William Bullock (inventor)
Encyclopedia
William Bullock was an American
inventor whose 1863 invention of the web rotary printing press
helped revolutionize the printing industry due to its great speed and efficiency. A few years after his invention, Bullock was accidentally killed by his own web rotary press.
in 1813. Orphaned at an early age, he was raised by his brother. In his youth, he worked with his brother as a machinist and iron
-founder. His fascination with books led him to acquire much knowledge of mechanics
. At age 21, he was running his own machinery shop in Savannah, Georgia
. At this time, Bullock invented a shingle
-cutting machine, but his business went broke when he was unable to market it.
While in Georgia
Bullock married Angeline Kimball and had seven children with her. When his wife died in 1850, he married Angeline's sister Emily, who bore him six children.
Bullock returned to New York and designed such devices as a cotton
and hay
press, a seed
planter, and a lathe cutting machine. He also invented a grain drill, which won him a prize from the Franklin Institute
in 1849. Shortly after this, he became involved in the newspaper world, and began working as an editor for a Philadelphia newspaper, The Banner of the Union.
The paper later moved to Catskill, New York
. In 1853, Bullock began working on a hand-turned wooden printing press that had a self-feeder, an idea that laid the foundation for his later presses, one of which he designed in 1860 for the national publication Frank Leslie's Illustrated Weekly.
In 1860, Bullock moved to Pittsburgh
, and in a couple of years, perfected a printing press called the web rotary press. Richard March Hoe
had invented the rotary press in the 1840s, but Bullock's press was an improvement over Hoe's design. Bullock's press allowed for continuous large rolls of paper
to be automatically fed through the rollers, eliminating the laborious hand-feeding system of earlier presses. The press was self-adjusting, printed on both sides, folded the paper, and a sharp serrated knife
that rarely needed sharpening cut sheets with rapid precision. The press could print up to 12,000 sheets an hour; later improvements raised the speed to up to 30,000 sheets an hour.
In a bizarre accident, Bullock was killed by his own invention. On April 3, 1867, he was making adjustments to one of his new presses that was being installed for the Philadelphia Public Ledger newspaper. Bullock tried to kick a driving belt onto a pulley
. His leg was crushed when it became caught in the machine. After a few days, he developed gangrene
. On April 12, 1867, Bullock died during an operation to amputate the leg. He is buried in Union Dale Cemetery on Pittsburgh's North Side.
100,367 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improvement in Rotary Paper-Cutting Machines. "... for cutting paper from a continuous roll into sheets"
100,368 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improved Machine for Planing and Squaring the ends of Segmental Stereotype Plates "... Improved Machine for Shaving and Squaring Circular Stereotype Plates"
171,093 Dec 14, 1875 (posthumous; Filing date June 20, 1866) Improvement in Machines for Damping Paper "... useful Machine for Dampening Paper"
William Bullock (1813 – April 12, 1867) was an American
inventor whose 1863 invention of the web rotary printing press
helped revolutionize the printing industry due to its great speed and efficiency. A few years after his invention, Bullock was accidentally killed by his own web rotary press.
in 1813. Orphaned at an early age, he was raised by his brother. In his youth, he worked with his brother as a machinist and iron
-founder. His fascination with books led him to acquire much knowledge of mechanics
. At age 21, he was running his own machinery shop in Savannah, Georgia
. At this time, Bullock invented a shingle
-cutting machine, but his business went broke when he was unable to market it.
While in Georgia
Bullock married Angeline Kimball and had seven children with her. When his wife died in 1850, he married Angeline's sister Emily, who bore him six children.
Bullock returned to New York and designed such devices as a cotton
and hay
press, a seed
planter, and a lathe cutting machine. He also invented a grain drill, which won him a prize from the Franklin Institute
in 1849. Shortly after this, he became involved in the newspaper world, and began working as an editor for a Philadelphia newspaper, The Banner of the Union.
