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Draft:Edmund W. Roberts

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  • Comment: Not certain that it's AI, but the history and a couple sections lead me to believe it's more likely than not that it's AI-generated —pythoncoder (talk | contribs) 04:42, 29 June 2025 (UTC)


E. W. Roberts
Born(1866-05-12)May 12, 1866
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died(1947-03-13)March 13, 1947
Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
Occupation(s)Engineer, inventor, author
Known forEarly powered flight, internal combustion engines
SpouseLena Isabelle Norton (m. 1896)

Edmund Willson "E. W." Roberts (May 12, 1866 – March 13, 1947) was an American pioneer mechanical engineer, inventor, aviation pioneer, designer of internal combustion engines, patent practitioner, and author.

Early life and education

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Roberts was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the son of Dr. Robert Ross Roberts, a Civil War surgeon, and Mary Foote Roberts.[1] Orphaned in childhood, he was raised by his grandfather, Judge Samuel Alfred Foote, in Geneva, New York.[2] He worked briefly as a cattle rancher for his uncle near Sterling, Colorado and then enrolled at Cornell University, where he studied mechanical engineering.[2] Roberts completed his Master's degree in 1895, writing his thesis on the topic of aeronautics.[3][4]

Aviation pioneering

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Aviation with Hiram Maxim

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Wind Tunnel for Maxim's Flying Machine Experiments - designed and built by E.W. Roberts in 1894[5]
Maxim's Flying Machine in 1894. Pictured are Hiram Maxim (far right), E.W. Roberts (chief assistant, 2nd from left), among others[5]
1926 collage sketch of Hiram S. Maxim and E. W. Roberts

After reading about Hiram S. Maxim's experiments with powered flight, Roberts contacted Maxim in 1893 and was invited to join him at Baldwyn’s Park in Kent near London, England.[6][5][7] Roberts served as Maxim's chief assistant on the aircraft project for eight months.[5][8] As part of his work with Maxim, Roberts designed a large steam-powered wind tunnel.[5][9][10] Based on experiments with the tunnel, Maxim identified the superior lift-to-drag performance of cambered airfoils, discovered aerodynamic interference, and determined the needed amount of horizontal force for the upward lift of the plane.[11][10]

Maxim's Experimental Flying Machine after tethered flight and crash, with crew (Hiram Maxim, Arthur Guthrie, Thomas Jackson)

A biplane was built that was notable for its massive size, power, and use of a guided track system for testing and featured linen-covered wings (with a wingspan of 104 ft and wing area of 4,000 sq ft) and two 160-horsepower steam engines that powered two 17.8 ft wooden propellers.[5][4][6] At the time, the term “airplane” or "plane" referred specifically to the wings, while the full vehicle was called a “flying machine.”[12] It was guided along an 1800 foot steel track from the factory and tethered with steel outriggers to elevated wooden rail tracks on either side, which were designed to restrain it from lifting off any higher than two feet, since the purpose of the project was to study aerodynamics for the possibility of engine powered flight, not to actually fly.[11][7][6][13]

On July 31, 1894, on its third test run of the day around 3 p.m., the flying machine lifted off, but more than expected. The wheels cleared free from the track and pulled tight on the outriggers, pulling off a beam of the restraining wooden track on one side and pinning it to a wing, causing the flying machine to lose balance, sway, and veer off the main track, heading towards Roberts.[14][7][15] Maxim quickly shut off the engine and crash-landed so as to stop the escalation of the uncontrollable flight.[15] The crew was unharmed, despite two being thrown from the machine, and Roberts was able to run from the path of the derailed airplane.[6][16][7]

Maxim Flying Machine Exhibition Advertisement - 1894.

The flying machine had briefly carried its full weight aloft, about 1-4 ft off the ground while maintaining a speed of around 40 mph, until stopped by the precautionary outriggers that caused the accident.[11][16][7] According to Roberts, who was given the duty to watch closely the wheels from the ground, the flying machine remained airborne for a distance of around 200-550 feet, carrying a total weight of over 9,500 pounds.[4][6][17] The lift was demonstrated by the fresh paint on the wheels not transferring to the rails when aloft, lack of track marks on the ground until it crashed down, the displacement of the dynamograph components, and the eight persons who witnessed the flight.[6][4]

Maxim considered the lift-off a success, and without anymore financial backing, ended further experiments with steam-powered flight.[11][6][5][4] Roberts concluded that the aircraft had achieved sustained powered lift and thus would claim that it was the first manned, engine-powered flight in aviation history, nine years before the Wright Brothers, as well as the largest plane ever built for the longest time in the beginnings of aviation history.[17][5][7] According to the Guinness Book of Air Facts and Feats, this was the largest airplane to lift itself off the ground in the 1800s.[18] Wilbur Wright studied the flight and refered to it in 1901, noting how all it needed to be succesful was the ability to steer and balance.[19] The wrecked aircraft was repaired within the next three months for exhibition and amusment rides benefitting charities, and was later displayed at the Kensington Museum in London (now the Victoria and Albert Museum).[5][6][13] One of the two steam engines of the flying machine was lost on the Titanic on its way to the May 1912 air show in the Grand Central Palace of New York.[7][6]

