Josef Ludvík František Ressel (in Czech) or Joseph Ludwig Franz Ressel (in German) or Josip Ressel (in Slovenian and Croatian) (June 29, 1793- October 9, 1857) was a Bohemian forest warden and the inventor of the ship's propeller. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (926x1036, 416 KB) Josef Ressel (1793–1857), Bohemian inventor of the ships propeller. ... June 29 is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 185 days remaining. ... 1793 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... October 9 is the 282nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (283rd in Leap years). ... 1857 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Bohemia This article is about the historical region in central Europe; for other uses, see Bohemia (disambiguation). ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

Ressel was born in Chrudim, Bohemia, and worked as a forest engineer in Motovun, Istria (modern-day Croatia). He worked in Kostanjevica on the Krka river (modern-day Slovenia) where he tested his ship propellers for the first time. He relocated to Trieste (modern-day Italy) where his tests were successful. He was awarded the propeller patent in 1827. He modified a small steam-powered boat Civeta by 1829 and test-drove it in the Trieste harbor at six knots before the steam conduits exploded. Because of this misfortune, the police banned further testing. Chrudim is city in eastern Bohemia, in Pardubice region of Czech Republic. ... Bohemia This article is about the historical region in central Europe; for other uses, see Bohemia (disambiguation). ... Motovun (in Italian Montona) is a town in central Istria, Croatia. ... Istria (Istra, pronounced in Croatian and Slovenian; Istria, pronounced in Italian), is the biggest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. ... There are three rivers named Krka (Latin name Korkoras): A river in Slovenia, with length circa 111 km; it is a right tributary of the river Sava near Brežice. ... Location within Italy Trieste (Latin Tergeste, Italian Trieste,German and Friulian Triest, Slovenian and Croatian Trst) is a city in northeastern Italy, capital of Friuli-Venezia Giulia region and Trieste province, with a population of 211,184 (2001). ... 1827 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1829 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

As early as 1804, the American John Fitch is credited with a screw propeller; it was unsuccessful. In 1836, the Englishman Francis Petit Smith tested a screw propeller similar to Ressel's. The first cross-Atlantic journey of a ship powered by a screw-propeller was in 1839, with Ressel's screw improved by the Swedish engineer John Ericsson. The propeller screw design stabilized in the 1880s. 1804 was a leap year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... John Fitch was born on January 21, 1743 in Hartford County, Connecticut. ... 1836 was a leap year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... 1839 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Illustration of John Ericsson John Ericsson (July 31, 1803 – March 8, 1889) was a Swedish inventor and mechanical engineer, as was his brother, Nils Ericson. ... // Events and Trends Technology Development and commercial production of electric lighting Development and commercial production of gasoline-powered automobile by Karl Benz, Gottlieb Daimler and Maybach First commercial production and sales of phonographs and phonograph recordings. ...

Among other Ressel's inventions are pneumatic post and ball and cylinder bearings. He was granted numerous patents during his life.

External links

• Comprehensive biography
• Short biography
• History of propeller inventions