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In 1775 he made major advances on the design of the flushing toilet. His improved valve closet incorporated a sliding valve to keep water in the pan and an S-bend trap in the waste pipe, preventing foul smells from re-entering the house and generally giving a "cleaner" solution. He also linked the
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He wrote books about watch and clock work, about the effect on roads of carriage wheels with rims of various shapes, and on the influence of gravity.
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He died on 8 March 1814, in
Pentonville, England. He was buried in the graveyard of St James' Chapel, Pentonville (since demolished), in what is now
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district of London, where there is a
Cumming Street running north from Pentonville Road. He had a house in the district and an organ shop.
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Cumming was a mathematician and mechanic as well as a watchmaker. Little is known of his early life. He was born in
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water inlet valve to the flush mechanism to allow the pan to be emptied and refilled by pulling a single handle.
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as an organ builder as well as a clockmaker. After his move to
England he continued to work in both fields. The
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226:, who paid him an annual retainer for its maintenance. Other barometrical clocks created by him are at the
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415:"From Charles Mackintosh's waterproof to Dolly the sheep: 43 innovations Scotland has given the world"
296:, responsible for the design and manufacture of a church organ for the Church of the Holy Trinity in
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He became a magistrate in 1779. In 1781 he was made an honorary freeman of the
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Park, where the famous clown was also buried. The park adjoins
Cumming Street.
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This article is about the inventor. For the
Australian analytical chemist, see
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649:
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Malloch (1983). "The Earl of Bute's
Machine Organ: A Touchstone of Taste".
438:"The Development of the Flushing Toilet – Detailed Chronology 1596 onwards"
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584:"Westmorland Lowther, Lowther Castle (Earl of Lonsdale) [N03604]"
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In 1788 Cumming is recorded as a watch and clock-maker on Bond Street in
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and instrument inventor, who was the first to patent a design of the
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218:'s ‘timekeeper for discovering the longitude at sea’". He made a
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331:'s voyage in the polar regions, the island of Cummingøya in
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With his brother he was involved in the development of the
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Organa
Britannica: Organs in Great Britain 1660–1860
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Elements of Clock and Watch Work
Adapted to Practice
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191:and his family commissioned a series of elaborate
263:In 1770 he is credited with the invention of the
256:who used it for his observations within the book
206:laid the foundations for the modern flush toilet.
202:Cumming's 1775 patent for a valve closet with an
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16:Scottish watchmaker and inventor (1733–1814)
573:Accessed via JSTOR (subscription required)
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327:As a result of his making instruments for
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794:Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
29:Alexander Cummings (territorial governor)
440:. Stoke-on-Trent, UK: Twyfords Bathrooms
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531:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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721:"Place names in Norwegian polar areas"
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426:from the original on 30 December 2016.
398:: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (
285:In 1783 he was a joint founder of the
181:Archibald Campbell, 3rd Duke of Argyll
139:; 1733 – 8 March 1814) was a Scottish
167:in 1733, the son of James Cumming of
147:in 1775, which had been pioneered by
809:19th-century Scottish businesspeople
804:18th-century Scottish businesspeople
27:. For the governor of Colorado, see
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31:. For the Liberian politician, see
23:. For the Scottish politician, see
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594:British Institute of Organ Studies
520:"Cumming, Alexander (1731/2–1814)"
25:Sir Alexander Cumming, 1st Baronet
14:
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195:with which Cumming was involved.
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689:Cumming, Alexander (1731/2–1814)
629:Bute Collection; Decorative Arts
240:In 1765 he invented a clock for
179:In the 1750s he was employed by
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115:Inventor of the first accurate
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489:"AIM25 collection description"
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784:Scottish watchmakers (people)
769:Businesspeople from Edinburgh
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589:National Pipe Organ Register
298:Christchurch, Cambridgeshire
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799:British pipe organ builders
210:By 1763 he had premises in
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287:Royal Society of Edinburgh
135:(sometimes referred to as
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774:Scottish company founders
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33:Alexander B. Cummings Jr.
21:Alexander Charles Cumming
650:"A. Cumming and J. Hill"
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635:5 November 2014 at the
561:10.1093/earlyj/11.2.172
518:Gloria Clifton (2004),
289:and was made a Fellow.
639:; Mount Stuart online.
614:Royal Collection Trust
244:which also acted as a
230:in London, and on the
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76:8 March 1814 (aged 82)
694:22 March 2014 at the
617:. Inventory no. 2752.
525:22 March 2014 at the
335:was named after him.
258:The Climate of London
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113:Church organ designer
779:Scottish clockmakers
609:"Barometrical Clock"
422:. 30 December 2016.
322:Clockmakers' Company
103:First patent for a
670:on 22 December 2015
607:Alexander Cumming.
466:on 22 December 2015
789:Scottish inventors
710:by James Boeringer
380:on 24 January 2013
220:barometrical clock
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149:Sir John Harington
137:Alexander Cummings
743:Alexander Cumming
741:Works related to
130:Alexander Cumming
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764:1814 deaths
674:22 December
555:: 172–183.
545:Early Music
499:22 December
470:22 December
384:22 December
280:Pentonville
254:Luke Howard
212:Bond Street
88:Citizenship
80:Pentonville
753:Categories
352:References
242:George III
159:Early life
141:watchmaker
101:Clockmaker
99:Watchmaker
67:, Scotland
269:John Hill
265:microtome
250:barograph
246:barometer
165:Edinburgh
122:microtome
117:Barograph
82:, England
65:Edinburgh
692:Archived
633:Archived
523:Archived
424:Archived
394:cite web
333:Svalbard
185:Inverary
569:3137830
316:Honours
91:British
567:
444:25 May
347:(1766)
294:London
204:S-trap
175:Career
169:Duthil
153:S-trap
109:S-trap
61:1731/2
565:JSTOR
551:(2).
378:(PDF)
371:(PDF)
304:Death
183:, at
676:2015
501:2015
472:2015
446:2015
400:link
386:2015
222:for
133:FRSE
73:Died
58:Born
557:doi
553:OUP
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
