A Technological Explosion,1850's Style.

SS Great Eastern was the first all-iron ship ever built, and the first to exceeded the dimensions of Noah’s Ark - six times larger than any ship in existence. It would not be surpassed in size for half a century. It carried the largest paddlewheels and propeller ever made. Herman Melville claimed it would never float, but for 30 years it ruled the seas as the largest moving object on Earth. Jules Verne coined the term "floating city" after crossing the Atlantic on it. It was so well-engineered, it survived a collision far worse than what sank Titanic.
It was such a monster, that the era held no purpose for it, and eventually it was scuttled. They had to invent the wrecking ball to demolish it.