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Patent Model, Life Boat
From the collection of National Museum of American History. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
Joseph Francis of New York (1801–93) made a name for himself in the 1840s and 1850s manufacturing light and sturdy corrugated-iron lifeboats and other nautical gear. This 1841 patent model shows his design for a wood or metal boat fitted with airtight copper tanks. These tanks were to be charged with gas or air to provide buoyancy and, in an emergency, would work in conjunction with several holes through the bottom of the boat. When the boat started taking on water in rough seas, the holes would be opened. That action, combined with the buoyancy of the tanks, would permit drainage.
National Museum of American History’s own descriptionCredit linePatent Model, Life Boat. 1841. Francis, Joseph. National Museum of American History. CC0.
