On a related subject, I bought the nameplate shown below on e-bay in September 2004. The only thing the buyer knew about it was that it was owned by an elderly gentleman, and purchased in an estate sale.
Notice the usual Worthington "wings" are missing, there is no works listed because there was only one factory. The size is 6 x 4 x 6; the serial number appears to be 1500; with perhaps one more digit at the end. (You can see an enlarged view of it here.)
Henry Worthington built the first direct-acting steam pump in 1840, and probably built hundreds of steam pumps a year. If the number is correct; this nameplate probably dates from the 1840s-1850s. The drawing it is resting on illustrates a Worthington steam pump from 1856; the duplex pump was not invented until 1857. (You can see the original drawing here.) This nameplate and drawing are the oldest items I am aware of in history of direct-acting steam pumps.
Once I got over the shock of what I had, I am wondering what to do with it. I am guessing I should not clean it in any way; I am thinking of mounting it in a shadowbox with the steam pump picture in the background.
I only paid $10.00 (including shipping) for it; while it is probably worth more now that I know what it is, I doubt it would fetch what this nameplate is. If I do part with it, I would like for it to go to a steam museum that can interpret it in the proper surroundings.
-James Hefner
Hebrews 10:20a
Surviving World Steam Project