1784
In the years leading up to 1783, James Rumsey applied himself to a watercraft that might navigate a river. George Washington, who owned a cottage in Berkeley Springs, witnessed Rumsey’s mechanically powered boat. Washington described this occasion as vastly important. By 1784 Rumsey began studying the possibilty of a steam powered engine and how it might apply to river navigation. His most dedicated work occurs in the following few years.
Sources:
grokipedia.com, wythepedia.wm.edu, museumoftheberkeleysprings.com, https://museumoftheberkeleysprings.com/rumsey-exhibit-1-2/