Francis A. Pratt
Encyclopedia
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
mechanical engineer, inventor, and co-founder of Pratt & Whitney
Pratt & Whitney Measurement Systems
Pratt & Whitney Measurement Systems is a multinational corporation that specializes in producing high-precision measuring instruments and systems.-History:...
.
Pratt was born in Peru, New York
Peru, New York
Peru is a town in Clinton County in the U.S. state of New York. The population was 6,998 at the 2010 census. The town was named Peru because its mountainous nature suggested that country....
. In the early 1850s, he designed a milling machine
Milling machine
A milling machine is a machine tool used to machine solid materials. Milling machines are often classed in two basic forms, horizontal and vertical, which refers to the orientation of the main spindle. Both types range in size from small, bench-mounted devices to room-sized machines...
for George S. Lincoln & Company of Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
, which became the Lincoln miller, in some ways perhaps the most important American machine tool
Machine tool
A machine tool is a machine, typically powered other than by human muscle , used to make manufactured parts in various ways that include cutting or certain other kinds of deformation...
of the late 19th century. Over 150,000 machines were built on this form factor (by many firms).
With Amos Whitney
Amos Whitney
Amos Whitney was a mechanical engineer and Connecticut inventor.Born in Biddeford, Maine, in 1860 he partnered with Francis Pratt to organize the Pratt & Whitney company to manufacture machine tools, tools for the makers of sewing machines, and gun making machinery for use by the Union Army...
he organized Pratt & Whitney
Pratt & Whitney
Pratt & Whitney is a U.S.-based aerospace manufacturer with global service operations. It is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation . Pratt & Whitney's aircraft engines are widely used in both civil aviation and military aviation. Its headquarters are in East Hartford, Connecticut, USA...
in 1860 to manufacture machine tools, tools for the makers of sewing machines, and gun making machinery for use by the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. He is credited with being first to permit production of fine gear work. Pratt promoted interchangeable parts
Interchangeable parts
Interchangeable parts are parts that are, for practical purposes, identical. They are made to specifications that ensure that they are so nearly identical that they will fit into any device of the same type. One such part can freely replace another, without any custom fitting...
and the adoption of a standard system for gages for the United States and Europe. Among several machine-tool patents, his most important was for planing metal granted on July 28, 1869.
He died in Hartford, Connecticut.
