Transportation

Americans have always been a people on the move—on rails, roads, and waterways (for travel through the air, visit the National Air and Space Museum). In the transportation collections, railroad objects range from tools, tracks, and many train models to the massive 1401, a 280-ton locomotive built in 1926. Road vehicles include coaches, buggies, wagons, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles, and automobiles—from the days before the Model T to modern race cars. The accessories of travel are part of the collections, too, from streetlights, gas pumps, and traffic signals to goggles and overcoats.

In the maritime collections, more than 7,000 design plans and scores of ship models show the evolution of sailing ships and other vessels. Other items range from scrimshaw, photographs, and marine paintings to life jackets from the Titanic.

In 1940, the American Bantam Car Company of Butler, Pennsylvania constructed 62 quarter-ton, four-wheel-drive trucks. This is one of the prototypes of the famous army vehicle known as the Jeep.
Description
In 1940, the American Bantam Car Company of Butler, Pennsylvania constructed 62 quarter-ton, four-wheel-drive trucks. This is one of the prototypes of the famous army vehicle known as the Jeep. During World War II, when the army was looking for a vehicle to replace the motorcycle as a mechanized form of transportation, it came up with the Jeep. Willys-Overland Motors, the Ford Motor Company, and the Bantam firm produced jeeps in large numbers. According to one newspaper account, about 660,000 were made. Jeeps were incredibly important to the war effort and became for many a symbol of American ingenuity. The museum's Bantam, bearing serial number 1007, was number 7 of the 62. It was delivered to the Army on November 29, 1940, and transferred to the museum in 1944.
Location
Currently on loan
date made
1940
maker
American Bantam Car Company
ID Number
TR.312822
catalog number
312822
accession number
167398
At the dawn of the twentieth century, many people believed that the automobile offered great potential as a practical means of transportation. Once expensive toys, automobiles were becoming faster and more powerful, but several obstacles hindered their widespread use.
Description
At the dawn of the twentieth century, many people believed that the automobile offered great potential as a practical means of transportation. Once expensive toys, automobiles were becoming faster and more powerful, but several obstacles hindered their widespread use. One of the most visible barriers was the extreme difficulty of driving long distances, particularly in the West with its rugged terrain and lack of improved roads. After two attempts by other motorists, H. Nelson Jackson, a physician from Burlington, Vermont, broke the cross-country barrier through sheer determination and perseverance. In the spring and summer of 1903, Jackson and his mechanic, Sewall Crocker, drove this 1903 Winton touring car from San Francisco to New York City. The trip took 64 days, including numerous delays while the two men waited for parts or paused to hoist the Winton up and over a gully. Their achievement changed the way Americans thought about long-distance automobile travel. It now seemed possible -- even desirable -- to move about the country in cars instead of trains. The pioneering 1903 trip inspired two rival teams of motorists, turning the much-publicized journey into a race. Within ten years there were plans for a coast-to-coast highway. By the late 1910s and early 1920s, hordes of vacationing autocampers with touring cars and tents ushered in the era of transcontinental motoring.
date made
1903
contributor
Firestone, Jr., Harvey S.
user
Crocker, Sewall K.
maker
Winton Engine Company
ID Number
TR.312831.01
catalog number
312831
accession number
167685
In the late nineteenth century, the Pope Manufacturing Company was a leader in the bicycle market with its Columbia brand of high-wheelers and safeties. Albert A. Pope, who founded the company in 1877, had succeeded by embracing technological change.
Description
In the late nineteenth century, the Pope Manufacturing Company was a leader in the bicycle market with its Columbia brand of high-wheelers and safeties. Albert A. Pope, who founded the company in 1877, had succeeded by embracing technological change. His factories in Hartford, Connecticut excelled at producing lightweight tubular steel frames, pneumatic tires, and other bicycle parts in vast quantities. Pope also was adept at influencing the social and political landscape; he was instrumental in promoting bicycle touring, starting the good roads movement, and defining the concept of personal mobility. But by 1900, the bicycle riding fad had reached market saturation, and sales fell. Pope astutely used his production capacity and methods to manufacture automobiles, the next personal mobility frontier for his upper middle class, urban clientele. He applied bicycle technologies and parts designs to automobile chassis and wheels, providing a smooth transition. Pope introduced the Columbia electric car in 1897 and built 500 examples in the late 1890s – the largest volume of any auto maker at that time. Pope manufactured several makes of gasoline cars over the years, but he never achieved the same market dominance that he had enjoyed with bicycles or that Henry Ford would achieve with the Model T.
