April 08, 2019
Seminar to look at steamship's historic transatlantic crossing
There once was a time that the idea of crossing the Atlantic Ocean on “steamship” was met with fear and skepticism. An author and historian will take the audience back in time and explain these concepts, as well as how chemistry helped overcome them, during a presentation on Tuesday.
The seminar by John Laurence Busch will examine the historic transatlantic crossing by a steamship nearly 200 years ago and the design for the vessel that accomplished the feat.
Busch will present “Chemists Presentation: Building the First ‘Steamship’ in History” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in the J.W. Neckers Building, Room 240. The Southern Illinois section of the American Chemical Society, along with the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry are hosting the lecture.
The lecture is free and open to the public.
Busch will attempt to “recalibrate your mind” on the subject, exploring the context and challenges of this engineering and scientific challenge. His presentation will draw upon his research of historical records in libraries from Portland, Maine to Savannah, Georgia and from across the Atlantic Ocean to the far reaches of Europe. It also will explain the chemical rationale behind Capt. Moses Rogers’ innovative design for the vessel.
The research material in the presentation was the basis for Busch’s acclaimed 2010 book “Steam Coffin: Captain Moses Rogers and the Steamship Savannah Break the Barrier.” Copies of the book will be available for purchase at the presentation.
The book has received widespread acclamation and praise, including positive reviews from more than two dozen magazines and academic journals based in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.
Busch will discuss why the idea of the first steamship crossing of the Atlantic Ocean was met with skepticism and fear, along with and Rogers’ chemical rationale and design for the vessel. The SS Savannah was built in 1818 and sailed largely under sail power from the United States to Europe from May to June 1819. The ship was converted back to a sailing ship after returning to Europe and later wrecked off Long Island in 1821.
For more information, contact Gary Kinsel at gkinsel@chem.siu.edu or 453-6482.