The paper later moved to Catskill, New York
. In 1853, Bullock began working on a hand-turned wooden printing press that had a self-feeder, an idea that laid the foundation for his later presses, one of which he designed in 1860 for the national publication Frank Leslie's Illustrated Weekly.
In 1860, Bullock moved to Pittsburgh
, and in a couple of years, perfected a printing press called the web rotary press. Richard March Hoe
had invented the rotary press in the 1840s, but Bullock's press was an improvement over Hoe's design. Bullock's press allowed for continuous large rolls of paper
to be automatically fed through the rollers, eliminating the laborious hand-feeding system of earlier presses. The press was self-adjusting, printed on both sides, folded the paper, and a sharp serrated knife
that rarely needed sharpening cut sheets with rapid precision. The press could print up to 12,000 sheets an hour; later improvements raised the speed to up to 30,000 sheets an hour.
In a bizarre accident, Bullock was killed by his own invention. On April 3, 1867, he was making adjustments to one of his new presses that was being installed for the Philadelphia Public Ledger newspaper. Bullock tried to kick a driving belt onto a pulley
. His leg was crushed when it became caught in the machine. After a few days, he developed gangrene
. On April 12, 1867, Bullock died during an operation to amputate the leg. He is buried in Union Dale Cemetery on Pittsburgh's North Side.
100,367 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improvement in Rotary Paper-Cutting Machines. "... for cutting paper from a continuous roll into sheets"
100,368 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improved Machine for Planing and Squaring the ends of Segmental Stereotype Plates "... Improved Machine for Shaving and Squaring Circular Stereotype Plates"
171,093 Dec 14, 1875 (posthumous; Filing date June 20, 1866) Improvement in Machines for Damping Paper "... useful Machine for Dampening Paper"
William Bullock (1813 – April 12, 1867) was an American
inventor whose 1863 invention of the web rotary printing press
helped revolutionize the printing industry due to its great speed and efficiency. A few years after his invention, Bullock was accidentally killed by his own web rotary press.
in 1813. Orphaned at an early age, he was raised by his brother. In his youth, he worked with his brother as a machinist and iron
-founder. His fascination with books led him to acquire much knowledge of mechanics
. At age 21, he was running his own machinery shop in Savannah, Georgia
. At this time, Bullock invented a shingle
-cutting machine, but his business went broke when he was unable to market it.
While in Georgia
Bullock married Angeline Kimball and had seven children with her. When his wife died in 1850, he married Angeline's sister Emily, who bore him six children.
Bullock returned to New York and designed such devices as a cotton
and hay
press, a seed
planter, and a lathe cutting machine. He also invented a grain drill, which won him a prize from the Franklin Institute
in 1849. Shortly after this, he became involved in the newspaper world, and began working as an editor for a Philadelphia newspaper, The Banner of the Union.
The paper later moved to Catskill, New York
. In 1853, Bullock began working on a hand-turned wooden printing press that had a self-feeder, an idea that laid the foundation for his later presses, one of which he designed in 1860 for the national publication Frank Leslie's Illustrated Weekly.
In 1860, Bullock moved to Pittsburgh
, and in a couple of years, perfected a printing press called the web rotary press. Richard March Hoe
had invented the rotary press in the 1840s, but Bullock's press was an improvement over Hoe's design. Bullock's press allowed for continuous large rolls of paper
to be automatically fed through the rollers, eliminating the laborious hand-feeding system of earlier presses. The press was self-adjusting, printed on both sides, folded the paper, and a sharp serrated knife
that rarely needed sharpening cut sheets with rapid precision. The press could print up to 12,000 sheets an hour; later improvements raised the speed to up to 30,000 sheets an hour.
In a bizarre accident, Bullock was killed by his own invention. On April 3, 1867, he was making adjustments to one of his new presses that was being installed for the Philadelphia Public Ledger newspaper. Bullock tried to kick a driving belt onto a pulley
. His leg was crushed when it became caught in the machine. After a few days, he developed gangrene
. On April 12, 1867, Bullock died during an operation to amputate the leg. He is buried in Union Dale Cemetery on Pittsburgh's North Side.
