Mills County, Iowa

Silver City Community History
1879 - 1979

C. F. MEARS AND STEAM ENGINE

The Smallest Horizontal Steam Engine in the World, was made in 1898 by our watchmaker and jeweler C.F. Mears. C.F. Mears has recently completed the hard task which has looked almost impossible to him for the three years having commenced it in 1896. For the last three months Mr. Mears has spent his time exclusively in completing the engine, as it is entered for competition and awards at the Trans-Mississippi Exposition at Omaha.

This tiny piece of machinery is made from the following metals, silver, german silver, brass, steel and hard rubber — not a soft piece of metal being used in its construction — all the pieces being made from the raw material. There are 118 pieces contained in the marvel each and every piece comes apart, same as a large machine.

It has a regular steam gauge, registering as it runs only on a small calculation, 45 lbs. of steam same as a large engine. It has a water gauge, showing amount of water in boiler and all the necessary attachments that goes to make a large steam engine complete; it is run by a very small alcohol lamp in the door of the fire box; it is made on the eccentric cut off plan. It has oil cups and in fact everything to be found on a first-class modern engine.

A general idea may be had of proportion when we note the following affidavit. It has water cocks, throttle valve, safety valve, glass water gauge all working machinery. Length of cylinder, 6.16 of an inch; diameter of cylinder, 3.16 of an inch; Stroke 3.16 of an inch; diameter of fly wheel 7.8 of an inch; length of engine bed 15.8 inches; length of boiler 15.16 inches; diameter boiler 5.8 inch; height of smoke stack 11.16 inch.

The engine will be on exhibition at his office for five days, after that time it will be taken to Omaha and remain while the Exposition lasts. C.F. Mears carried off the Gold Medal at the Trans­Mississippi Exposition last year for the smallest perfect working Steam Engine in the world.

Mr. Mears has received many complimentary notices from numerous papers over the United States for his excellent workmanship on the above engine, and many of them thoroughly understand what they are talking about when it comes to such machinery.

~submitted by Roseanna Zehner & Darlene Jacoby