Visit with Otto Lilienthal

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Once Maxim's aviation experiments ended, Roberts traveled to Germany to observe Otto Lilienthal flying albatross-patterned gliders off a 50-foot sand hill near Berlin.[5][20]

Writing

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The Gas-Engine Handbook by E. W. Roberts, 8th Edition

After graduating, Roberts wrote textbooks on gas engines for the International Correspondence Schools in Scranton, Pennsylvania.[2] Roberts served as editor of Gas Engine Magazine in Cincinnati from 1900–1902 and again from 1915–1923.[2][5][9] He published articles in Automobile Magazine, Motor Boating, Rudder, Scientific American, Aviation, and Cosmopolitan.[2]

Roberts authored eight technical books, including:

  • Mechanics' Pocket Memoranda, Scranton, PA, The Colliery Engine Co. (1897)
  • Gas Engine Handbook, Cincinnati, OH, The Gas Engine Publishing Co. (1900 onward; 9th edition in 1917; reprints still sold)
  • How to Build a Three‑Horsepower Launch Engine, Cincinnati, OH, The Gas Engine Publishing Co. (1901)
  • Gas Engines and Their Troubles, New York, NY, Marine Engineering (1903)
  • The Automobile Pocketbook, Cincinnati, OH, The Gas Engine Publishing Co. (1905)
  • Questions and Answers from the Gas Engine, Cincinnati, OH, The Gas Engine Publishing Co. (1907)

Roberts also wrote and sold greeting card verses, short fiction stories, riddles, and poems.[2]

Engineering work

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In 1903, he became an engineer at the Elmore Manufacturing Company in Clyde, Ohio.[5][9] Roberts worked on making car models with his brother, Benjamin L. Roberts, and assistants.[21] Roberts was a member of the Scranton Engineers' Club during his years in Scranton, Pennsylvania,[22] and when he moved to Ohio, Roberts became a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers,[23] the Society of Automotive Engineers,[24] and the Ohio Society of Mechanical, Electrical, and Steam Engineers.[25] Roberts was deemed an authority on the subject of gasoline in Ohio during this time, and would give lectures on gasoline, engines, automobile construction, and aviation to various engineering clubs and schools.[25][26][27][28]

Roberts Motor Company - Advertisement
Roberts Hydroplane Engine – 1911

Roberts Motor Company

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In 1907, Roberts co-founded the Roberts Motor Manufacturing Company with his brother, in Clyde, Ohio, moving it to Sandusky, Ohio, in December of 1908.[29] It had about 75 employees.[29] The company focused on the design and manufacturing of aircraft and boat engines and put an emphasis on making lightweight engines that incorporated aluminum and magnesium alloys, which made them highly sought after.[30] Roberts was known as a leading national expert on the two-cycle engines, which were known for never backfiring.[31][20] In 1909, a large boat-building company, W. H. Mullins Co., placed an order for 2,000 of these engines.[31] According to the Smithsonian Institution, which has a few Roberts engines in its collection, more Roberts engines were built during this period before WWI than by those of Hall-Scott and Curtiss Motor Company put together.[30]

Roberts Motor Company: Parachute Achievement Advertisement
Roberts Engine for Ecker Flying Boat –1911

Roberts engines in aviation history

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Roberts designed engines that powered a few historic aviation events and were used by many prominent exhibition pilots,[30] including Tom Benoist, Willie Haupt, Clifton Hadley, and Weldon Cooke.[8] A 50 hp Roberts engine powered South Dakota’s first powered flight, which flew near Rapid City on March 9, 1911.[32] On March 12, 1912, a Roberts 6X 75 hp engine powered a Benoist biplane used in the first parachute jump from an aircraft, performed by Captain Bert Berry and piloted by Anthony Jannus in St. Louis, Missouri.[5][33] Two years later, on January 1, 1914, the Roberts 6X 75 hp engine powered the Benoist Type XIV during the first commercial passenger airplane flight, flown again by Jannus, in St. Petersburg, Florida.[20][34]

Company decline

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Roberts Motor Co. at the May 1912 New York Air Show

