Who Invented the Well Pump?

Most of us probably take our wells for granted. We know that wells have water at the bottom, and then we pump it up to the surface and condition it how we like it. We discussed a few weeks ago how a well pump works, but where did the idea come from? Who invented the pump?

When most folks are asked when they think well pumps were invented, their answers range from the industrial revolution back to the renaissance. It may shock you to learn that the pump was invented all the way back in 200 BCE. Like many great historical thinkers, the inventor of the pump was Greek. An inventor and mathematician, Ctesibius is credited with the invention of the pump, specifically the reciporicating pump also known as the piston pump. That's the same kind of well pump we discussed in our "Old School Cool" post last Spring.