Harper's Encyclopedia of United States History
Benson Lossing, Ed.

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Rumsey, James 1743-1792

Inventor; born in Cecil county, Md., in 1743. As early as 1784 he propelled a boat on the Potomac by machinery, and in 1786 he propelled one by steam on the same river, and obtained a patent for his discovery and invention from Virginia in 1787. A Rumsey Society, of which Franklin was a member, was formed in Philadelphia to aid him. He went to London, where a similar association was formed, and a boat and machinery were built for him. He obtained patents in Great Britain, France, and Holland. He made a successful experiment on the Thames in 1792, but before he could complete his invention he died in London, Dec. 23, 1792. His agency in “giving to the world the benefit of the steamboat” was acknowledged and appreciated by the Kentucky legislature, which, in 1839, presented a gold medal to his son in token of such acknowledgment.