To understand the significance of the steam engine, one must imagine going back in time to the 17th century, when wind, animals and water provided everyone with the power that they required. Watt initially worked as a maker of mathematical instruments, but soon became interested in steam engines. Wind was used to harness energy with a sail. The Corliss steam engine had an impact on the textile industry, it allowed the mass production of textiles. This allowed industrialized nations, such as Britain, to move goods … The Scottish instrument maker and inventor James Watt had a tremendous impact on the shape of modern society. 9 Although later in the industrial revolution, the steam engine was applied to locomotion. it was used to pump water out of mines. In 1814, George Stephenson, utilized the steam engine to develop the first steam train. His improvements to the steam engine were a significant factor in the Industrial Revolution, and when the Watt engine was paired with Thomas Edison’s electrical generator in the late 19th century, the generation of electricity on a large scale was possible for the first time. Newcomen’s engine made it possible to use … The steam engine, either used on its own or as part of a train, is the iconic invention of the industrial revolution. Without the steam engine, the world may never have known the term Industrial Revolution. The impact of the Newcomen engine on the world was profound even though it did not always directly impact things. The first steam engine was invented by Thomas Newcome, he created a machine that could keep the power of compressed steam. Similar to the steam boat, the steam train increased the ability of industrialized nations to transport people and goods long distances. Environmental Impact of Steam Power. Experiments in the seventeenth century turned, by the middle of the nineteenth, into a technology which powered huge factories, allowed deeper mines and moved a transport network. The environmental impact of steam power depends on what sort of steam turbine system is being used to create the steam.. Today, the three main systems used to create electricity from steam power are: nuclear power, coal power (fossil fuels), and concentrated solar power. The steam boat allowed more goods to be shipped by canal and waterways which furthered the impacts of industrialization. 8 Not only did the steam engine help produce mass amounts of goods but it also had an impact on boats and railroads.