Capital and Steam Power, 1750-1800; with a bibliography and introduction by W H Chaloner

Notes:

First published 1923. Second edition reprinted 2006. Scholarly account of the role of steam power in the late 18th century economy based on the archives of Boulton & Watt which are used here by an historian for the first time since Samuel Smiles in 1865. Much about Boulton & Watt and largely about the accumulation of capital based on the harnessing of steam power for the service of industry. However Lord's conclusions have been much undermined by more recent research - see J Kanefsky & J Robey, 'Steam engines in 18th century Britain. A quantitative assessment', Technology & Culture, 21, 1980