Farmer Wind-Electric Generator Model
date: label: date made
content: ca 1882
name: label: maker
content: Farmer, Moses G.
notes: label: Description
content: Three solid wind wheels drive the armatures of three dynamos, which are in circuit with a small storage battery, an incandescent electric lamp, and switches. This model, constructed by Moses G. Farmer, electrical pioneer, about 1880, is one of the earliest suggestions of the use of wind power through the medium of the electric generator and storage battery.
label: Description
content: Much of the objection to the use of the windmill as a source of power was due to the intermittent nature of its operation. It was thought that it was suited only for pumping water or similar operations where the energy or work produced by the windmill could be stored during periods of useful wind velocities to be used as needed.
label: Description
content: Reference:
label: Description
content: This description comes from the 1939 Catalog of the Mechanical Collections of the Division of Engineering United States Museum Bulletin 173 by Frank A. Taylor.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Massachusetts
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Mechanical and Civil Engineering
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content: Engineering, Building, and Architecture
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content: Work
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content: Industry & Manufacturing
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: from Sarah J. Farmer
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: MC.181985
label: catalog number
content: 181985
label: accession number
content: 2015.0173
objectType: label: Object Name
content: wind generator
label: Object Name
content: Generator, Wind
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall - from catalog card: 19 in x 8 in; x 48.26 cm x 20.32 cm
label: Measurements
content: overall: 8 7/8 in x 18 3/4 in x 8 1/8 in; 22.5425 cm x 47.625 cm x 20.6375 cm