Cog Railway Patents, Sylvester Marsh

In 1858, picking up on an idea by John Blenkinsop in England twenty years before, Sylvester Marsh applied for US patents for a cog-driven inclined railway. This set the stage for a World's First, the Mount Washington Cog Railway. He obtained a charter form the state in 1858, started construction in 1866 and the summit was reached in 1889.

In 1864 he patented an "Apparatus for descending gradients", a compressed air braking system that did not rely on brake shoes or friction surfaces.

 In 1867, he patented an improved cog rail design, in effect a ladder that was open- so any debris, snow or other material would fall straight through the pins.