Invention and
Wilhelm Maybach in 1886 during World War I Although the
screw propeller had been added to an engine (
steam engine) as early as the 18th century in
Birmingham,
England, by
James Watt, boats powered by a
petrol engine only came about in the later part of the 19th century with the invention of the
internal combustion engine. The earliest boat to be powered by a petrol engine was tested on the
Neckar River by
Gottlieb Daimler and
Wilhelm Maybach in 1886, when they tested their new "longcase clock" engine. It had been constructed in the former greenhouse (converted into a workshop) in Daimler's back yard. The first public display took place on the Waldsee in Cannstatt, today a suburb of
Stuttgart, at the end of that year. The engine of this boat had a single
cylinder of 1
horse power. Daimler's second
launch in 1887 had a second cylinder positioned at an angle of 15 degrees to the first one, and was known as the "V-type". The first successful motor boat was designed by the
Priestman Brothers in
Hull, England, under the direction of
William Dent Priestman. The company began trials of their first motorboat in 1888. The engine was powered with
kerosene and used an innovative high-tension (high voltage) ignition system. The company was the first to begin large scale production of the motor boat, and by 1890, Priestman's boats were successfully being used for towing goods along canals. Another early pioneer was Mr. J. D. Roots, who in 1891 fitted a launch with an internal combustion engine and operated a
ferry service between
Richmond and
Wandsworth along the
River Thames during the seasons of 1891 and 1892. The eminent inventor
Frederick William Lanchester recognized the potential of the motorboat and over the following 15 years, in collaboration with his brother
George, perfected the modern motorboat, or powerboat. Working in the garden of their home in
Olton,
Warwickshire, they designed and built a river flat-bottomed launch with an advanced high-revving engine that drove via a stern
paddle wheel in 1893. In 1897, he produced a second engine similar in design to his previous one but running on
benzene at 800 r.p.m. The engine drove a reversible
propeller. An important part of his new engine was the revolutionary
carburettor, for mixing the fuel and air correctly. His invention was known as a "wick carburetor", because fuel was drawn into a series of wicks, from where it was vaporized. He patented this invention in 1905. The first competition, held in July 1903, at
Cork Harbour in Ireland, and officiated by the Automobile Club of Great Britain and Ireland and the
Royal Victoria Yacht Club, was a very primitive affair, with many boats failing even to start. 's 1911
Kitty Hawk was the fastest boat in the world between 1911 and 1915. An article in the
Cork Constitution on 13 July reported "A large number of spectators viewed the first mile from the promenade of the Yacht Club, and at Cork several thousand people collected at both sides of the river to see the finishes." Levitt was then commanded to the
Royal yacht of
King Edward VII where he congratulated her on her pluck and skill, and they discussed the performance of the motorboat and its potential for British government despatch work.
France won the race in 1904, and the boat
Napier II set a new world
water speed record for a mile at almost 30
knots (56 km/h), winning the race in 1905. The acknowledged genius of motor boat design in America was the naval architect
John L. Hacker. His pioneering work, including the invention of the V-hull and the use of dedicated petrol engines revolutionized boat design from as early as 1908, when he founded the
Hacker Boat Co. In 1911, Hacker designed the
Kitty Hawk, the first successful step
hydroplane which exceeded the then-unthinkable speed of and was at that time the fastest boat in the world. The Harmsworth Cup was first won by Americans in 1907. The US and England traded it back and forth until 1920. From 1920 to 1933, Americans had an unbroken winning streak.
Gar Wood won this race eight times as a driver and nine times as an owner between 1920 and 1933. == Hull type ==