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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC03624 |
| From Archive Folder | Documents Relating to 1807 |
| Title | Robert Fulton to Henry Dearborn regarding measuring the velocity of the water in the Mississippi |
| Date | 13 January 1807 |
| Author | Fulton, Robert (1765-1815) |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Asks Secretary of War Dearborn to "give the necessary orders for measuring the velocity of the waters of the Mississippi" by tracking the speed with which a wooden board tied to a line is carried away. He adds, "I hope this work will promote the interest of the country." Fulton, newly returned to the United States after twenty years in Europe, shared in the nation's enthusiasm for developing the vast territory recently acquired through the Louisiana Purchase (negotiated by his business partner Robert Livingston). Fulton was aware that steam-powered vessels on the Mississippi and its tributaries could be the key to opening up the West. However, he had difficulty persuading Livingston, who was oriented towards the Hudson River. Seven months later, Fulton launched his steamboat "Clermont" on the Hudson. Although it would not be until 1812 that a Fulton-designed steamboat would ply the waters between New Orleans and Natchez, eventually steamboat traffic on the Mississippi and its tributaries would transform the nation. |
| Subjects | Navy Navy Steamboat Science and Technology Inventor Invention Military History Government and Civics |
| People | Fulton, Robert (1765-1815) Dearborn, Henry (1751-1829) |
| Place written | Washington, D.C. |
| Theme | Science, Technology, Invention |
| Sub-collection | The Gilder Lehrman Collection, 1493-1859 |
| Additional Information | Robert Fulton was an engineer and entrepreneur, often credited with inventing the steamboat. While Fulton did not invent any of the individual components of the steamboat, he did combine the ideas of many other men to make the most successful steamboat. He was an expert on combining numerous ideas of other men into one product, a process he used in numerous other engineering ventures throughout his life. Henry Dearborn was a soldier and politician from Massachusetts. At the time this letter was written he was serving as the Secretary of War under Thomas Jefferson. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Settlement, Commerce, Revolution and Reform: 1493-1859 |