Alexander Lyman Holley (born 20 July 1832 - died 29 January 1882) was a mechanical engineer and was considered the foremost steel and plant engineer and designer of his time, especially in regard to applying research to modern steel manufacturing processes. He received 15 patents, 10 for improvements in the Bessemer process, which he purchased the rights to in 1863 and brought to the United States. He soon designed and built Bessemer plants in Troy, New York, and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He planned or was consulted on a dozen others. He chaired the first meeting of the founders of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) in the offices of the American Machinist on 16 February 1880, and is credited for establishing the intellectual boundaries of the mechanical engineering profession and ASME. He was born in Lakeville, Connecticut, and died in Brooklyn, New York. During his early 20s, Holley was a close friend of Zerah Colburn, the well-known locomotive engineer and journalist/publilsher. In 1857, the duo visited Britain and France and compiled a report for the presidents of American railroads, The Permanent Way. In 1860, the two travelled together on the maiden voyage of Isambard Kingdom Brunel's Great Eastern. Holley's most famous book, Armor, followed a visit he made to Britain in 1863 when he again met Zerah Colburn. July 20 is the 201st day (202nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 164 days remaining. ... 1832 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... January 29 is the 29th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1882 (MDCCCLXXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar. ... Mechanical engineering is the application of physical principles to the creation of useful devices, objects and machines. ... The old steel cable of a colliery winding tower Steel is a metal alloy whose major component is iron, with carbon content between 0. ... A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a person for a fixed period of time in exchange for the regulated, public disclosure of certain details of a device, method, process or composition of matter (substance) (known as an invention) which is new, inventive, and... Bessemer converter, schematic diagram The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive industrial process for the mass-production of steel from molten pig iron. ... Looking west down Broadway at downtown Troy. ... Location in Pennsylvania Coordinates: Country United States State Pennsylvania County Dauphin Incorporated 1791 Charter 1860 Mayor Stephen R. Reed (D) Area    - City 26. ... The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is a professional body, specifically an engineering society, focused on mechanical engineering. ... February 16 is the 47th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1880 (MDCCCLXXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Lakeville, Connecticut is a village in Salisbury in Litchfield County, Connecticut, on Lake Wononskopomuc. ... For other meanings, see Brooklyn (disambiguation). ... Zerah Colburn Zerah Colburn (born Saratoga, New York, January 13, 1832; died Boston, Massachusetts, April 26, 1870) engineer, journalist and publisher. ... Brunel before the launching of the Great Eastern. ... The Great Eastern was a ship designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. ...

References

• ASME History and Heritage (1980). Mechanical Engineers in America Born Prior to 1861: A Biographical Dictionary. ASME, New York. Library of Congress No. 79-57364.
• Mortimer, John. Zerah Colburn: The Spirit of Darkness Arima Publishing ISBN 184549-024-X