Location
Currently not on view
associated dates
1892
depicted
Pope, Albert A.
ID Number
1990.0294.02
catalog number
1990.0294.02
accession number
1990.0294
Albert A. Pope, the nation’s leading mass producer of bicycles in the late nineteenth century, introduced thousands of Americans to the benefits of personal mobility.
Description
Albert A. Pope, the nation’s leading mass producer of bicycles in the late nineteenth century, introduced thousands of Americans to the benefits of personal mobility. In the late 1890s, the Pope Manufacturing Company in Hartford, Connecticut also became a major player in the new start-up field of automobile manufacturing. Pope used his production capacity and mass production methods to manufacture automobiles, the next personal mobility frontier for upper middle class, urban Americans. Initially Pope was committed to electricity as a power source because it was clean, simple, and safe; he believed that demand for electric cars would surpass gasoline and steam cars. Pope introduced the Columbia electric car in 1897 and built 500 examples in the late 1890s – the largest volume of any auto maker at that time -- before selling the car division to a group of investors. Pope then began manufacturing Pope-Waverley electric cars in Indianapolis. By 1904, as gasoline cars proved more appealing than electric cars, Pope expanded again, building Pope-Hartford gasoline cars in Hartford and Pope-Toledo gasoline cars in Toledo, Ohio. By the time of Pope’s death in 1909, the Indianapolis and Toledo concerns and their products had disappeared, victims of a crowded field of automobile manufacturers and competition in the high-priced range. The Pope-Hartford continued under the management of Pope’s brother George until that business entered receivership in 1913 and shut down in 1914.
Radiator emblems are small, colorful metal plates bearing an automobile manufacturer's name or logo that attached to the radiators grilles of early automobiles. Varying in shape and size, the emblems served as a small branding device, sometimes indicating the type of engine, place of manufacturing, or using an iconic image or catchy slogan to advertise their cars make and model. This emblem is part of the collection that was donated by Hubert G. Larson in 1964.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
TR.325528.194
accession number
260303
catalog number
325528.194
This gasoline-powered tricycle was built by Louis S. Clarke in 1897. The vehicle is a conventional tricycle equipped with a one- cylinder, air-cooled engine that drives the rear wheels.
Description
This gasoline-powered tricycle was built by Louis S. Clarke in 1897. The vehicle is a conventional tricycle equipped with a one- cylinder, air-cooled engine that drives the rear wheels. The frame consists of standard bicycle parts with additional custom parts designed and fabricated by Clarke. In 1897 Clarke founded the Pittsburg Motor Vehicle Company in Pittsburgh, Pa., and served as president and engineer. The next year the company built its first 4-wheel automobile. In 1899 Clarke changed the company’s name to the Autocar Company, a brand that survives today. This tricycle is often called “Autocar No. 1” due to this history.
The one-cylinder engine has a mechanically operated exhaust valve and an automatic intake valve. On its crankshaft extension is a gear that meshes directly with the ring gear of the differential. No gear changes are provided. A single lever operates both the clutch (located on the crankshaft extension between the engine and the driving gear) and a band brake on the drum of the clutch. There is no throttle, but the engine speed can be varied by means of a spark-advance lever, and there is a fuel-flow regulator on the exhaust-heated, gasoline vaporizer. The main exhaust pipe leads into a small muffler. The gasoline tank is in the frame beneath the saddle, and the batteries and high-tension coil are in a box farther forward in the frame. Bicycle pedals, with the usual sprockets and chain, enable the rider to start the engine and, in event of a breakdown, to propel the vehicle. An overrunning clutch is built into this gearing so that the pedals are not driven by the engine while the tricycle is in motion.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1897
maker
Clarke, Louis S.
