Beautiful Circa 1870's Backus Water motor with partial original ornate decal and foil brass tag.  This Backus Water motor appears to be a very early example from this company.  This motor appears to have been designed to drive a small residential appliance.  Motor is in good original condition showing signs of vintage wear but still looks great for its age.  Highly ornate decal is still faintly visible.  Backus was a leader in water motor technology during the late 1800's and this is a beautiful example from their product line.  The following is history on the Backus Water Motor Co. from www.waterworkshistory.us

The potential to use piped water supplies as a source of power was recognized early in the 19th Century and in the 1850s were introduced for a variety of distributed power requirements.  As public water systems became more robust after the Civil War, several inventors produced a variety of water motors for the booming market, making it possible to use mechanical power without the cost and maintenance required to own and operate a steam or gas engine.  Perhaps the most popular of these was the Backus Water Motor, which had been patented by Isaac Hyde of Oakland, California in 1872 and assigned to Oscar J. Backus, who lived in San Francisco.  Backus patented improvements over the next three years, and became production in Newark, New Jersey with his brother Rodman Backus, who was an inventor and contractor, under the name Backus & Brother.  Rodman died in 1878, and in 1881 the Backus Water Motor Company was incorporated in Newark to produce the machines.  This company, and the Backus Manufacturing Company, produced water and gas engines well into the 20th Century.

Backus Water Motors could produce from ⅛ to 10 horsepower, depending on the available water pressure.

Dimensions

Height: 10"

Width: 9"

Depth: 7"