Nicholas Roosevelt (inventor) 74-gun ships. In 1797, with Robert R. Livingston and John Stevens, he agreed to build a boat on joint account, for which the engines were to be constructed by Roosevelt, and the propelling agency was to be that planned by Livingston. The experiment failed, the speed attained being only equivalent to about in still water. On September 6, 1798, Roosevelt described and earnestly recommended to Livingston a vertical wheel, which is the first practical suggestion of the combination that made steam navigation a commercial success, although four years later Robert Fulton believed that chains and floats were alone to be
Alexander Bonner Latta practical steam fire engine that they were using successfully to put out fires. The Cincinnati fire department officially became the first paid company of firemen. The city ordered another of Latta's practical steam fire engines in 1854 and it was named "Citizen's Gift", since the money to purchase it came from the citizens of Cincinnati. Boston was the next to adopt Latta's practical steam fire engine, followed by New York City, and then other cities. The steam fire engine "Uncle Joe Ross" was demonstrated in a test in 1855 when it exploded. This was the first steam fire engine explosion.