Edmund Zalinski Edmund Louis Gray Zalinski , ( December 13 , 1849 – March 11 , 1909 ) was a Polish - born American soldier , military engineer and inventor . He is best known for the development of the pneumatic dynamite torpedo - gun . Early life and military service . Zalinski was born in Kórnik , Prussian Poland on December 13 , 1849 , and emigrated with his parents to the United States in 1853 . He began school in Seneca Falls , New York and attended high school in Syracuse until 1863 , when he dropped out at the age of 15 . Lying about his age , Zalinski enlisted in the United States Army , and served during the American Civil War as aide - de - camp on the staff of General Nelson A . Miles from October 1864 . In February 1865 , he was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Second New York Heavy Artillery Regiment , having been recommended for promotion for gallant and meritorious conduct at the Battle of Hatcher ' s Run , Virginia . He continued on General Miles ' s staff until the surrender of General Robert E . Lee in April 1865 . Zalinski was mustered out of the volunteer service in September 1865 and was recommended for an appointment in the regular army . He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Fifth United States Artillery on February 23 , 1866 . He was promoted to first lieutenant in January 1867 , and finally to captain on December 9 , 1887 . Academia and military engineering . From 1872 till 1876 Zalinski served at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as professor of military science . He graduated at the Artillery School , Fort Monroe on May 1 , 1880 , and at the school of submarine mining , Willets Point , New York , in July of the same year . His name became widely known in connection with the invention and development of items of military technology , particularly the pneumatic dynamite torpedo - gun . He also invented the electrical fuse and other devices for the practical application of the weapon , and devised a method for the exact sight allowance to be made for deviation due to wind in the use of rifled artillery and small arms . Other inventions included a modified entrenching tool , a ramrod - bayonet , and a telescopic sight for artillery . Zalinski also helped John Philip Holland raise money for the development of one of his submarines , which was armed with one of Zalinski ' s pneumatic guns . The two men having formed the Nautilus Submarine Boat Company , started working on a new submarine in 1884 . The so - called " Zalinsky boat " was constructed in Hendrick ' s Reef ( former Fort Lafayette ) , Bay Ridge in the New York City borough of Brooklyn . " The new , cigar - shaped submarine was 50 feet long with a maximum beam of eight feet . To save money , the hull was largely of wood , framed with iron hoops , and again , a Brayton - cycle engine provided motive power . " The project was plagued by a " shoestring budget " and Zalinski mostly rejecting Holland ' s ideas on improvements . The submarine was ready for launching in September , 1885 . " During the launching itself , a section of the ways collapsed under the weight of the boat , dashing the hull against some pilings and staving in the bottom . Although the submarine was repaired and eventually carried out several trial runs in lower New York Harbor , by the end of 1886 the Nautilus Submarine Boat Company was no more , and the salvageable remnants of the Zalinski Boat were sold to reimburse the disappointed investors . " Holland would not create another submarine to 1893 . In 1889 and 1890 Zalinski traveled in Europe to study military affairs . He undertook garrison duty at San Francisco , California in 1892 , and retired from military service in 1894 . Zalinski died of pneumonia in Rochester , New York .