Benjamin Dearborn
Encyclopedia
Benjamin Dearborn was a printer and mechanical inventor in Portsmouth, New Hampshire
and Boston
, Massachusetts
in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His inventions include the gold standard balance, spring scale
, grist mill, candlestick, ballot box, perspective drawing machine, letter-press, "musical board for the instruction of the blind," thermoscope, vibrating steelyard balance
, and perpendicular lift.
He trained as a printer with Daniel Fowle
in Portsmouth. In May 1776, he became the publisher of the Freeman's Journal, or New Hampshire Gazette
. While in Portsmouth he also ran a school; organized an "intelligence office;" sold Beverly Corduroy, India goods, real estate; and attempted a singing group.
, Boston, where he continued inventing. Along with Paul Revere
, Jeremy Belknap
and others, he founded "The Committee on Machines" of the Massachusetts Charitable Fire Society in 1794. In 1797 Dearborn advertised as a surveyor and planner.
In 1818 he "invented a mode of propelling wheel carriages by steam, well calculated for the conveyance of the mail and any number of passengers, and which will be perfectly secure from robbers on the highway." He exhibited a "perpetual diary" in the first exhibition of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association
in 1837.
He was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
, the American Philosophical Society
, and Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association; and a benefactor of the Boston Dispensary
.
Dearborn died on February 22, 1838, in Boston. His children included John M. Dearborn, the engraver Nathaniel Dearborn
, and Fanny Dearborn Hanman.
Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire in the United States. It is the largest city but only the fourth-largest community in the county, with a population of 21,233 at the 2010 census...
and Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His inventions include the gold standard balance, spring scale
Spring scale
The spring scale apparatus is simply a spring fixed at one end with a hook to attach an object at the other. It works by Hooke's Law, which states that the force needed to extend a spring is proportional to the distance that spring is extended from its rest position...
, grist mill, candlestick, ballot box, perspective drawing machine, letter-press, "musical board for the instruction of the blind," thermoscope, vibrating steelyard balance
Steelyard balance
A steelyard balance or steelyard is a straight-beam balance with arms of unequal length. It incorporates a counterweight which slides along the calibrated longer arm to counterbalance the load and indicate its weight...
, and perpendicular lift.
Brief biography
Portsmouth 1754-ca.1791
Dearborn was born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to Ruth Rogers (d.1791) and Benjamin Dearborn (1725-1755), a Harvard-educated doctor and descendant of Cornelius Van Ness Dearborn.He trained as a printer with Daniel Fowle
Daniel Fowle (printer)
Daniel Fowle was an American printer before and during the American Revolution, and the founder of The New Hampshire Gazette. Fowle, a native of Boston, Massachusetts, was an active printer in the city beginning in 1740...
in Portsmouth. In May 1776, he became the publisher of the Freeman's Journal, or New Hampshire Gazette
The New Hampshire Gazette
The New Hampshire Gazette is a non-profit, alternative, bi-weekly newspaper published in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Its editors claim that the paper, published on-and-off in one form or another since 1756, is America's oldest newspaper and has trademarked the phrase "The Nation's Oldest...
. While in Portsmouth he also ran a school; organized an "intelligence office;" sold Beverly Corduroy, India goods, real estate; and attempted a singing group.
Boston ca.1791-1838
In the early 1790s he moved to Milk StreetMilk Street
Milk Street is a street in the financial district of Boston, Massachusetts.Milk Street was one of Boston's earliest highways. The name "Milk Street" was given to the street in 1708 due to the milk market at the location...
, Boston, where he continued inventing. Along with Paul Revere
Paul Revere
Paul Revere was an American silversmith and a patriot in the American Revolution. He is most famous for alerting Colonial militia of approaching British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord, as dramatized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem, Paul Revere's Ride...
, Jeremy Belknap
Jeremy Belknap
Jeremy Belknap was an American clergyman and historian. His great achievement was the "History of New Hampshire", published in three volumes between 1784 and 1792. This work is the first modern history written by an American, embodying a new rigor in research, annotation, and reporting.Jeremy was...
and others, he founded "The Committee on Machines" of the Massachusetts Charitable Fire Society in 1794. In 1797 Dearborn advertised as a surveyor and planner.
In 1818 he "invented a mode of propelling wheel carriages by steam, well calculated for the conveyance of the mail and any number of passengers, and which will be perfectly secure from robbers on the highway." He exhibited a "perpetual diary" in the first exhibition of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association
Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association
The Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association of Boston, Massachusetts, was "formed for the sole purposes of promoting the mechanic arts and extending the practice of benevolence." Founding members included Paul Revere, Benjamin Russell, and others...
in 1837.
He was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
, the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
, and Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association; and a benefactor of the Boston Dispensary
Boston Dispensary
The Boston Dispensary or Boston Medical Dispensary provided for "medical relief of the poor" in Boston, Massachusetts, from the late 18th century through the mid-20th century...
.
Dearborn died on February 22, 1838, in Boston. His children included John M. Dearborn, the engraver Nathaniel Dearborn
Nathaniel Dearborn
Nathaniel Dearborn was an engraver in 19th-century Boston, Massachusetts.-Brief biography:Dearborn was born in New England in 1786 to inventor Benjamin Dearborn. Siblings included John M...
, and Fanny Dearborn Hanman.
Works by Dearborn
- The pupil's guide. Being a collection of the most useful rules in arithmetic. Portsmouth, N.H., 1782.
- A Description of a Pump-Engine, or an Apparatus to Be Added to a Common Pump. Memoirs of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Vol. 1, (1783), pp. 520-522.
- A scheme, for reducing the science of music to a more simple state: and to bring all its characters within the compass of a common fount of printing-types; especially calculated for the convenience of learners. Portsmouth New-Hampshire, 1785.
- The Columbian grammar : or, An essay for reducing a grammatical knowledge of the English language to a degree of simplicity which will render it easy for the instructor to teach ... Accompanied with notes, critical and explanatory. Boston: Printed by Samuel Hall, for the Author, 1795.
- The patent balance compared with other instruments for weighing. Philadelphia: Printed by Robert Cochran, 1803.
- Dearborn's system for weighing with ease, dispatch, and precision : purchased for half the cost, and used with half the labor, of scales and weights. Boston, 1804.
- Description of the manner of using Dearborn's Facility for casting interest. Boston: Gilbert & DeanGilbert & DeanGilbert & Dean was a banking and publishing firm in Boston, Massachusetts, run by Samuel Gilbert and Thomas Dean in the early 19th-century...
, 1805. - Remarks on the Construction of the Common Scale-Beam, with a Description of the New Gold Standard Beam, Invented by the Author. Memoirs of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Vol. 3, No. 1 (1809), pp. 40-50.
- Directions for using the gold standard balance invented by Benjamin Dearborn of Boston, Massachusetts. Boston, 1817.
- A lenient system for adjusting demands and collecting debts without imprisonment : uniting justice with clemency in coercive measures, for stimulating debtors to fulfil their contracts. Boston: John H. Eastburn, 1827.
- Singularity. Boston: B. Dearborn, 1830.