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From the first
motor launches, Gold Cup racers, and fishing boats to World War
II landing Craft -- here is the true story of internal combustion
on the water! This
fascinating two-volume book presents the only comprehensive history
of the U.S. marine engine industry. Engines Afloat offers a unique
blend of biography, history, and technical explanations with the
kind of storytelling for which its author is so
well-known. The time frame is 1884 -1944.
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1, Fishing: Fishermen were early adopters of the gasoline engine.
They recognized it as salvation from backbreaking work, a major
advance in safety, and the key to better catches and higher prices.
The chapter examines the engine's impact on the Great Lakes. There
Kahlenberg of Two Rivers, Wisconsin, made an early and immediate
impact. On the West Coast, Hicks played a similar role while, in
New England, it was Palmer. Even the power skiffs used by fresh-water
clammers on the Mississippi are included, as is the story of the
coming of power to the Gulf Coast.
Chapter
2 , Diesels: Here is the story of the trend from gasoline
to diesel. Included is the decline of the big West Coast gasoline
engine and its replacement by the diesel developed by Atlas-Imperial
. On the East Coast, Nelseco was also working to develop a diesel
for both commercial use and in submarines. Its story, together
with those of Seattle's Washington-Estep and the Sumner-Willamette
of Portland, Oregon are included.
Chapter
3, Rivers: Here is the most detailed story yet of the "gasoline
steamboat" and the rise of the diesel towboat. This is a
little-known but important chapter in the history of internal
combustion engine, for the engines made it possible for many more
people to engage in commercial business on the country's inland
rivers. From the Little Kanawha to the Mississippi and beyond,
the story of these engines and the boats they powered is told.
Engine companies featured include Fairbanks-Morse of Wisconsin
and Cooper-Bessemer of Mount Vernon Ohio and Oil City, Pennsylvania.
Chapter
4, General Motors: Take a trip inside the GM research labs
headed by Charles Kettering as GM engineers struggle to develop
the high-speed diesel for World War II submarines, subchasers,
and D-Day landing craft. This is the fascinating story of a great
American visionary, for it was Kettering whose ideas and leadership
paced the way through years of trials to ultimate success. Also
told is the story of the self-made, Scottish-born millionaire
Alexander Winton whose company GM eventually purchased.
Chapter
5, Navy: At about the midpoint of research for this book,
the author began to wonder about what was going on within the
Navy while so much activity was occurring in virtually every phase
of marine engine development and application. The result is a
very rare glimpse into the Navy's adoption of internal combustion
engines for small boats and submarines. The Packard PT boat V-12
is covered. So is GM's "pancake diesel" used in subchasers.
There's
More!
Both volumes
of Engines Afloat include an Appendix and a useful Index. In Volume
I, the Appendix includes a most unusual glossary of terms so that
readers will be able to identify how the first generation of engine
designers defined the machines they were building. Volume II includes
fascinating operating instructions relating to Kahlenberg and
Hicks engines.
Both books
measure a big 8 1/2" x 11" trim size! Volume
One contains 224 pages and 101 illustrations. Volume Two contains
192 pages and 89 illustrations.
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