, made a steam-powered car in 1860. Several examples were made and it was also advertised.
Buckingham is a town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,043 at the 2011 Census. It is a civil parish with a town council.
Rickett was manager of the Castle Foundry in Buckingham, makers of agricultural implements, who in 1857 also started to make steam engines. [1] In 1858 he combined the two to make a steam plough. The plough cost ₤500 and was manned by three men. [2]
The steam plough inspired the Marquess of Stafford to order a steam carriage - probably in 1859. [3] This vehicle had three wheels, the single wheel at the front, and a rear-mounted coal-fired boiler and two-cylinder engine. The boiler pressure was 110 psi, and the cylinders had a bore of 76 mm and stroke of 178 mm. Transmission was by chain to the right-hand rear wheel. A maximum speed of 19 mph was claimed. A boilerman was seated at the rear, and three passengers could sit side by side at the front with the one on the right operating a tiller steering and the regulator, reversing lever and brake. The wheels had iron "tyres", with the brakes operating on the rear wheels.
A second example was ordered by the Earl of Caithness, but this time the wheels were driven through a two-speed gearbox and spur gears. It was demonstrated to the Royal family at Windsor Castle in January 1860. [3] The Earl used the car to drive 146 miles from Inverness to Barrogill Castle, 20 miles north of Wick in Scotland, accompanied by his wife, with Thomas Rickett acting as engine man. [4]
Earl of Caithness is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland, and it has a very complex history. Its first grant, in the modern sense as to have been counted in strict lists of peerages, is now generally held to have taken place in favor of Maol Íosa V, Earl of Strathearn, in 1334, although in the true circumstances of 14th century, this presumably was just a recognition of his hereditary right to the ancient earldom/mormaership of Caithness. The next year, however, all of his titles were declared forfeit for treason.
A gear or cogwheel is a rotating machine part having cut teeth, or in the case of a cogwheel, inserted teeth, which mesh with another toothed part to transmit torque. Geared devices can change the speed, torque, and direction of a power source. Gears almost always produce a change in torque, creating a mechanical advantage, through their gear ratio, and thus may be considered a simple machine. The teeth on the two meshing gears all have the same shape. Two or more meshing gears, working in a sequence, are called a gear train or a transmission. A gear can mesh with a linear toothed part, called a rack, producing translation instead of rotation.
Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is notable for its long association with the English and later British royal family and for its architecture.
Encouraged by his success, Rickett placed an advertisement in The Engineer magazine advertising his carriages for sale at £180 to £200. He was, however, ahead of his time, and it is not thought that any more were sold.
The Engineer is a London-based monthly magazine and website covering the latest developments and business news in engineering and technology in the UK and internationally.
In 1861 Rickett's demonstrated a steam coach by taking it from Buckingham to Wolverton. He said that the coach was intended for use on roads in Switzerland. [5]
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a sovereign state situated in the confluence of western, central, and southern Europe. It is a federal republic composed of 26 cantons, with federal authorities seated in Bern. Switzerland is a landlocked country bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. It is geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura, spanning a total area of 41,285 km2 (15,940 sq mi), and land area of 39,997 km2 (15,443 sq mi). While the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, the Swiss population of approximately 8.5 million is concentrated mostly on the plateau, where the largest cities are located, among them the two global cities and economic centres of Zürich and Geneva.
Rickett's next venture was a 12-ton road steam engine, which was designed to pull wagons along the road. This was built for and demonstrated to some Spanish gentlemen by driving it pulling three loaded wagons weighing 28 tons from Buckingham to Mixbury and back - about 6 miles. [6] Another of the road trains was sold to Copenhagen in Denmark after it had been inspected by a Danish engineer, Mr Hjorth. [7]
By 1865 the Foundry was in financial trouble. [8] It was put up for letting in February that year. [9] A possible reason was the passing of increasingly restrictive legislation, the Locomotive Acts, in 1861 and 1865 which made the use of steam propelled vehicles on roads impractical.
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