On Aug. 26, 1791, John Fitch and James Rumsey, rivals battling over claims to the invention, were each granted a federal patent for the steamboat. They devised different systems for their steamboats.
Architect of the Capitol, "Compilation of works of art and other objects in the United States Capitol," Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1965. siris_ari_253477 ...