John Ernst Worrell Keely (September 3, 1837 – November 18, 1898) was an American fraudster and self-proclaimed inventor from Philadelphia who claimed to have discovered a new motive power which was initially described as "vaporic" or "etheric" force, and later as an unnamed force based on "vibratory sympathy", by which he produced "interatomic ether" from water and air. Keely's claims were highly disputed throughout his career and, in the 21st century, are generally considered to be pseudoscientific.
Keely secured substantial investments from many people, including John Jacob Astor IV. Despite numerous requests from the stockholders of the Keely Motor Company, which had been established to produce a practicable motor based on his work, he consistently refused to fully discuss the principles on which his motor supposedly operated and also repeatedly refused demands to produce a marketable product by claiming that he needed to perfect his inventions. He became embroiled in several lawsuits, and after Keely's death, evidence of his elaborate fraud was discovered.
Biography Born in Chester, Pennsylvania, John Keely was orphaned in early childhood and was raised by his grandparents. Before becoming an inventor, he worked as a member of a theatrical orchestra, a painter, a carpenter, a carnival barker, and as a mechanic.
Career In 1872, Keely invited scientists to a demonstration at his laboratory at 1422 North Twentieth Street, Philadelphia, of a machine that he asserted was motivated by a new and previously unknown force. Keely announced that he had discovered a principle for power production based on the musical vibrations of tuning forks and that music could resonate with atoms or with the aether. In the 19th century, luminiferous aether was the hypothesized substance that allowed light waves to propagate through the vacuum of outer space.
Public interest was aroused, and within a few months, the Keely Motor Company was formed in New York, with a capital of $5,000,000, equivalent to $95 million in 2013.
Keely's theories Keely delivered descriptions of the supposed principles of his process on various occasions.
In 1884, following the demonstration of his "vaporic gun":
Following a demonstration in June 1885:
In the 19th century, most physicists believed that all space was filled with a medium called the "luminiferous aether" (or "ether"). This hypothetical substance was thought necessary for the transmission of electromagnetic waves and the propagation of light, which was believed to be impossible in "empty" space.
Etheric generator On November 10, 1874, Keely demonstrated an "etheric generator" to a small group in Philadelphia. Keely blew into a nozzle for half a minute, then poured five gallons of tap water into the same nozzle. After some adjustments, a pressure gauge indicated pressures of 10,000 psi, which Keely said was evidence that the water had been disintegrated and a mysterious vapor had been liberated in the generator, capable of powering machinery. In subsequent demonstrations, he kept changing the terminology he used, from "vibratory-generator" to a "hydro-pneumatic-pulsating-vacu-engine" to "quadruple negative harmonics". It was later reported that the witnesses of the demonstration were so impressed that they formed a stock company, purchased patent rights for the six New England states, and paid $50,000 in cash for their share in the invention.
The New York Times reported in June 1875 that Keely's new motive power was generated from cold water and air and evolved into a vapor "more powerful than steam, and considerably more economical". It reported that Keely refused to disclose what the vapor was or how it was generated until he had taken out patents in "all the countries of the globe which issue patent rights", estimated to cost around $30,000.
Keely said that the discovery of this new energy source was accidental. He said that the apparatus by which it was generated was called a "generator" or "multiplicator", from where it was then passed into a "receiver" and from there to the cylinders of a steam engine. The "generator" was reported as being about , made of Austrian gunmetal in one piece and holding about 10 or 12 gallons of water. Its inside consisted of cylindrical chambers connected by pipes and fitted with stopcocks and valves. The "receiver" or "reservoir" was about long by in diameter and connected to the "generator" by a diameter pipe. Keely claimed that his apparatus would generate his "vapor" from water solely by mechanical means without using any chemicals and claimed to be able to produce 2,000 psi in 5 seconds.
Clara Jessup Bloomfield Moore In 1881, Keely met Clara Jessup Bloomfield Moore, the wealthy widow of a Philadelphia industrialist who had established the Bloomfield Moore art collection the year before. Mrs Moore became acquainted with Keely through her interest in scientific subjects and remained his friend and patron until his death. She invested $100,000 plus a monthly salary of $250 (around $2.2 million and $5400/month in today's values ) so that he could focus completely on the perfection of his motor and widely advocated him and his work, producing many articles and books.
Her family disapproved of her assuming obligations, which they believed the company should fulfill under its contract with Keely. She arranged with Keely in 1890 to furnish him with an additional $2000 per month for his household and shop expenses and instruments, which was to expire when he had gained sufficient control of his unknown force to enable him to resume his work under the direction of the management of the company upon a provisional engine. This arrived in December 1890, when Mrs Bloomfield Moore handed over to the Directors bills that had been presented since the expiration of Mr. Keely's contract with her.
