Tertiary sourceDocument1885-1900

Watt, James (1736-1819), Dictionary of National Biography

1885-1900

A reference biography of James Watt published in the Dictionary of National Biography between 1885 and 1900.

A standard reference biography summarising Watt's life, family, and career for later generations.

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About this source

What it is

This is an entry on James Watt from the Dictionary of National Biography, a major British reference work published between 1885 and 1900. It covers his birth in Greenock in 1736, his family background, and his career as an engineer.

Why it matters

Written long after Watt's death, this entry reflects how Victorian scholars researched and summarised his life using earlier records. It is a useful tool for understanding the accepted historical facts about Watt, though it is a secondary account rather than Watt's own words.

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Printed first page of Watt's Specification, patent No. 913 dated A.D. 1769, headed Steam Engines, &c., with a royal coat of arms above. The text begins 'To all to whom these presents shall come, I, James Watt, of Glasgow, in Scotland, Merchant, send greeting.'

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James Watt Patent No. 913

James Watt · 1769 (reprinted 1855)

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Watt's First Condenser

James Watt · c. 1765

A dark metal and wood model steam engine in a glass case on a white pedestal. It has a tall cylinder with a funnel-shaped top, a rocking beam across the top frame, and a cylinder with a piston and a wooden base frame.

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Model Newcomen Engine Repaired by James Watt

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Interior of a cluttered 18th-century style workshop with a wooden workbench, a large iron lathe-like machine, shelves of white ceramic jars and stoneware, plaster busts and casts, and hanging chains and a beam overhead. A window is at the left.

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James Watt's Workshop

Interior of a museum showing the Smethwick Engine: a large dark cylinder with a steam pipe and valve rises beside a steel walkway. Above, wooden beams and a large iron beam structure stand. In the background, a red-spoked flywheel engine sits on a green base.

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Smethwick Engine

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