ID Number
TR.313142
catalog number
313142
accession number
175802
The 1914 Chevrolet Royal Mail roadster represents the early years of a make that a decade later would become the low-priced, mass-market leader in General Motors Corporation's varied array of cars.
Description
The 1914 Chevrolet Royal Mail roadster represents the early years of a make that a decade later would become the low-priced, mass-market leader in General Motors Corporation's varied array of cars. In 1914, Chevrolet cars were redesigned to compete with Ford and other makes vying for the low-priced market, which comprised working class and middle-class Americans. The Royal Mail and its larger companion, the Baby Grand touring car, were the first Chevrolet cars priced under $1,000. The Royal Mail body was considered streamlined and attractive. Its four-cylinder engine featured an overhead valve design, a Buick innovation that increased power; the OHV design reappeared on other GM cars during the next several decades. Alton M. Costley, a businessman who owned a Chevrolet dealership near Atlanta, donated this car to the Smithsonian in 1978.
The 1914 Chevrolet Series H roadster, marketed as the Chevrolet Royal Mail, is an open car with a folding top and folding windshield. Like many "streamlined" cars of the day, its styling is smooth and uninterrupted and flows from front to back without projecting hardware or accessories. The gasoline tank is external, but it has a pleasing elliptical shape that complements the body. The hand-cranked engine has four cylinders and an overhead valve design.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1914
maker
Chevrolet Motor Car Company
ID Number
TR.336719
catalog number
336719
accession number
1978.1027
serial number
11505
This tinted lithograph of “Mission and Plain of San Fernando” was originally drawn by an expedition artist Charles Koppel (fl. 1853-1865). It was printed as Plate VI following page 74 in the "Geological Report by W. P.
Description (Brief)
This tinted lithograph of “Mission and Plain of San Fernando” was originally drawn by an expedition artist Charles Koppel (fl. 1853-1865). It was printed as Plate VI following page 74 in the "Geological Report by W. P. Blake (1826-1910), Geologist and Minerologist to the Expedition," as part of Volume V, Part II of the "Report of Lieutenant R. S. Williamson (1825-1882), Corps of Topographical Engineers, Upon the Routes in California to Connect with the Routes Near the Thirty-fifth and Thirty-second Parallels" by Lieutenant R. S. Williamson ... in 1853."
The volume was printed as part of the "Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean" in 1856 by A. P. O. Nicholson (1808-1876) in Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1856
publisher
U.S. War Department
printer
Tucker, Beverley
author
Williamson, Robert Stockton
Blake, William Phipps
original artist
Koppel, Charles
graphic artist
unknown
publisher
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Topographic Command
ID Number
GA.10729.38
accession number
62261
This tinted lithograph of “Mirage on the Colorado River” was prepared after an original sketch by ah expedition geologist and artist William P. Blake (1826-1910). It was printed as Plate XII in Volume V, Part II following page 250 in the "Geological Report by W. P.
Description
This tinted lithograph of “Mirage on the Colorado River” was prepared after an original sketch by ah expedition geologist and artist William P. Blake (1826-1910). It was printed as Plate XII in Volume V, Part II following page 250 in the "Geological Report by W. P. Blake, Geologist and Minerologist to the Expedition," as part of Volume V, Part II of the “Routes in California, to Connect with the Routes near the Thirty–Fifth and Thirty–Second Parallels, Explored by Lieutenant R. S. Williamson, Corps of Topographical Engineers, in 1853."
The volume was printed as part of the "Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean" in 1856 by A. P. O. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1856
publisher
U.S. War Department
printer
Tucker, Beverley
expedition leader
Williamson, Robert Stockton
author
Blake, William Phipps
original artist
Blake, William Phipps
graphic artist
unknown
publisher
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Topographic Command
ID Number
GA.10729.32
accession number
62261
This tinted lithograph of “Great Basin from the Summit of Tejon Pass” was produced after an original sketch by expedition artist Charles Koppel (fl. 1853-1865). It was printed as Plate V in Volume V, Part II following page 50 in the "Geological Report by W. P.