100,367 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improvement in Rotary Paper-Cutting Machines. "... for cutting paper from a continuous roll into sheets"
100,368 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improved Machine for Planing and Squaring the ends of Segmental Stereotype Plates "... Improved Machine for Shaving and Squaring Circular Stereotype Plates"
171,093 Dec 14, 1875 (posthumous; Filing date June 20, 1866) Improvement in Machines for Damping Paper "... useful Machine for Dampening Paper"
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
inventor whose 1863 invention of the web rotary printing press
Rotary printing press
A rotary printing press is a printing press in which the images to be printed are curved around a cylinder. Printing can be done on large number of substrates, including paper, cardboard, and plastic. Substrates can be sheet feed or unwound on a continuous roll through the press to be printed and...
helped revolutionize the printing industry due to its great speed and efficiency. A few years after his invention, Bullock was accidentally killed by his own web rotary press.
Biography
William Bullock was born in Greenville, New YorkGreenville (town), New York
Greenville is a town on the northern border of Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 3,739 at the 2010 census.- History :...
in 1813. Orphaned at an early age, he was raised by his brother. In his youth, he worked with his brother as a machinist and iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
-founder. His fascination with books led him to acquire much knowledge of mechanics
Mechanics
Mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behavior of physical bodies when subjected to forces or displacements, and the subsequent effects of the bodies on their environment....
. At age 21, he was running his own machinery shop in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
. At this time, Bullock invented a shingle
Roof shingle
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat rectangular shapes laid in rows from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive higher row overlapping the joints in the row below...
-cutting machine, but his business went broke when he was unable to market it.
While in Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
Bullock married Angeline Kimball and had seven children with her. When his wife died in 1850, he married Angeline's sister Emily, who bore him six children.
Bullock returned to New York and designed such devices as a cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
and hay
Hay
Hay is grass, legumes or other herbaceous plants that have been cut, dried, and stored for use as animal fodder, particularly for grazing livestock such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep. Hay is also fed to pets such as rabbits and guinea pigs...
press, a seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
planter, and a lathe cutting machine. He also invented a grain drill, which won him a prize from the Franklin Institute
Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest centers of science education and development in the United States, dating to 1824. The Institute also houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.-History:On February 5, 1824, Samuel Vaughn Merrick and...
in 1849. Shortly after this, he became involved in the newspaper world, and began working as an editor for a Philadelphia newspaper, The Banner of the Union.
The paper later moved to Catskill, New York
Catskill (town), New York
Catskill is a town in the southeast part of Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 11,775 at the 2010 census. The western part of the town is in the Catskill Park....
. In 1853, Bullock began working on a hand-turned wooden printing press that had a self-feeder, an idea that laid the foundation for his later presses, one of which he designed in 1860 for the national publication Frank Leslie's Illustrated Weekly.
In 1860, Bullock moved to Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, and in a couple of years, perfected a printing press called the web rotary press. Richard March Hoe
Richard March Hoe
Richard March Hoe , was an American inventor who designed an improved printing press.-Biography:Hoe was born in New York City. He was the son of Robert Hoe , an English-born American mechanic who, with his brothers-in-law, Peter and Matthew Smith, established a steam-run manufactory of printing...
had invented the rotary press in the 1840s, but Bullock's press was an improvement over Hoe's design. Bullock's press allowed for continuous large rolls of paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
to be automatically fed through the rollers, eliminating the laborious hand-feeding system of earlier presses. The press was self-adjusting, printed on both sides, folded the paper, and a sharp serrated knife
Knife
A knife is a cutting tool with an exposed cutting edge or blade, hand-held or otherwise, with or without a handle. Knives were used at least two-and-a-half million years ago, as evidenced by the Oldowan tools...
that rarely needed sharpening cut sheets with rapid precision. The press could print up to 12,000 sheets an hour; later improvements raised the speed to up to 30,000 sheets an hour.
