The Blowing Engine

The eight Blowing Engines stand over thirty feet tall and turned flywheels twenty feet in diameter at a rate of about 30 revolutions per minute.
Although built in the early twentieth century, the Blowing Engines represent the pinnacle of nineteenth-century technology. Reciprocating steam engines
such as these powered the Industrial Revolution. Each engine had a steam cylinder (on bottom) and an air cylinder (on top).
Steam drove the piston in the steam cylinder up and down, in turn driving the piston in the air cylinder. The moving piston pulled in air, compressed it,
and pushed it out. These generated a large amount of noise. The decibel level would compare to that of standing front row at a rock concert.