We was all wrong.
Speaking of great inventors, great inventions, steam, and things that will never work—stumbled upon this yesterday:
Lincoln’s Secret Weapon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCZaSHIUpVk
Ironclad warship, steam powered, screw propeller, rotating turret, powerful naval guns. Of course, all of it was highly dangerous and none of it caught on. Impractical. The inventor was even banned from doing business with the government for a period after a gun exploded during a demo.