In a bizarre accident, Bullock was killed by his own invention. On April 3, 1867, he was making adjustments to one of his new presses that was being installed for the Philadelphia Public Ledger newspaper. Bullock tried to kick a driving belt onto a pulley
Pulley
A pulley, also called a sheave or a drum, is a mechanism composed of a wheel on an axle or shaft that may have a groove between two flanges around its circumference. A rope, cable, belt, or chain usually runs over the wheel and inside the groove, if present...
. His leg was crushed when it became caught in the machine. After a few days, he developed gangrene
Gangrene
Gangrene is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition that arises when a considerable mass of body tissue dies . This may occur after an injury or infection, or in people suffering from any chronic health problem affecting blood circulation. The primary cause of gangrene is reduced blood...
. On April 12, 1867, Bullock died during an operation to amputate the leg. He is buried in Union Dale Cemetery on Pittsburgh's North Side.
U.S. Patents
61,996 February 12, 1867 Improvement in Printing Presses, for discharging sheets. "... removing of sheets of printed paper from rotary presses and piling them rapidly."100,367 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improvement in Rotary Paper-Cutting Machines. "... for cutting paper from a continuous roll into sheets"
100,368 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improved Machine for Planing and Squaring the ends of Segmental Stereotype Plates "... Improved Machine for Shaving and Squaring Circular Stereotype Plates"
171,093 Dec 14, 1875 (posthumous; Filing date June 20, 1866) Improvement in Machines for Damping Paper "... useful Machine for Dampening Paper"
William Bullock (1813 – April 12, 1867) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
inventor whose 1863 invention of the web rotary printing press
Rotary printing press
A rotary printing press is a printing press in which the images to be printed are curved around a cylinder. Printing can be done on large number of substrates, including paper, cardboard, and plastic. Substrates can be sheet feed or unwound on a continuous roll through the press to be printed and...
helped revolutionize the printing industry due to its great speed and efficiency. A few years after his invention, Bullock was accidentally killed by his own web rotary press.
Biography
William Bullock was born in Greenville, New YorkGreenville (town), New York
Greenville is a town on the northern border of Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 3,739 at the 2010 census.- History :...
in 1813. Orphaned at an early age, he was raised by his brother. In his youth, he worked with his brother as a machinist and iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
-founder. His fascination with books led him to acquire much knowledge of mechanics
Mechanics
Mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behavior of physical bodies when subjected to forces or displacements, and the subsequent effects of the bodies on their environment....
. At age 21, he was running his own machinery shop in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
. At this time, Bullock invented a shingle
Roof shingle
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat rectangular shapes laid in rows from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive higher row overlapping the joints in the row below...
-cutting machine, but his business went broke when he was unable to market it.
While in Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
Bullock married Angeline Kimball and had seven children with her. When his wife died in 1850, he married Angeline's sister Emily, who bore him six children.
Bullock returned to New York and designed such devices as a cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
and hay
Hay
Hay is grass, legumes or other herbaceous plants that have been cut, dried, and stored for use as animal fodder, particularly for grazing livestock such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep. Hay is also fed to pets such as rabbits and guinea pigs...
press, a seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
planter, and a lathe cutting machine. He also invented a grain drill, which won him a prize from the Franklin Institute
Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest centers of science education and development in the United States, dating to 1824. The Institute also houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.-History:On February 5, 1824, Samuel Vaughn Merrick and...
in 1849. Shortly after this, he became involved in the newspaper world, and began working as an editor for a Philadelphia newspaper, The Banner of the Union.
The paper later moved to Catskill, New York
Catskill (town), New York
Catskill is a town in the southeast part of Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 11,775 at the 2010 census. The western part of the town is in the Catskill Park....
