Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Andrew Catherine
Everyone remembers fondly the first time they saw a steam engine, whether it
was in person or on TV as Thomas the Tank Engine. These incredibly
complex machines were and are fascinating to see. Many of these machines
can trace their roots back to the Baldwin Locomotive Works that produced
them in Philadelphia and later in Eddystone, Pa. In the golden era of the steam
engine, Baldwin was one of the big three locomotive manufactures--Lima,
American Locomotive Company, and the Baldwin Locomotive Works-- in the
United States and was a integral part of the economy during the late 19th and
early 20th century of the state and the country. Brain Solomon author of
Baldwin Locomotives states that "By the mid 19th century, it [Baldwin] was
well established as the foremost name in locomotive construction... It was
known and respected for its high quality products."
In his book North American Steam Locomotive Builders & Their Insignia, Harold
Davies presents the Baldwin Locomotive Works as "The Name to Beat" among
locomotive manufacturers. Baldwin had many successful steam engines and
innovations but it also had the distinction of creating the most successful
freight locomotive ever in North America in 1866. Designed by Alexander
Mitchell of Baldwin, the design was called the Consolidation type steam engine
and combined the power needed to pull heavy freight with the ability to sustain
this at higher speeds. Other manufactures soon copied the design and by the
end of the steam era, over 33,000 Consolidation type locomotives were
produced by the big three locomotive companies. This highlights the creative
and innovative nature that Baldwin maintained till the Great Depression.
FIGURE #1 HERE
In the Beginning
As with many ventures, Matthias Baldwins path that lead to the creation of the
Baldwin Locomotive Works in the 1830s began in the opposite direction of
what it would become. In the 1820's Baldwin was a jeweler in Philadelphia but
due to low demand, he shifted his focus to book binding. This interlude into
printing machinery did not last, but it did expose Baldwin to small steam
engines used to power the equipment. In 1831, the Franklin Perle Museum of
Philadelphia requested from Matthias Baldwin a model of a British steam
engine so that patrons could ride this new invention in the museum. From this
model he began an import-manufacturing business creating British steam
engines from drawings he acquired. Baldwin quickly learned the trade and
improved upon the British design to better suit the more rugged and non-ideal
rail conditions found in the United States. By 1835 Baldwin purchased a shop
for the Baldwin Locomotive works on Broad Street in Philadelphia and by 1836
produced 40 steam engines.
The American economy through the Civil War was one of great booms and
busts and thus, Baldwins shops would one year produce 40 or 50 engines and
the next only 20. However by now Baldwins little enterprise had grown from a
backroom tinkerer to one of the largest locomotive manufactures in the country.
As the Western frontier was settled and the Eastern US was urbanized, the
railroads grew to accommodate the demand for long distance passenger and
freight transportation. By the late 1860s Baldwins designs incorporated much
light and stronger steel boilers and were recognized as being safe, rugged, and
innovative.
Depending on the locomotive, the steam may act on up to two sets of cylinders
(double expanding - where the first set operates at a higher pressure and then
second set on a larger lower pressure set to maximize efficiency). Baldwin
designer Samuel Vauclain created the Vauclain compound which according to
Brain Solomon, the author of Baldwin Locomotives, "...proved to be one of the
most distinctive and successful varieties of compound locomotives [built]" and
"... enjoyed greater versatility [than other compound systems] and could be
applied to faster services." John Brown, in his book The Baldwin Locomotive
Works, states that by "1900, 70 percent of all compounds built in the United
States were of the Vauclain type."
Additionally, the generated steam may be heated after being created, called
superheating, to greatly increase the temperature of the steam. This increases
the efficiency of the engine but has the detrimental effect of increasing wear on
parts in contact with the superheated steam. A steam locomotive may have
from 4 to over 20 wheels depending on the type of route the locomotive is
designed to travel on and whether the engine will pull heavier freight or lighter
passenger cargo.
All of these pieces work together to provide a highly efficient means of travel via
rail. Baldwin Locomotive Works built steam engines that all used the basic
ideas but then refined them and over time added more complex components
that increased the power, the speed, and the efficiency of the locomotives.