Description (Brief)
This tinted lithograph of “Great Basin from the Summit of Tejon Pass” was produced after an original sketch by expedition artist Charles Koppel (fl. 1853-1865). It was printed as Plate V in Volume V, Part II following page 50 in the "Geological Report by W. P. Blake, Geologist and Minerologist to the Expedition," as part of the “Routes in California, to Connect with the Routes near the Thirty–Fifth and Thirty–Second Parallels, Explored by Lieutenant R. S. Williamson, Corps of Topographical Engineers, in 1853."
The volume was printed as part of the "Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean" in 1856 by A. P. O. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1856
publisher
U.S. War Department
printer
Tucker, Beverley
author
Williamson, Robert Stockton
original artist
Koppel, Charles
Koppel, Charles
graphic artist
unknown
publisher
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Topographic Command
original artist
Koppel, Charles
ID Number
GA.10729.33
accession number
62261
Lawrence W.
Description
Lawrence W. Davis used this clothes brush during his career as a Pullman Porter from 1925 until his retirement in the 1960s.
Pullman cars were almost all sleeping cars with "sections" that converted from day seating to night-time berths, usually with a few separate, small rooms with their own toilet and sink. Each Pullman porter—one assigned per car—were on call throughout the day and night to serve their passengers. While the hours were stressful, pay was good because of union bargaining, especially when compared to many other jobs open to African Americans before the late 1960s. At home, porters were frequently leaders in their communities.
associated institution
Pullman Company
ID Number
1986.0811.03
accession number
1986.0811
catalog number
1986.0811.02
Beginning in the early 1960s, American auto manufacturers responded to a wave of imported compacts and subcompacts that reached 20 percent of domestic new car sales by 1971.
Description
Beginning in the early 1960s, American auto manufacturers responded to a wave of imported compacts and subcompacts that reached 20 percent of domestic new car sales by 1971. The Chevrolet Corvair, Ford Falcon, and Plymouth Valiant were introduced in 1960, followed by the AMC Gremlin in 1970 and Ford Pinto in 1971. General Motors introduced the Vega as a 1971 model. Like other domestic small cars, the Vega was attractive and handled well, but mechanical quality and reliability were disappointing. On early models, the aluminum-alloy engine block overheated and expanded, valves leaked, and body corrosion was a problem. General Motors was able to correct these defects in later model years, and the Vega became a popular model that made money. This turnaround marked a reawakening of the American auto industry to the need to manage design, performance, and quality-control issues and compete more successfully with imported cars.
By the 1970s, many American motorists discovered the advantages of subcompacts and hatchbacks. Convenient, easy to drive, and economical to own and operate, domestic and imported subcompacts offered expanded opportunities for driving, commuting, and carrying goods. Many were used as second cars. The shift to subcompacts made families more mobile, and greater fuel efficiency offset the effects of gasoline shortages and price increases. This 1977 Vega hatchback was Guenther Sommer's second car; he and his wife, Siewchin Yong Sommer, drove a 1967 Pontiac Grand Prix convertible as their primary transportation. Mr. Sommer used this Vega to haul building materials at his home on Long Island. By removing all seats except the driver's seat, he converted the Vega to a small truck and even used it while building a new house. In 2001, he reinstalled the carefully preserved seats and donated the car to the Smithsonian.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1977
maker
General Motors Corporation
ID Number
2001.0168.01
accession number
2001.0168
catalog number
2001.0168.01
The Homer P. Snyder Manufacturing Company of Little Falls, New York expanded its product line from knitting mill machinery to bicycles in 1898 during the safety bicycle craze. The company remained a leading manufacturer of bicycles in the early twentieth century.