. In 1853, Bullock began working on a hand-turned wooden printing press that had a self-feeder, an idea that laid the foundation for his later presses, one of which he designed in 1860 for the national publication Frank Leslie's Illustrated Weekly.
In 1860, Bullock moved to Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, and in a couple of years, perfected a printing press called the web rotary press. Richard March Hoe
Richard March Hoe
Richard March Hoe , was an American inventor who designed an improved printing press.-Biography:Hoe was born in New York City. He was the son of Robert Hoe , an English-born American mechanic who, with his brothers-in-law, Peter and Matthew Smith, established a steam-run manufactory of printing...
had invented the rotary press in the 1840s, but Bullock's press was an improvement over Hoe's design. Bullock's press allowed for continuous large rolls of paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
to be automatically fed through the rollers, eliminating the laborious hand-feeding system of earlier presses. The press was self-adjusting, printed on both sides, folded the paper, and a sharp serrated knife
Knife
A knife is a cutting tool with an exposed cutting edge or blade, hand-held or otherwise, with or without a handle. Knives were used at least two-and-a-half million years ago, as evidenced by the Oldowan tools...
that rarely needed sharpening cut sheets with rapid precision. The press could print up to 12,000 sheets an hour; later improvements raised the speed to up to 30,000 sheets an hour.
In a bizarre accident, Bullock was killed by his own invention. On April 3, 1867, he was making adjustments to one of his new presses that was being installed for the Philadelphia Public Ledger newspaper. Bullock tried to kick a driving belt onto a pulley
Pulley
A pulley, also called a sheave or a drum, is a mechanism composed of a wheel on an axle or shaft that may have a groove between two flanges around its circumference. A rope, cable, belt, or chain usually runs over the wheel and inside the groove, if present...
. His leg was crushed when it became caught in the machine. After a few days, he developed gangrene
Gangrene
Gangrene is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition that arises when a considerable mass of body tissue dies . This may occur after an injury or infection, or in people suffering from any chronic health problem affecting blood circulation. The primary cause of gangrene is reduced blood...
. On April 12, 1867, Bullock died during an operation to amputate the leg. He is buried in Union Dale Cemetery on Pittsburgh's North Side.
U.S. Patents
61,996 February 12, 1867 Improvement in Printing Presses, for discharging sheets. "... removing of sheets of printed paper from rotary presses and piling them rapidly."100,367 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improvement in Rotary Paper-Cutting Machines. "... for cutting paper from a continuous roll into sheets"
100,368 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improved Machine for Planing and Squaring the ends of Segmental Stereotype Plates "... Improved Machine for Shaving and Squaring Circular Stereotype Plates"
171,093 Dec 14, 1875 (posthumous; Filing date June 20, 1866) Improvement in Machines for Damping Paper "... useful Machine for Dampening Paper"
William Bullock (1813 – April 12, 1867) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
inventor whose 1863 invention of the web rotary printing press
Rotary printing press
A rotary printing press is a printing press in which the images to be printed are curved around a cylinder. Printing can be done on large number of substrates, including paper, cardboard, and plastic. Substrates can be sheet feed or unwound on a continuous roll through the press to be printed and...
helped revolutionize the printing industry due to its great speed and efficiency. A few years after his invention, Bullock was accidentally killed by his own web rotary press.
Biography
William Bullock was born in Greenville, New YorkGreenville (town), New York
Greenville is a town on the northern border of Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 3,739 at the 2010 census.- History :...
in 1813. Orphaned at an early age, he was raised by his brother. In his youth, he worked with his brother as a machinist and iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
-founder. His fascination with books led him to acquire much knowledge of mechanics
Mechanics
Mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behavior of physical bodies when subjected to forces or displacements, and the subsequent effects of the bodies on their environment....
. At age 21, he was running his own machinery shop in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
. At this time, Bullock invented a shingle
Roof shingle
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are typically flat rectangular shapes laid in rows from the bottom edge of the roof up, with each successive higher row overlapping the joints in the row below...
