James Blyth’s windmill. The Scottish engineer saw the future.
JAMES BLYTH
The Scot who invented wind power
It was 135 years ago that a Scottish engineer, James Blyth, invented the first wind-powered electrical generator. In July 1887 he built a windmill attached to a dynamo to light his holiday cottage in the village of Marykirk in Scotland, and even stored the power in a battery invented by the French engineer Camille Alphonse Faure.
“When a good breeze was blowing, I stored as much in half a day as gave me light for four evenings,” Blyth wrote. He proposed installing electric lighting in the main street of the village, but local people thought the electric light to be “the work of the devil”.
Blyth dreamed of a future in which every house would be lit by a wind turbine, and argued that wind power was good for the environment and cheaper than fossil fuels.
Blyth was ahead of his time, but remains largely overlooked, even though he beat the American engineer Charles Brush and the Danish inventor Poul la Cour, who have been credited with inventing the wind turbine. But none of the pioneering wind turbines could compete with cheap and abundant coal, and then oil. Only now is wind power making its mark.
Yes, Blyth was another Scot sidelined because we allow England to write and publish our history books.
NOTE: With thanks to Jeremy Plester.
Chrismassy Sort of Glad Tidings
Grouse Beater wishes readers a stress-free festive time – difficult, I know, when living under colonial rule and rising prices we never caused, but there is a solution called restoring self-governance and keeping all we earn – and thank you for your readership and many comments this trouble-strewn year. Feel free to write if you live alone and are looking for company. I am hooked to the keyboard composing a new book and will spot letters. And don’t forget, this site seeks no donations or handouts or subsidised court proceedings, but do purchase one of my Essay books to make my time writing them worthwhile, and if Scotland’s liberty means anything to you.
Books from Amazon, signed editions from: garwarscot@hotmail.com
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Grouse Beater 
Have a great Christmas, Gareth, and a very Happy New Year.
Reblogged this on Ramblings of a now 60+ Female and commented:
Season’s Greetings to all.
Grouse Beater
Otherwise called Gareth, his personal name
My reader will have personal opinions, same
Who’ll speak on your behalf? our Gareth can
Perhaps He represents Scotland’s population
Ineffably difficult to do – he speaks for us
The rest of us might be resigned to silence
But sometimes, one of our own speaks anyway
And we know that Westminster’s insufferable
However, Dictatorships cannot be supported
And normal democracies ARE their enemies…
Arrogance is just as contemptible as it IS,
Democratic honour and decency will prevail!
Ewenart
© Ewen A Morrison
Thank you for posting a gentle anti-inflammatory article in a time rich in mind-allergens.
One bit that struck me was the reaction of the villagers, a sad reminder of how so many nations have been held back by superstitions created by the supposed gatekeepers of knowledge. Sadly, neo-superstition and wilful ignorance have been revived.
I’ll look up your essays on my next (online)Amazon exploration.
Meanwhile, thank you for your sharp and articulate writings that probe where others are afraid to. Very best wishes for a healthy, peaceful and happy Christmas.
Obliged for the endorsement of literary style, Surfsensei. I prefer to do my own thinking based on experience and research and place it before readers so they can make up their own mind, or are motivated to more study. I’ve been alarmed of late at a handful of bloggers who not only tell readers what to think, but also point to people as worthless individuals, and inflame their readers to the point of inciting mob rule. It’s easy to get into the habit of denunciation. Solutions and hope are healthier.
I wish you the best of times.
Hi Gareth, I hope you and your family are doing fine at this time of thoughts of family and friends. We are all well and happy here in Australia. We have the luxury of warm weather here. Cheers Howard
I’m surviving – just. Sending good wishes, and assuming 2023 will be better than 2022. Okay, maybe not, but we will have to make the best of it and keep rotten, useless politicians away from power.