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}}'''Isaac Babbitt''' (July 26, 1799 in [[Taunton, Massachusetts]] &ndash; May 26, 1862 in [[Somerville, Massachusetts]]) was an American [[inventor]]. In 1839, he invented a bearing made of a low-friction tin-based metal alloy, [[Babbitt metal]], that is used extensively in engine [[Bearing (mechanical)|bearing]]s today.<ref name="Hellemans Bunch 1988 p. ">{{cite book | last1=Hellemans | first1=A. | last2=Bunch | first2=B.H. | title=The Timetables of Science: A Chronology of the Most Important People and Events in the History of Science | publisher=Simon and Schuster | series=A Hudson Group Book | year=1988 | isbn=978-0-671-62130-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cbvaAAAAMAAJ | page=[https://archive.org/details/timetablesofscie00hell_0/page/305/mode/1up 305] | archiveurl=https://archive.org/details/timetablesofscie00hell_0/page/305/mode/1up | archivedate=2012-05-24}}</ref>
}}'''Isaac Babbitt''' (July 26, 1799 in [[Taunton, Massachusetts]] &ndash; May 26, 1862 in [[Somerville, Massachusetts]]) was an American [[inventor]]. In 1839, he invented a bearing made of a low-friction tin-based metal alloy, [[Babbitt metal]], that is used extensively in engine [[Bearing (mechanical)|bearing]]s today.<ref name="Hellemans Bunch 1988 p. ">{{cite book | last1=Hellemans | first1=A. | last2=Bunch | first2=B.H. | title=The Timetables of Science: A Chronology of the Most Important People and Events in the History of Science | publisher=Simon and Schuster | series=A Hudson Group Book | year=1988 | isbn=978-0-671-62130-8 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cbvaAAAAMAAJ | page=[https://archive.org/details/timetablesofscie00hell_0/page/305/mode/1up 305] | archiveurl=https://archive.org/details/timetablesofscie00hell_0/page/305/mode/1up | archivedate=2012-05-24}}</ref>


Babbitt was a goldsmith by trade, who experimented with metal [[alloy]]s.<ref name=":0">{{cite wikisource|title=The Biographical Dictionary of America|first=|last=|year=1906|plaintitle=|wslink=The Biographical Dictionary of America|volume=1|wspage=|chapter=Babbitt, Isaac|page=171|publisher=|scan=}}</ref> In 1824, he made the first [[Britannia metal]] manufactured in the United States, from which he sold table wares as Babbitt, Crossman & Company. As this proved financially unsuccessful, he withdrew, and in 1834 moved to Boston. There he engaged as superintendent for the South Boston Iron Company, better known as [[Cyrus Alger|Alger]]'s foundries, where he produced the first brass cannon in the United States. Also while there, in 1839, he invented the widely used metal now known as [[Babbitt metal]], an alloy of four parts copper, eight of antimony, and twenty-four of Banca tin, used for reducing the friction of axles in heavy machinery.<ref name=":0" /> For this invention he received in 1841 a gold medal from the [[Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association]], and afterward the United States Congress granted him $20,000. He subsequently patented this material in England (1844) and in Russia (1847). For some time, he devoted his attention to the production of the metal, and he was also engaged in the manufacture of soap.
Babbitt was a goldsmith by trade, who experimented with metal [[alloy]]s.<ref name=":0">{{cite BDA1906 |wstitle= Babbitt, Isaac |volume= 1 |page= 171 |short=}}</ref> In 1824, he made the first [[Britannia metal]] manufactured in the United States, from which he sold table wares as Babbitt, Crossman & Company. As this proved financially unsuccessful, he withdrew, and in 1834 moved to Boston. There he engaged as superintendent for the South Boston Iron Company, better known as [[Cyrus Alger|Alger]]'s foundries, where he produced the first brass cannon in the United States. Also while there, in 1839, he invented the widely used metal now known as [[Babbitt metal]], an alloy of four parts copper, eight of antimony, and twenty-four of Banca tin, used for reducing the friction of axles in heavy machinery.<ref name=":0" /> For this invention he received in 1841 a gold medal from the [[Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association]], and afterward the United States Congress granted him $20,000. He subsequently patented this material in England (1844) and in Russia (1847). For some time, he devoted his attention to the production of the metal, and he was also engaged in the manufacture of soap.


He died in Somerville, Mass., May 26, 1862.<ref name=":0" />
He died in Somerville, Mass., May 26, 1862.<ref name=":0" />
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==References==
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Reflist}}
* "Isaac Babbitt", ''Appletons Encyclopedia''
* "Isaac Babbitt", ''Encyclopaedia Britannica''


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:19th-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:19th-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:Inventors from Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Inventors from Massachusetts]]



{{US-inventor-stub}}
{{US-inventor-stub}}

Revision as of 10:01, 15 August 2024

Isaac Babbitt
Isaac Babbitt
BornJuly 26, 1799
Taunton, Massachusetts
DiedMay 26, 1862 (aged 62)
Somerville, Massachusetts
Known forBabbitt metal

Isaac Babbitt (July 26, 1799 in Taunton, Massachusetts – May 26, 1862 in Somerville, Massachusetts) was an American inventor. In 1839, he invented a bearing made of a low-friction tin-based metal alloy, Babbitt metal, that is used extensively in engine bearings today.[1]

Babbitt was a goldsmith by trade, who experimented with metal alloys.[2] In 1824, he made the first Britannia metal manufactured in the United States, from which he sold table wares as Babbitt, Crossman & Company. As this proved financially unsuccessful, he withdrew, and in 1834 moved to Boston. There he engaged as superintendent for the South Boston Iron Company, better known as Alger's foundries, where he produced the first brass cannon in the United States. Also while there, in 1839, he invented the widely used metal now known as Babbitt metal, an alloy of four parts copper, eight of antimony, and twenty-four of Banca tin, used for reducing the friction of axles in heavy machinery.[2] For this invention he received in 1841 a gold medal from the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association, and afterward the United States Congress granted him $20,000. He subsequently patented this material in England (1844) and in Russia (1847). For some time, he devoted his attention to the production of the metal, and he was also engaged in the manufacture of soap.

He died in Somerville, Mass., May 26, 1862.[2]

Patents

  • "A Mode of Making Boxes for Axles and Gudgeons", U.S. Patent 1252, July 17, 1839 [1]
  • "Metallic Hones for Sharpening Razors", U.S. Patent No. 10,5254, May 23, 1854

See also

References

  1. ^ Hellemans, A.; Bunch, B.H. (1988). The Timetables of Science: A Chronology of the Most Important People and Events in the History of Science. A Hudson Group Book. Simon and Schuster. p. 305. ISBN 978-0-671-62130-8. Archived from the original on 2012-05-24.
  2. ^ a b c Wikisource Johnson, Rossiter, ed. (1906). "Babbitt, Isaac". The Biographical Dictionary of America. Vol. 1. Boston: American Biographical Society. p. 171.
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