Blanchard, Thomas

Thomas Blanchard, (born June 24, 1788, Sutton, Mass., U.S.—died April 16, 1864, Boston, Mass.), American inventor who made major contributions to the development of machine tools.

Blanchard began as a self-taught tinkerer. As a boy he invented an apple parer and a tack-making machine for his brother’s factory. Later he designed a lathe capable of turning both the regular and irregular sections of gun barrels. In 1818, as an employee of the Springfield (Mass.) Arsenal, he invented the lathe that duplicated the form of a pattern object by transmitting to the cutting tool the motion of a friction wheel rolling over the pattern. His lathe was an essential step in the development of mass-production techniques. The success of his device led to piracy of his design, however, and Blanchard spent several years fighting for Congressional renewal of his patent. In 1825 he designed a steam carriage, and later he became interested in railroads but received no encouragement. He then turned to designing shallow-draft steamboats and produced several successful designs.