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 It's
Time To Celebrate 1903
by
Harold Shield
One
hundred years ago, in three turn-of-the-century shops, a handful
of inventors began creating gasoline-powered innovations that
would eventually change the world of boating. It's reason
enough to celebrate 1903.
Probably no one can claim to be the "first"
inventor of the gasoline-fired, internal combustion engine,
but various related developments can be traced.
In 1859, a French engineer, J.J. Etienne Lenoir,
managed to construct a double-acting spark-ignition engine
that could be operated continuously - but only for a limited
time. Then, in 1863, a Prussian by the name of Dr. Nicholas
Otto developed the experimental "explosive" engine. Unfortunately,
it was not successful enough to put into production. Later,
however, Otto began working with a Cologne machinery designer
named Eugen Langen and many of the problems were corrected.
This led to a successful engine powered by manufactured gas.
By 1878, Otto had earned patents that covered
the basic principles of the four-cycle engine - "suck, squeeze,
bang and blow." A year later, this engine was being sold in
the United States and several other countries.
In 1885, a tiny two-cycle engine built by
the Sintz Gas Engine Co. of Grand Rapids, Michigan was demonstrated
in a small boat. It appears to have followed the design work
of a Scottish engineer, Dugald Clerk, who had patented a successful
model in the 1870s.
In the late 1800s, the Steinway Piano Co.
of New York entered the yacht-building field and, from 1891
to 1897, built a Daimler engine under license to power their
vessels.
With the expiration of the Otto and Clerk
patents in 1895, a veritable explosion of new builders entered
the market to provide gasoline-powered engines for agriculture,
factories, automobiles and boats. For the first 12 years these
engines were decidedly unreliable, but certain manufacturers,
including Sterling, Kermath, Scripps, Standard and Van Blerck
soon dominated the marine market.
So why celebrate 1903? Well, for starters,
three very important companies were founded that year because
of the rapid development of the gasoline engine. After two
failures, Henry Ford started his third company, revolutionizing
the production of automobiles. (Top)
Second, two Milwaukee neighbours, Bill Harley
and Arthur Davidson, had heard stories from Europe about motorized
bicycles that used a leather strap to turn the rear wheel.
Their company began in a backyard shed and became one of the
shining examples of American manufacturing. Still growing
a century later, Harley-Davidson is an American cultural icon.
Third on my list of 1903 innovations was the
first flight of a heavier-than-air flying machine. On Decem-ber
17, in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Orville and Wilbur Wright
launched the Flyer in 27 mph winds. With Orville at the controls,
the flight lasted 12 seconds. Two more flights of about the
same duration followed but, by noon, a fourth flight lasted
for 59 seconds covering 852 feet. Their design and construction
of a lightweight gasoline engine was one of the most important
reasons for their success. Their pioneering achievements changed
the world.
The 100th anniversary of this spectacle is
being celebrated this year in Dayton, Ohio and Washington,
DC.
Ford and Harley-Davidson are celebrating their
100th anniversaries with their own special activities and
anniversary models.
Boating, of course, was a beneficiary of the
success of these pioneers. Cameron Waterman, Ole Evinrude
and countless others were well aware of the achievements of
these giants and the boating industry quickly became the gasoline-powered
boating industry.
In 1916, Orville Wright, who had never enjoyed
life in the public spotlight, came to Canada seeking a wilderness
holiday. He eventually bought Lambert Island on Georgian Bay.
His favorite form of recreation, during the
quarter century of Canadian vacations, was boating which he
pursued with a series of Gidley powerboats built in nearby
Penetanguishene. His last vessel was a 32-foot sedan, which
still exists in her home waters, beautifully restored by Guy
and Kathy Johnstone.
Orville never returned to Canada, but this
last vessel - appropriately named Kittyhawk - lives on. Kathy
Johnstone's father, Wilfred France, had served as caretaker
for Orville's cottage property and boating fleet. Eventually,
this 1929 vessel was sold to him. In 1974, the Johnstones
arranged for the complete restoration of the vessel, which
later appeared as a feature exhibit in the 1976 Toronto International
Boat Show. This was probably the first acknowledgement by
Canadians that the pilot and creator of the infamous 1903
Kitty Hawk in faraway North Carolina had lived among us, using
a Canadian boat, savoring the beauty of Georgian Bay summers.
So, it's time for Canadians to join the citizens
of Dayton, Milwaukee, and Detroit in celebrating 1903 - a
year that forever changed our boating lives.
(Top)
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