Oliver Evans

Who was Oliver Evans?

Oliver Evans was an American inventor, engineer and businessman. A pioneer in the fields automation, materials handling and steam power; Evans was one of the most prolific and influential inventors in the early years of the United States who left behind a long series of accomplishments, from designing the first fully automated industrial process, to building the first high-pressure steam engine and first automobile in America.

Born in Newport, Delaware to a family of Welsh farmers, Evans received little formal education and in his mid-teens was apprenticed to a wheelwright. An autodidact, Evans' early career was driven by finding efficiencies, and his first invention was a machine for making teeth for wool cards. Going into business with his brothers, he then worked for over a decade designing, building and perfecting an automated mill. In doing so Evans designed a continuous process of manufacturing that did not require human labor, a novel concept that would prove critical to the industrial revolution and the development of mass production.

Later in life Evans turned his attention to steam power, and built the first high-pressure steam engine in the United States in 1801, developing his design independently of Richard Trevithick, who had built the first in the world just over a year earlier. Evans was a driving force in the development and adoption of high-pressure steam engines in the United States, particularly in manufacturing and steamboats, and his workshops in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh became leading suppliers. Evans had dreamed of building a steam-powered wagon as early as 1789, and would eventually construct and run one in 1805. Known as the Oruktor Amphibolos, it was the first automobile in the United States and the world's first amphibious vehicle, though it was too primitive and inefficient to be a success as either.