Fascinating facts about the invention of the
Escalator by Nathan Ames in 1859.

TO LEARN MORE

RELATED INFORMATION:
Invention of the Elevator   from The Great Idea Finder
Transportation History   from The Great Idea Finder

ON THE BOOKSHELF:
1000 Inventions & Discoveries
by Roger Bridgman / Hardcover: 256 pages / Dorling Kindersley Publishing; (2002)
Fascinating stories and vivid photographs and illustrations tell the tales of the developments in technology and natural science that have shaped our world. Profiles of the famous (and not-so-famous) men and women who have had "Eureka!" moments, a running timeline which puts the inventions and discoveries in historical context.
The Engines of Our Ingenuity : An Engineer Looks at Technology and Culture
by John H. Lienhard / Paperback: 272 pages / Oxford University Press, USA (December 4, 2003)
Based on episodes from Lienhard's widely broadcast public radio series, this intriguing set of essays begins with a simple premise: more than we often care to admit, our lives are shaped by our machines. Fleshing out this proposition, Lienhard ransacks 2,000 years of scientific and technological history, cobbling together a quirky biography of the strange being he calls homo technologicus.
Otis Giving Rise to the Modern City
by Jason Goodwin / Hardcover: 320 pages / Ivan R Dee, Inc.; (September 2001)
The skyscraper, that most durable symbol of modernity, would not have been possible without the elevator, and the elevator as we have come to know it is largely the product of the company that Elisha Otis founded in the 1850s.

ON THE WEB:
A Moving Stairway
Charles D. Seeberger sold his patents and the trademark Escalator, to Otis Elevator Company. The first moving stairway was set up in 1898 at Otis’ Yonkers Works in New York. When the unit was moved to France to be exhibited at the Paris Exhibition of 1900, it was labeled Escalator.
(URL: www.otis.com/otis150/section/1,2344,ARC3167_CLI1_RES1_SEC3,00.html)
Nathan Ames
Nathan Ames was a patent solicitor, and considered an expert in such matters, and invented several useful machines. He was also a writer of both prose and poetry, writing among other books "Pirate's Glen," "Dungeon Rock" and "Childe Harold." He died in 1860. Article from The Bay State Monthly - Volume 2, Issue 3, December, 1884. From Project Gutenberg.
(URL: www.gutenberg.org/files/13864/13864-h/13864-h.htm)
Escalator History
The Otis Elevator Company later combined the best aspects of both the Reno and Seeberger inventions and in 1921 produced an escalator of the type used today. These improvements in design brought the escalator into extensive use in department stores and banks and in metropolitan railroad and subway stations.Article by Charles A. Buckman, CSS, CEI., vertical transportation consultant.
(URL: www.elevator-expert.com/history.htm)
Reno's Amusement Park Ride
The earliest type of escalator, patented in 1892 by Jesse W. Reno, was introduced as a new novelty ride at Coney Island moving passengers on a conveyor belt (no steps) at an angle of 25 degrees. COOKIES and POP-UP ADS.
(URL: www.todayinsci.com/cgi-bin/indexpage.pl?http://www.todayinsci.com/8/8_02.htm)
The Word "Escalator"
It is believed Charles Seeberger combined the Latin word "scala" for steps with part of the word elevator (the prefix "e" with the suffix "tor") to form escalator. Other reports, however, suggest he derived his term from the French word "escalade," a "climb over a wall."
(URL: www.theelevatormuseum.org/h/h-1.htm#15)
The History of the Escalator
According to Otis, "In the 1920s, Otis engineers, led by David Lindquist, combined and improved the Jesse Reno and Charles Seeberger escalator designs, and created the cleated, level steps of the modern escalator in use today. Article by Mary Bellis. COOKIES and POP-UP ADS.
(URL: inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blescalator.htm)
Seeberger Search
On this page I will describe in an informal manner, which activities are actual and which results and problems occurred in my search for the Seeberger family history and the escalator..
(URL: www.seeberger-online.de/Seeberger-English/What_s_new/Activites/body_activites.html)
First Escalator is Coney Island Ride
The amusement park ride, which transported riders on a conveyor belt built at a 25-degree angle, was considered a novelty by the 75,000 people who rode it during its two-week Coney Island exhibition. Article It Happened In New York by Cynthia Blair for Newsday
(URL: www.newsday.com/)
Magic Stairway
The old Reno escalator was a solid piece of equipment, and many are still in use. You can spot them in the Boston and London subway systems. They have a characteristic structure of wooden slats that make up their treads and risers. Article by John H. Lienhard. Available in text or audio.
(URL: www.uh.edu/engines/epi250.htm)
Invention-Escalator
The Otis Elevator Company of New York manufactured it, and it was exhibited in 1900 at the Paris Exposition, where the name "escalator" was adopted. Article by David Wallechinsky & Irving Wallace
(URL: www.trivia-library.com/b/story-behind-inventors-and-inventions-escalator.htm)
Escalators - The worst invention ever?  
Stairs can be dated back millennia. We can see evidence of their early use in South American pyramids, Macchu Picchu and the city of Babylon. They are a cheap and effective way of traversing heights. Article by Ron Simpson.
(URL: www.nzherald.tx.co.nz/schools/ryan_simpson.htm)

WORDS OF WISDOM:
"Life is an escalator: You can move forward or backward; you can not remain still." - Patricia Russell-McCloud

HOW IT WORKS:
The Mechanics of How an Escalator Works
In the year 2000, Otis' celebrated its centennial anniversary in the escalator business, Otis continues to look to the future and strives to improve Otis escalators.

DID YOU KNOW?:

• It is believed Charles Seeberger combined the Latin word "scala" for steps with part of the word elevator (the prefix "e" with the suffix "tor") to form escalator.
• The earliest working type of escalator, patented in 1892 by Jesse W. Reno, was introduced as a new novelty ride at Coney Island moving passengers on a conveyor belt (no steps) at an angle of 25 degrees.