Stockholder suit On December 14, 1881, the stockholders of the Keely Motor Company held a meeting at which a report was read that complained that while they had faith in the merits of Keely's invention, the inventor was unreasonably secretive of the principles and operating methods of his apparatus. He had assured them that the "generator" had been perfected a year before and that the "multiplicator" was also now perfected, and they considered it only fair and reasonable that the secrets of the machinery be revealed to them. They recommended that some intelligent and trustworthy person be taken into Keely's confidence "so that in the case of accident they would not be totally without a clue to the invention". The report complained at some length about Keely's uncommunicativeness and said that it was the experience of everyone who had come into contact with him over the previous ten years that "any attempt at a serious investigation of his operations has been met on his part with deception and misrepresentation".
Keely was reluctant to reveal his secrets and filed a demurrer on January 20, 1882, to the bill in equity presented against him by the Keely Motor Company's stockholders. The demurrer was described as entirely technical and gave several reasons why the court should not afford the plaintiffs the relief they sought. Argument was heard on the demurrer in Philadelphia's Court of Common Pleas on March 27, when it was argued that the inventor "could not be made to expose that which no one knew but himself and which was hidden in his own brain". However, Judge Pierce overruled Keely on April 1, 1882, ordering him to "make known his process in the way indicated in the bill filed by the Keely Motor Company".
On May 24, Keely filed his answer to the stockholders' equity suit. He admitted the truth of the complainants' bill regarding the contract. He added that although he had failed to bring his inventions into practical use due to "certain abstruse difficulties because of the nature and qualities of the said force", he believed he would ultimately succeed.
In June 1882, a committee appointed by the company's board of directors agreed that one William Boekel of Philadelphia was to be "instructed by Mr. Keely in the construction and operation of his inventions".
The annual meeting of the company's stockholders on December 13, 1882, heard a report from Boekel in which he stated that what Keely claimed to have discovered was "the fact that water in its natural state is capable of being, by vibratory motion, disintegrated so that its molecular structure is broken up, and there is evolved therefrom a permanent expansive gas or ether, which result is produced by mechanical action". Boekel said it would be improper to describe the mechanism used, adding that Keely had discovered all that he had claimed. It was later discovered by a Times reporter in August that Boekel had not yet been entrusted with the secrets of the motor as promised by Keely, and that the inventor kept delaying matters by telling Boekel that he could explain it to him in less than two hours after it was completed and that he had not done so already because the engine had not yet reached that state.
On August 28, 1883, at the monthly meeting of the company's directors, it was announced that Keely's engine would be ready for operation around the first week in September and that a final inspection of it by the Trustees would be conducted on August 29, at which the stockholders were expected to be present. However, when the inspection was made the following day, Keely said that it would not be ready for another six weeks.
On October 29, 1883, it was reported that the company's stockholders were to bring another suit against the inventor in the name of the company for "fulfilment of his many pledges". At a meeting of the Board of Directors the following day, Keely made a statement explaining his progress, saying that he was constructing a street chamber to hold his vapor and that when this was complete a demonstration would be given, and his explanation was voted "very satisfactory" by the directors.
At the annual stockholders' meeting on December 12, 1883, a letter from Keely was read out, in which the inventor said that he could not see why he might not fulfill the shareholders' expectations in the next two months and suggested that the stockholders' meeting be postponed to February 1, 1884. This proposal met with some disagreement from some stockholders, and it was decided to give Keely no funds for the next 60 days. When the promised stockholders' meeting was held on February 1, 1884, another postponement was announced at Keely's request. A board meeting which took place on March 25, 1884, reported that the vibratory engine was finished, that "the work of adjusting and focalizing is progressing rapidly", and that Keely had set a date for the demonstration of the motor to take place on or before April 10.
Vaporic gun On September 20, 1884, Keely demonstrated a "vaporic gun" at Sandy Hook to a party of Government officials. He said that he had brought with him five gallons of "vaporic force" in a "receiver", which, if the experiments were successful, would show that no bogus aids had been used. The gun was described as a small gun with a bore, resting on wheels, with an iron "receiver" long containing Keely's mysterious force connected to it by "an iron wire tube" in diameter. Keely rammed a small lead ball about in weight into the gun's muzzle, then tapped the iron "receiver" with a hammer. He explained that this was to stimulate the "vibratory force". He then turned a handle, and the ball was fired from the gun with a short, sharp report but no smoke and minimal recoil. It was reported that the projectile had been fired at a distance of . More shots were fired and their velocity measured; one attained , another , and yet another . The gun was also tested by firing against three thick spruce planks and penetrated the first and went halfway through the second. Keely said that he had used a pressure of 7,000 psi and could use 30,000 psi.