On March 20, 1905, a disastrous boiler explosion occurred in a shoe factory in Brockton, Massachusetts, killing 58 persons, injuring 117 others, and causing a quarter of a million dollars in property damage. For years prior to 1905, boiler explosions had been regarded as either an inevitable evil or “an act of God” (see Figs. and ). | Copyrighted Material McGRAW-HILL PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING Pressure Vessels THE ASME CODE SIMPLIFIED Eighth Edition An understanding of the history of standards for Code compliance The various ways different standards achieve compliance The difference and interaction between various standards J. Phillip Ellenberger . Robert Chuse Bryce E. Carson Sr. Source Pressure Vessels Chapter Ì Origin Development and Jurisdiction of the ASME Code History of the ASME Code On March 20 1905 a disastrous boiler explosion occurred in a shoe factory in Brockton Massachusetts killing 58 persons injuring 117 others and causing a quarter of a million dollars in property damage. For years prior to 1905 boiler explosions had been regarded as either an inevitable evil or an act of God see Figs. and . But this catastrophic accident had the effect of making the people of Massachusetts see the necessity and desirability of legislating rules and regulations for the construction of steam boilers in order to secure their maximum safety. After much debate and discussion the state enacted the first legal code of rules for the construction of steam boilers in 1907. In 1908 the state of Ohio passed similar legislation the Ohio Board of Boiler Rules adopting with a few changes the rules of the Massachusetts Board. Therefore other states and cities in which explosions had taken place began to realize that accidents could be prevented by the proper design construction and inspection of boilers and pressure vessels and began to formulate rules and regulations for this purpose. As regulations differed from state to state and often conflicted with one another manufacturers began to find it difficult to construct vessels for use in one state that would be accepted in another. Because of this lack of uniformity both manufacturers and users made an appeal in 1911 to the Council of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers to correct the situation. The Council answered the appeal by appointing a