Description
The Homer P. Snyder Manufacturing Company of Little Falls, New York expanded its product line from knitting mill machinery to bicycles in 1898 during the safety bicycle craze. The company remained a leading manufacturer of bicycles in the early twentieth century. Motorcycles offered an appealing transition from bicycles to motorized personal mobility; Schwinn, one of the largest bicycle manufacturers, acquired Excelsior motorcycles in 1911 and Henderson motorcycles in 1917 to exploit the demand. In the late teens and twenties, some manufacturers even designed bicycles that resembled motorcycles to appeal to boys. This 1927 Snyder bike resembles a contemporary motorcycle; it has a tool box shaped like a gasoline tank, an electric headlight with battery compartment, and a luggage rack. Making bicycles look like motor vehicles became a long-lasting trend. From the 1930s to the 1960s, headlights and imitation gasoline tanks on some bicycles had shapes that suggested streamlined automobiles or airplanes, exciting the imagination of children.
date made
1927
maker
Homer P. Snyder Mfg. Co., Inc.
ID Number
TR.309382.01
catalog number
309382
accession number
99530
The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. This model was likely built around then. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship.
Description
The ocean liner Leviathan was built as the Vaterland for Germany's Hamburg-American Line in 1914. This model was likely built around then. During World War I the American government seized the ship and operated it as a troopship. After a complete reconditioning at Newport News, Virginia in 1922-23, the Leviathan became the flagship of the new United States Lines, which operated it for the U.S. Shipping Board until 1929. Subsequently sold into private hands, the ship ran until 1934. Laid up as a result of high operating costs and low Depression-era patronage, the Leviathan was sold to Scottish shipbreakers in 1938 and dismantled. This model came to the Smithsonian from the New York City offices of the United States Lines in 1952.
date made
ca 1914
used date
1914-1938
ID Number
TR.314250
catalog number
314250
accession number
196508
The Bonney-Vehslage Tool Co. made this ticket punch that was used on the Southern Railway's Murphy Branch line during the 1920s. This punch makes an “L” shaped hole in the ticket.
Description
The Bonney-Vehslage Tool Co. made this ticket punch that was used on the Southern Railway's Murphy Branch line during the 1920s. This punch makes an “L” shaped hole in the ticket. A conductor's punch cancelled the passenger's ticket stub and also cancelled the main portion of the ticket retained by the conductor. Each conductor had his own punch, which made a specifically shaped hole. The hole shape differed from punch to punch. In this way, if a passenger presented a stub and claimed his ticket had already been taken, a conductor could verify who in fact cancelled the ticket. A railroad conductor on a passenger train was (and is today) the supervising officer of the train and supervisor of the entire train crew. In addition to this supervisory role, the passenger-train conductor serves as the pursar, in charge of seeing to it that all fares are collected.
date made
ca 1920
ca. 1920
associated dates
1910 / 1910
used date
1920-1940
user
Southern Railway
ID Number
1990.0119.01
catalog number
1990.0119.01
accession number
1990.0119
Ira Wertman, a farmer in Andreas, Pennsylvania, raised fruits and vegetables and peddled them with this truck to retired coal miners near Allentown. He also used the truck to take produce to market and haul supplies from town to the farm.
Description
Ira Wertman, a farmer in Andreas, Pennsylvania, raised fruits and vegetables and peddled them with this truck to retired coal miners near Allentown. He also used the truck to take produce to market and haul supplies from town to the farm. Pickup trucks have been versatile aids to a wide range of agricultural, personal, and business activities. Early pickup trucks were modified automobiles, but postwar models were larger, more powerful, and able to carry heavier loads. Some postwar pickups were used in building suburban communities. Others were used for recreational purposes such as camping, hunting, and fishing. By the 1990s, many people purchased pickups for everyday driving.
date made
1949
maker
General Motors Corporation
ID Number
1999.0057.01
accession number
1999.0057
catalog number
1999.0057.01
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II.
Description
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Barnard & Gibson, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.
