America’s first locomotive was defeated by a horse
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This thing is of the year 1830. America’s Baltimore & Ohio Railroad was then running with the help of horses. The investors wanted this work to be done by engines instead of horses. But British engineers were skeptical that a steam-powered engine would be able to handle steep climbs and sharp turns. After all, the responsibility of making this engine was given to the inventor and businessman Peter Cooper. Cooper, 39, built an efficient steam engine and named it Tom Thumb. This engine could run at a speed of 18 miles per hour. That is, it was much faster than a horse. But this did not go down well with the horse-drawn operators. He challenged Peter Cooper to a race, which he accepted.
how the horse won
As soon as the signal to start the race was received, the horse started the race. On the other hand, the steam engine took a long time to start. By the time the engine could be started the horse had covered half a mile. At last the engine started and soon it overtook the horse. It was just making the lead that an untoward happened. Its leather blower belt came off the wheel and the engine stalled. By the time Cooper could fix it, it was too late. The horse had won the race. But Cooper did not give up and the next year improved it and built a new steam locomotive. It could run at a speed of 30 miles per hour. Its trial in Baltimore in the year 1831 was successful.
After this, this engine was used instead of horses to pull the train in America. Later, the diesel engine replaced the steam engine and then the electric engine took its place. Today, bullet trains are running at a speed of 250 miles per hour, but soon their era may also end. Elon Musk claims that his Hyperloop can run faster than 670 mph. Cooper’s invention was a success but he did not build any more locomotives. Instead, he turned to other ventures. His rolling mill was the first in America to manufacture I-beams.
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what happened to cooper
Along with this, the credit for making steel from the Bessemer process also goes to him. Coupon also developed a torpedo operated by remote control and obtained a patent for powdered gelatin. In 1876, at the age of 85, he also became a presidential candidate in the US on behalf of the Greenback Party. He was the oldest person in US history to receive a nomination for the presidential elections. Cooper donated most of his wealth to the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York. It is still included in America’s top colleges.
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