Roper’s Steam Carriage (1863)

The March 15, 1863 Times Picayune carried this notice of a steam carriage: “  Mr. Sylvestor H. Roper, of Roxbury, Mass., has invented and completed a steam carriage … ” the article recounted a trial of the device, describing it as “sucessful.”  “It passed through Boston, and meeting a car on the horse railroad turned off from the track and went around the car with as much ease as if drawn by a horse.”  The device was usable on rails or on smooth roads and with 60 lbs of steam -”the usual amount” it could make 20 miles and hour.  The carriage was said to weigh 600 pounds.