Historedia
Person

James Rumsey

Events
3
Episodes
7
Years
1785–1797

Every event in Historedia whose sources name James Rumsey, with the role they cite and all of that event’s episodes. This is not a biography, and mentions are grouped by name, so two people with the same name can share this page.

Events and episodes

  1. James Rumsey water-jet boat demonstration

    1785–1787

    Role: inventor and demonstrator of the steam-powered water-jet boat

    1. 1785–1786 · Bath and Shepherdstown area, with a test at Shenandoah FallsConstruction and earlier testing of the boat

      Joseph Barnes built the hull from 1785, machinery parts were installed in December 1786, and the boat was tested at Shenandoah Falls before the public trial.

    2. December 3, 1787 · Potomac River at Shepherdstown, present-day West VirginiaSuccessful public demonstration on the Potomac

      Rumsey's steam-driven water-jet boat made a very successful public demonstration on the Potomac at Shepherdstown before local notables including Horatio Gates.

  2. James Rumsey's letter to Washington on steamboat

    1785

    Role: American mechanical engineer

    1. 1785 · Bath, VirginiaHull Work in Bath

      Work on a hull began in 1785 in Bath by Joseph Barnes, Rumsey's assistant; the source does not label the vessel a steamboat.

    2. July 1785 · Bath, VirginiaPatowmack Company Appointment

      In July 1785, Washington recommended Rumsey as superintendent of the Patowmack Company to oversee rock clearing.

  3. Patent for the Steamboat Granted to John Fitch

    1790–1797

    Role: Rival steamboat inventor in the patent battle

    1. 1790 – August 26, 1791 · United States patent law and commission proceedingsRivalry with James Rumsey and the Patent Act

      Fitch's legal dispute with James Rumsey over steamboat monopoly rights helped prompt the first Patent Act of 1790, creating the commission that judged his claim.

    2. 1791 – 1797 · France and subsequent American attemptsFrench Patent and Later Efforts

      Fitch received a French patent in 1791, left for France in 1793 with investor Aaron Vail's promised help, and returned in 1794 to make further steamboat attempts.

    3. August 26, 1791 · United States patent grant to John Fitch; issuing office not named in sourcesU.S. Patent Granted to John Fitch

      Fitch secured a U.S. patent for his steamboat on August 26, 1791, after a contest with James Rumsey over steam-powered boat invention.

Sources

  1. James Rumsey Wikipedia, revision of 2025-12-17
  2. John Fitch (inventor) Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-15