Benjamin Huntsman

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Set of figures in honor of Huntsman

Benjamin Huntsman (born June 4, 1704 ; † June 20, 1776 ) was an English inventor, metal caster and manufacturer of cast steel , cast steel , crucible steel , cast steel and deep- cast steel .

Life

Huntsman was the third son of a Quaker farming family in Epworth , Lincolnshire . His parents were Germans who had immigrated just a few years earlier .

Act

Huntsman started his business as a watchmaker, locksmith and toolmaker in Doncaster . His reputation also allowed him to practice as a doctor in an experimental manner and he was also consulted as an ophthalmologist.

Huntsman experimented with making steel, first in Doncaster. In 1740 he moved to Handsworth near Sheffield . Eventually, after much experimentation, Huntsman was able to make satisfactory cast steel in clay pots or crucibles each containing about 34 pounds of voided steel. A flux was added, they were covered and coke was heated for about three hours . The molten steel was then poured into molds and the crucibles reused. The local cutlery manufacturers refused to buy this steel because it was harder than the German steel they were used to. For a long time, Huntsman exported all of its production to France.

The growing competition from French cutlery made from Huntsman's cast steel alarmed the Sheffield cutlery manufacturers, who were forced to use it for self-protection after attempts to have steel exports banned by the British government. Huntsman hadn't patented its manufacturing process, but its secret was revealed by a Sheffield metal caster named Walker. According to legend, Walker entered Huntsman's workshop disguised as a starving beggar who asked for a place to sleep by the fire for the night.

In 1770 his company moved to Attercliffe , where it prospered for another six years. Benjamin Huntsman died in 1776, and his son William Huntsman (1733-1809) took over the business.

Post fame

In Sheffield's Northern General Hospital, one of the original main buildings is named after him, and in the city center a Wetherspoons pub is called The Benjamin Huntsman . In Sheffield's Meadowhall Shopping Center, there is a group of three cast bronze figures on display.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Samuel Smiles : Industrial Biography. Iron Workers and Tool Makers. New edition. J. Murray, London 1879, p. 99.
  2. ^ Samuel Smiles: Industrial Biography. Iron Workers and Tool Makers. New edition. J. Murray, London 1879, p. 103.
  3. ↑ Huntsman, Benjamin
  4. ^ Sheffield Pub Guide , accessed January 2, 2013

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Huntsman, Benjamin
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English inventor, metal caster and manufacturer of cast steel
DATE OF BIRTH June 4, 1704
DATE OF DEATH June 20, 1776