-cutting machine, but his business went broke when he was unable to market it.
While in Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
Bullock married Angeline Kimball and had seven children with her. When his wife died in 1850, he married Angeline's sister Emily, who bore him six children.
Bullock returned to New York and designed such devices as a cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
and hay
Hay
Hay is grass, legumes or other herbaceous plants that have been cut, dried, and stored for use as animal fodder, particularly for grazing livestock such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep. Hay is also fed to pets such as rabbits and guinea pigs...
press, a seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
planter, and a lathe cutting machine. He also invented a grain drill, which won him a prize from the Franklin Institute
Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest centers of science education and development in the United States, dating to 1824. The Institute also houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.-History:On February 5, 1824, Samuel Vaughn Merrick and...
in 1849. Shortly after this, he became involved in the newspaper world, and began working as an editor for a Philadelphia newspaper, The Banner of the Union.
The paper later moved to Catskill, New York
Catskill (town), New York
Catskill is a town in the southeast part of Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 11,775 at the 2010 census. The western part of the town is in the Catskill Park....
. In 1853, Bullock began working on a hand-turned wooden printing press that had a self-feeder, an idea that laid the foundation for his later presses, one of which he designed in 1860 for the national publication Frank Leslie's Illustrated Weekly.
In 1860, Bullock moved to Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, and in a couple of years, perfected a printing press called the web rotary press. Richard March Hoe
Richard March Hoe
Richard March Hoe , was an American inventor who designed an improved printing press.-Biography:Hoe was born in New York City. He was the son of Robert Hoe , an English-born American mechanic who, with his brothers-in-law, Peter and Matthew Smith, established a steam-run manufactory of printing...
had invented the rotary press in the 1840s, but Bullock's press was an improvement over Hoe's design. Bullock's press allowed for continuous large rolls of paper
Paper
Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
to be automatically fed through the rollers, eliminating the laborious hand-feeding system of earlier presses. The press was self-adjusting, printed on both sides, folded the paper, and a sharp serrated knife
Knife
A knife is a cutting tool with an exposed cutting edge or blade, hand-held or otherwise, with or without a handle. Knives were used at least two-and-a-half million years ago, as evidenced by the Oldowan tools...
that rarely needed sharpening cut sheets with rapid precision. The press could print up to 12,000 sheets an hour; later improvements raised the speed to up to 30,000 sheets an hour.
In a bizarre accident, Bullock was killed by his own invention. On April 3, 1867, he was making adjustments to one of his new presses that was being installed for the Philadelphia Public Ledger newspaper. Bullock tried to kick a driving belt onto a pulley
Pulley
A pulley, also called a sheave or a drum, is a mechanism composed of a wheel on an axle or shaft that may have a groove between two flanges around its circumference. A rope, cable, belt, or chain usually runs over the wheel and inside the groove, if present...
. His leg was crushed when it became caught in the machine. After a few days, he developed gangrene
Gangrene
Gangrene is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition that arises when a considerable mass of body tissue dies . This may occur after an injury or infection, or in people suffering from any chronic health problem affecting blood circulation. The primary cause of gangrene is reduced blood...
. On April 12, 1867, Bullock died during an operation to amputate the leg. He is buried in Union Dale Cemetery on Pittsburgh's North Side.
U.S. Patents
61,996 February 12, 1867 Improvement in Printing Presses, for discharging sheets. "... removing of sheets of printed paper from rotary presses and piling them rapidly."100,367 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improvement in Rotary Paper-Cutting Machines. "... for cutting paper from a continuous roll into sheets"
100,368 March 1, 1870 (posthumous) Improved Machine for Planing and Squaring the ends of Segmental Stereotype Plates "... Improved Machine for Shaving and Squaring Circular Stereotype Plates"
171,093 Dec 14, 1875 (posthumous; Filing date June 20, 1866) Improvement in Machines for Damping Paper "... useful Machine for Dampening Paper"