By Martha J. Lamb
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John Ericsson. In a message, referring to the relations of our country with the several nations of Europe,
President Harrison said: “The restoration of the remains of John Ericsson to Sweden afforded a gratifying occasion
to honor the memory of the great inventor, to whose genius our country owes so much, and to bear witness to the
unbroken friendship which has existed between the land which bore him and our own, which claimed him as a citizen.”
This paragraph is a forcible reminder of the impressive ceremonial witnessed in the streets and harbor of
New York City, on Saturday, August 23, 1890. It had been intimated to this Government, as is well known,
that the Government of Sweden would regard it as a graceful act if the remains of Captain John Ericsson should
be conveyed to his native country upon a United States man-of-war; and arrangements having been completed,
the Baltimore was assigned to the service. In committing the illustrious dead to the care of the commander of the
Baltimore, Mr. George H. Robinson said: “We send him back crowned with honor, proud of the life of fifty years he
devoted to this nation, and with gratitude for his gifts to us.”
Early Life and Education
John Ericsson’s birthplace in Sweden is marked by a large granite monument erected in 1867. His father was a
mining proprietor, and his mother an energetic, intellectual, and high-spirited woman. His brother, Nils,
one year older than himself, was trained as an engineer, became chief of the construction of the system of
government railways in Sweden, was created a baron, and retired in 1862 with a pension larger than any before
bestowed upon a Swedish subject. His sister Caroline, born in 1800, was a girl of unusual beauty.
As a boy John was the wonder of the neighborhood. The machinery at the mines was to him an endless source of
curiosity and delight. He was constantly trying to make models, even before he had learned to read. He had from
his own plans constructed a miniature saw-mill prior to his tenth birthday, and made numerous drawings of a
complicated character. The graphic account of his youth and early manhood which his biographer presents is full
of suggestion and instruction. The boy was too much occupied with his contrivances to join in the pastimes of
other children.
Rise of a Young Engineer
His opportunities were unusually stimulating. The project of the Göta Canal Company, one of the most formidable
undertakings of its kind, was revived when he was about ten years old, his father being appointed one of its
engineers, holding place next to that of the chief of the work. This opened a new world of ideas, and the little
fellow undertook all manner of schemes. He was independent of outside assistance. Steel tweezers, borrowed from
his mother’s dressing-case and ground to a point, furnished him with a drawing pen, and his compasses were made
of birch-wood with needles inserted at the end of the legs. Later on, he robbed his mother’s sable cloak of the
hairs required for two small brushes, in order to complete his drawings in appropriate colors.
The clever lad attracted the notice of some of the greatest mechanical draughtsmen in Sweden, who made him
drawings to serve as models, and taught him many of the principles of the art. Finally, the celebrated engineer,
Count Platen, becoming interested, appointed him a cadet in the corps of mechanical engineers; and such was his
progress in sketching profiles, maps, and drawings for the archives of the canal company, that in 1816, at the
age of thirteen, he was made assistant leveller at the station of Riddarhagen.
The next year he was employed to set out the work for six hundred operatives, though he was yet too small to
reach the eye-piece of his levelling instrument without the aid of a stool carried by an attendant. Thus it will
be seen that he was identified almost from his cradle with great engineering works. His father died in 1818, and
in 1820, when seventeen, he entered the Swedish army as an ensign and was rapidly promoted to a lieutenancy.
Early Career and Recognition
The skill of young Ericsson in topographical drawing was so marked that he was soon summoned to the royal palace
to draw maps to illustrate the campaigns of the marshal of the empire. He also passed with distinction a
competitive examination for an appointment on the survey of Northern Sweden. This new employment was exacting,
and the pay determined by the amount of work accomplished. Mr. Church says: “The young surveyor from the Göta
Canal was so indefatigable in his industry and so rapid in execution, that he performed double duty and was
carried on the pay-roll as two persons in order to avoid criticism and charges of favoritism. The results of his
labors were maps of fifty square miles of territory, still preserved in the archives of Stockholm.”
At the age of twenty-one John Ericsson is described as “a handsome, dashing youth, with a cluster of thick,
brown, glossy curls encircling his white, massive forehead. His mouth was delicate but firm, nose straight, eyes
light blue, clear and bright, with a slight expression of sadness, his complexion brilliant with the freshness
and glow of healthy youth. The broad shoulders carried most splendidly the proud, erect head.”
Inventions and Engineering Triumphs
Fifteen years later he was in New York, and is thus described by Samuel Risley: “Captain Ericsson all his life
was careful of his personal appearance; … His manner with strangers was courteous and extremely taking. He
invariably made friends of high and low alike.”
Mr. Church, in his biography, devotes three chapters to a delightfully condensed account of Ericsson’s career in
England, whither he went in 1826 to exhibit his flame-engine. He quickly formed a partnership with John
Braithwaite, a working engineer, and in his new field of activity produced invention after invention in such
rapid succession that the truth reads like a fairy tale.
The famous battle of the locomotives in 1829 brought the young man of twenty-six before the English public in a
manner never to be forgotten. His locomotive “Novelty” competed against Stephenson’s “Rocket” and amazed the
spectators by reaching thirty miles per hour — a marvel of human ingenuity.
The American Years and the “Monitor”
Ericsson’s groundbreaking design of the Monitor during the American Civil War changed naval warfare
forever. The vessel, armed with heavy guns and an iron hull, proved revolutionary in the famous battle against
the Merrimac. Chief Engineer Alban S. Stimers, U.S.N., wrote to Ericsson: “After a stormy passage we fought the
Merrimac for more than three hours this forenoon, and sent her back to Norfolk in a sinking condition… Captain
Ericsson, I congratulate you upon your great success; thousands here this day bless you.”
Later Achievements and Legacy
Ericsson’s later years were marked by continued innovation — from designing the Destroyer, a submarine
artillery vessel, to creating his solar-powered “sun motor” in 1883. His research and inventions inspired
generations of engineers and scientists. Among his many honors were the Orders of Vasa, the North Star, and
St. Olaf, as well as medals from Spain, Austria, Sweden, and the United States Congress.
Ericsson remained devoted to science until his final years, always guided by integrity and imagination. He took
the greatest pride not in his titles but in his simple designation — “Captain John Ericsson.”
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