Blood and Steam: Boiler Expansions and the Beginning of Industrial Regulation in the United States, 1811-1871

Abstract

This paper examines steamboat explosions during the antebellum period of the United States. While the paper examines the causes of explosions and the mechanics of steamboats in some detail, the main focus of the paper revolves around public and governmental reaction towards these explosions. The paper begins with a discussion of the efforts at the state and local level to regulate steamboats, finishing with the considerably more comprehensive statutes of the Act of 1852. Through the examination of steamboats, a greater understanding of American views towards federal regulatory action during the antebellum period can be gained.