FIGURE #2 HERE
By 1906 with an economic boom and advances in technology and the size of
locomotives, Baldwin needed to expand out of its original Philadelphia shop
neighborhood and Eddystone was the answer. Just southwest of Philadelphia,
Eddystone was close to the railroads mainline and offered space for a new and
expanded factory. As the ink dried on the contracts to build the Eddystone
plants, the Panic of 1907 caused orders for locomotives to fall to 617 in 1908
from 2666 in 1906. Baldwin never recovered the clear dominance it had in the
early 1900's and spent the rest of the pre-WWI years struggling. However,
Baldwin still shifted its operations to the more modern spacious Eddystone
plant and sold off the Philadelphia shops.
FIGURE #3 HERE
As with any large company, Baldwin had labor relations issues that resulted in
strikes in 1911 and 1912 as the company transitioned to Henry Ford's
production line model and replaced skilled craftsman with machinery and
unskilled labor. Baldwin's factories employed over 17,000 people and greatly
impacted the lives of those around Philadelphia and Eddystone. The labor
issues would return after WWII as Baldwin struggled to adapt to a post steam
country.
FIGURE #4 HERE
WWI and the Great Depression
After the labor issues and loss of orders following the 1907 Panic, when war
broke out in Europe in 1914, Baldwin quickly began to produce weapons,
ammunitions, and steam locomotives for the Allies. The Baldwin Works
produced its 30,000th locomotive in June 1913 and quickly increased
production so that by September 1918 number 40,000 was rolling off the
production line.
The 1920's were the start of a decline for Baldwin as the company was
beginning to lose its innovative sprit. Now Baldwin was playing catch up with
Lima to produce larger and faster steam engines. In 1923 the New York Times
reported that 50 miles of locomotives were produced in the previous year but
without innovation Baldwins production began to decline. The stock crash of
1929 did not immediately cause great collapse at the Baldwin Works, but by
1935, after a decade of so-so revenues, Baldwin was forced to declare
bankruptcy. Once the leading locomotive company with great cachet was now
in financial ruin. While hope appeared in the mid 1930s as the Pennsylvania
Railroad had Baldwin produce its GG1 electric locomotives--one of the most
successful electric engines in the United States--Baldwin could never regain its
market dominance.
With the development of another war in Europe, Baldwin once again fell into
producing military goods, however this time excluding the new diesel-electric
locomotives that were going to be the future of the locomotive market.
According to Philip Scranton's article entitled "Large Firms and Industrial
Restructuring: The Philadelphia region, 1910-1980", Baldwin's management
"...erred doubly, expanding capacity at a time when railroad finances thinned
motive power equipment orders, and retaining a commitment to refining steam
traction, just as the superiority of diesel and electric locomotives was being
established." As seen below, the Baldwin plant continued to produce its iconic
steam engines.
FIGURE #5 HERE
After the war Baldwin still produced a few concept steam engines and small
diesel switching engines for railroad yard work, but Baldwin was forced to
merge with competing Lima-Hamilton works. Due to the changing economy,
low demand for their products, and labor issues Baldwin produced its final
locomotive in 1954. This last diesel switcher was the last of 70,541 locomotives
built (actually numbered 76140 but 5,599 of these numbers belonged to war
materials not locomotives). While not closing until 1971, what remained of the
Baldwin works produced construction tools.
With the end of the Baldwin Locomotive Works, the Eddystone plant that once
employed over 17,000 has slowly been redeveloped into other manufacturing
plants but never with the same impact that the Baldwin plant had.
FIGURE #6 HERE
Bibliography
Miller, Fredric M., Morris J. Vogel and Allen F. Davis. Still Philadelphia A
Photographic History, 1890-1940. Philadelphia: Temple University Press,
1983.
Mustaffa, Muhammad Fadhli and Ahmad Lutfi Mohayiddin. How the Steam
Engine of the Locomotive Works. 1 June 2010
<http://straction.wordpress.com/how-the-steam-engine-of-the-
locomotive-works/>.
"Orders 100 Locomotive. Pennsylvania Will Use New Engines for Fast Freight."
The New York Times 24 October 1929.
"Plan Homes For Employes." The New York Times 29 April 1912.
Westing, Fred. The Locomotives that Baldwin built. Seattle: Superior, 1966.
Pictures