Roberts left the company in 1914 when the company faced financial trouble,[2] especially since "the company spent more in national advertizing than they took in on sales" according to a local Early Bird of Aviation from Sandusky, Reinhalt Ausmus.[35] In 1915, Earl Johnston took over as superintendent and then purchased the Roberts Motor Co. in 1918.[36][37][20] Large orders for boat engines swamped the company in 1920, with requests coming in from various countries in Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, and islands in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans; the company was forced to leave many orders unfulfilled due to lack of iron ore and other materials.[38] Despite fire damage in 1919 and in 1923, the company continued upkeeping its plant and making Roberts' engines.[37][39][40] In 1935, the company became a new incorporation with a new name, the Johnston Motor Co.[41][20][42]

Consulting career

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In 1914 and through World War I, Roberts worked as a consultant for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the forerunner to NASA.[5][4][6] He designed a Liberty engine at that time.[43] In 1918, Roberts and three assistants fulfilled an urgent U.S. War Department request for an aircraft engine design for a flying torpedo that was tested in Dayton.[44] He completed the design in under three days, instead of the average three months time.[44][5]

Afterwards, Roberts held a private consulting practice in Cincinnati and served as a leading freelance consulting engineer.[5][4] In 1937, he taught classes on the diesel engine with the backing of the WPA.[45] Roberts was often called to fix flawed engine designs across the United States and supplied designs to clients across North America and abroad, such as to a company in Shanghai, China.[5] He designed 131 internal combustion engines for aircraft, boats, and automobiles.[5][9]

E. W. Roberts and His Toaster Invention in 1927

Inventions

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Roberts held several patents unrelated to engine design, including inventions for an animal feeder[2], a candy-cutting apparatus[46], a gasoline-powered hammer[47], impact tool[48], high-speed electric toaster (two slices every eight seconds)[49], and a percussion tool mechanism[50]. Roberts also served as an invention developer and patent agent for other inventors.[2]

