1. Frank Reade and his Steam Man of the Plains
Theo & Jordan

2. Summary
Young inventor Frank Reade and his cousin Charley head west from New York City to test Frank’s new invention, a steam-powered man. Along the way, they meet a number of colorful characters and have many chances to demonstrate the numerous abilities of the marvelous steam man. They encounter and fight the American Indians, a group of “bad men,” and various wildlife with the aide of the Steam Man and other technologies. In the end, Charley purchases the Steam Man, with intentions to hold onto it while Frank builds a “Steam Team.”

3. Background
This is the first of four Frank Reade stories by Harry Enton
In most subsequent editions it is attributed to “Noname”
Originally published in Tousey’s Boys of New York as The Steam Man of the Plains; or, The Terror of the West in 1876
An imitation of Edward Ellis’s Steam Man of the Prairie
Frank Reade, Jr. continues in his father’s footsteps in a long-running series of dime novels written by Luis P. Senarens, who also published under the pseudonym “Noname.”

4. Real Life Steam Man
The steam man in Ellis’s story, and by extension the steam man in this work, is based on the Newark Steam Man
Patented by Zadoc Dederick and Isaac Grass in March 1868
“will perform some of the most important functions of humanity; will, standing upright, walk or run as he is bid, in any direction, and at almost any rate of speed, drawing after him a load whose weight would tax the strength of three draught horses.” – The Newark Observer

5. Technology Within the Text
The steam man is presented positively throughout the text, helping Frank and co. escape danger and drive off attackers.
However, almost all of the technology is shown to be dangerous:
The steam man, in defending the group, starts a prairie fire
The battery is said to be able to “kill ten horses with one shock”
Night pistol shoots balls of fire
In the juxtaposition of rural means and setting to more modernized technological advances, technology ultimately triumphs over nature
While the technology is positive from the view of the protagonists, it produces anxiety and fear of the unknown in the Indians

6. Other Prevailing Themes

7. Works Cited
" Fictional Steam Man, Steam Horse, Electric Man & Electric Horse (American).“ Cyberneticzoo.com. N.p., 16 June Web. 05 Apr Josemas, Pulpshmoo, Unknown. Pulpshmoo, and Hoover. Pulpshmoo. "Frank Reade Library (Science Fiction)." Comic Book Plus. N.p., 24 Sept Web. 29 Mar Lamar, Cyriaque. "Meet the Newark Steam Man, the steampunk robot of the 19th century." Io9. Io9.gizmodo.com, 12 Jan Web. 02 Apr "The steam man of the plains, or, The terror of the West | Nickels and Dimes." The steam man of the plains, or, The terror of the West | Nickels and Dimes. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Mar 2017.