Personal life and death

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Roberts married Lena Isabelle Norton in 1896, and they had three children.[2] After her death in 1939, Roberts continued to live and work in Cincinnati, until his death on March 13, 1947 at the age of 80.[2][43][1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Engine Designer Succumbs; After Distinguished Career; Son of Civil War Surgeon". The Cincinnati Enquirer. March 14, 1947. p. 14. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Roberts, Edmund Willson". Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums. Retrieved June 28, 2025.
  3. ^ Roberts, Edmund Willson. Aëronautics. 1895. M.E. thesis, Cornell University, 1895. Cornell University Library Catalog.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Brady, Ralph (June 3, 1944). "Expert Rules Out Steam Airplane as Dream". The Cincinnati Post. p. 2. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Underwood, Paul (July 18, 1942). "Engineer Recalls Experiment with Steam-Powered Plane, Once Hiram Maxim Helper". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Cincinnati, OH. p. 16. Archived from the original on September 21, 2021. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Glassman, Don (August 20, 1926). "First Plane Hop is Described". The Cincinnati Post. p. 9. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g Mayo, Harry (September 19, 1938). "Englishman First to Take Plane Aloft; Cincinnatian His Aide". The Cincinnati Post. p. 9. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  8. ^ a b Hankins, Hobart Bishop (December 1911). "The Latest Engine Product of E. W. Roberts" (PDF). Fly. The National Aeronautics Monthly. 4 (2). Philadelphia, PA: Aero Publishing Co.: 20–22 – via Internet Archive.
  9. ^ a b c d "News of Huge Wind Tunnel Recalls Work of Cincinnati Genius who Pioneered First". The Cincinnati Enquirer. May 25, 1945. p. 11. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  10. ^ a b Knue, Paul F., ed. (October 27, 1987). "Bicentennial Capsule: Prince Hill Inventor's Ideas Soared". The Cincinnati Post. p. 10. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  11. ^ a b c d Baals, D. D.; Corliss, W. R. (1981-01-01). "Wind Tunnels of NASA". NASA Special Publications: 4–5.
  12. ^ aeroplane, Oxford Dictionaries
  13. ^ a b Fortier, Rénald (January 1, 2024). "Sorry, But No, the Wright Brothers Did Not Really Invent the Airplane". Ingenium – Canada’s Museums of Science and Innovation. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  14. ^ "Trial of Maxim's Steam Flying Machine". London: Scientific American—Engineering. September 15, 1894. Retrieved 2025-07-01 – via www.catskillarchive.com.
  15. ^ a b Wragg, D.; "Flight Before Flying", Osprey (1974).
  16. ^ a b Newspaper Enterprise Association (December 3, 1938). "Did Maxim Fly First Plane?". Ogdensburg Journal. p. 3. Retrieved July 7, 2025 – via Northern New York Library Network.
  17. ^ a b Roberts, E.W. (April 1918). "Reminiscences of Early Flight". The Journal of the Society of Automotive Engineers. 2 (4): 294–299 – via Google Books.
  18. ^ Taylor, Michael J. H. (1984). Aircraft Facts & Feats. Internet Archive. Middlesex, England: Guinness Superlatives. ISBN 978-0-85112-406-3.
  19. ^ Wright, Wilbur (September 18, 1901). "Some Aeronautical Experiments". www.wright-brothers.org. Retrieved 2025-07-01.
  20. ^ a b c d e Harmon, Mel (January 6, 1967). "Flying Very Popular Here; Pioneers Started in 1909". Sandusky Register. p. 8. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  21. ^ "News Notes". The Clyde Enterprise. September 14, 1905. p. 3. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  22. ^ "Engineering Societies" (PDF). Engineering News-Record and American Railway Journal. 39 (3). McGraw Hill Publications Company: 18. 1898. Retrieved July 9, 2025 – via Wikimedia.
  23. ^ Derr, Louis, ed. (1918). Cyclopedia of Engineering (PDF). Vol. 6. Chicago, IL: American Technical Society. Retrieved July 6, 2025.
  24. ^ "News of Huge Wind Tunnel Recalls Work of Cincinnati Genius who Pioneered First". The Cincinnati Enquirer. May 25, 1945. p. 11. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  25. ^ a b "Ohio Engineers Meeting Here: Papers of Great Importance Read by Experts". The Akron Beacon Journal. November 16, 1906. p. 14. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  26. ^ "Gas Engine Lecture". The Clyde Enterprise. July 4, 1907. p. 1. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  27. ^ "News Notes". The Clyde Enterprise. May 24, 1906. p. 3. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  28. ^ "Gives Fine Talk on Modern Topic: E. W. Roberts Discusses Aviation at Sunyendeand Club". Sandusky Register. December 2, 1911. p. 4. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  29. ^ a b "Will Move to Sandusky". The Clyde Enterprise. November 19, 1908. p. 5. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  30. ^ a b c "Roberts 4X, In-line 4 Engine | National Air and Space Museum". airandspace.si.edu. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  31. ^ a b "Largest Order Ever Placed for Marine Engines". Piqua Daily Call. November 10, 1908. p. 2. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  32. ^ Kraemer, Norma. "100th Anniversary of Flight in South Dakota". South Dakota Pilots Association. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
  33. ^ Mason, Paul B. (September 16, 1945). "Along Aviation Lanes". The Cincinnati Enquirer. p. 13. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  34. ^ "Benoist Biplane, 1911". www.earlyaviators.com. Retrieved 2025-06-29.
  35. ^ Reinhardt, Ausmus (1969). "Reinhardt Ausmus Speech on Aviation in Sandusky". ohiomemory.org. p. 7. Archived from the original on 2022-06-21. Retrieved 2025-07-06.
  36. ^ "Local News". The Clyde Enterprise. March 5, 1915. p. 8. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  37. ^ a b "Cigarette Causes $3,000 Fire Loss: Old Roberts Motor Plant Damage is Confined to Testing Room". The Sandusky Star-Journal. August 6, 1919. p. 11. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  38. ^ "Even Fiji Islanders Use Sandusky Made Motors; Unable to Fulfil Orders". Sandusky Register. May 23, 1920. p. 24. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  39. ^ "Costly Blaze; Origin Unknown". The Times Recorder. August 18, 1923. p. 1. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  40. ^ "ROBERTS". www.aeroenginesaz.com. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
  41. ^ "New Incorporations". The Piqua Daily Call. January 30, 1935. p. 10. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  42. ^ "Sandusky Listed With Pioneers in Aviation". Sandusky Register. November 24, 1947. p. 82. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  43. ^ a b "E. W. Roberts, Inventor, Dies in Hospital". The Cincinnati Post. March 14, 1947. p. 14. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  44. ^ a b Brady, Ralph (June 17, 1944). "U.S. Had Pilotless Torpedo in 1918, Engineer Reveals". The Cincinnati Post. p. 1. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
  45. ^ Brooks, Len (August 21, 1937). "Diesel Classes Held in North CIncinnati". The Cincinnati Post. p. 7. Retrieved July 8, 2025.
  46. ^ "US-1474004-A - Patent Public Search | USPTO". ppubs.uspto.gov. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  47. ^ "US-1977645-A - Patent Public Search | USPTO". ppubs.uspto.gov. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  48. ^ "US-1505493-A - Patent Public Search | USPTO". ppubs.uspto.gov. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  49. ^ "US-1691361-A - Patent Public Search | USPTO". ppubs.uspto.gov. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
  50. ^ Roberts, E. W. (1934, August 7). Percussion Tool Invention. U.S. Patent 1,969,153
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Category:1866 births Category:1947 deaths Category:American inventors Category:American mechanical engineers Category:Aviation pioneers Category:Engineers from Pennsylvania Category:Cornell University alumni

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