Manassas, the junction of the Orange and Alexandria and Manassas Gap Railroads, twenty-seven miles from Alexandria, strikes the attention of the visitor at once by its remarkable strength as a military position. High table land, flanked by dense woods, and bounded on all sides by deep, treacherous streams, or precipitous bluffs, no better place could have been selected by the Confederates for a permanent camp from which to harrass an enemy or repel attack, To this point the Southern levies were hastened immediately after the fall of Sumter, and the village of half a dozen houses soon became the centre of a vast came, which, though nearly overwhelmed by the attack of July 21, 1861, remained increasing in strength until March, 1862, when the movements of General McClellan compelled its abandonment. The scene of devastation after the evacuation was terrible.
Of the pleasant village only tottering chimneys were left, surrounded by blackened ruins, and the debris of half-burned cars and storehouses. The forts were dismantled, broken wagons were strewn over the fields, and quartermaster and commissary stores smoked in all directions, presenting one wide area of desolation, but a small portion of which can be represented in a single photograph.
Such material as had not been wholly destroyed by the fire was speedily removed by the Government. Federal camps were established, and with the return of spring much of that which disfigured the landscape utterly disappeared. The view of the adjacent country from this point is very fine, and the historic fields of Bull Run, Gainesville, and Groveton, within a few minutes drive, will forever attract the tourist to this spot.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1862-03
maker
Gardner, Alexander
ID Number
1986.0711.0334.10
accession number
1986.0711
catalog number
1986.0711.0334.10
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H.
Description
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H. O'Sullivan, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.
This station is on the railroad between Petersburg and Lynchburg; distant from the former place ninety-six miles, and from Appomattox Court-House, three miles. The place in itself is very insignificant, but received some notoriety from the fact that the last train conveying provisions to General Lee's army, during his retreat, was captured there by the United States forces. The train had arrived very early in the morning, (April 8, 1865,) and the supplies were being transferred to wagons and ambulances, by a detail of about four thousand men, many of them unarmed, when suddenly our cavalry charged upon them, having reached the spot by a by-road leading from the Red House. The rebel officers made strenuous efforts to force their men to resist the attack, but, after a few shots, they fled in confusion, and scattered through the adjoining woods. This was the last effort made by Lee to obtain food for his half-famished army, and with its failure, he evidently gave up all hope. Without halting a moment, the cavalry pushed on, driving the enemy (who had reached the depot about the same hour) in the direction of Appomattox Court-House, capturing many prisoners, twenty-five pieces of artillery, a hospital train, and a large park of wagons.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1865-04
maker
Gardner, Alexander
ID Number
1986.0711.0283.47
accession number
1986.0711
catalog number
1986.0711.0283.47
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H. O'Sullivan, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.Here is shown one of the pontoon boats used by the Army of the Potomac in the construction of bridges.
Description
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H. O'Sullivan, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.
Here is shown one of the pontoon boats used by the Army of the Potomac in the construction of bridges. Each boat was drawn by six mules, and was accompanied by a wagon, carrying plank, ropes, and anchors. In building a pontoon bridge, the boats would be slid off from the wagons into the water, and rowed out into the stream, where they were made stationary by means of ropes and anchors attached to the bows. Timbers were then laid from boat to boat, and the plank laid down, the whole being firmly lashed together with ropes. In crossing a stream when closely pursued by the enemy, the anchors could be taken up, and one end of the bridge detached from the shore, thus allowing it to swing round with the current, against the bank, where it could be taken up at leisure. When used as a permanent crossing, a box containing a lantern was placed at each end of the bridge at night, for the purpose of signaling the approach of teams. Before any one was allowed to cross the bridge after dark, the sentry would open and close the door of the box three times, as a signal to the sentry on the opposite side that the bridge was about to be occupied, thus preventing the meeting of wagons on the narrow structure. The different armies used a great variety of pontoons during the war. Some had corrugated iron boats, others, frames covered with thick canvas, and on a few occasions inflated gutta percha floats were used. The latter, however, were liable to become unserviceable from perforation in transporting them, or from the bullets of the enemy, and the wooden boat finally came into general use.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1864-02
maker
Gardner, Alexander
ID Number
1986.0711.0283.08
accession number
1986.0711
catalog number
1986.0711.0283.08
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H.
Description
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H. O'Sullivan, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.
This wagon park represents the transportation of all that portion of the Quartermaster's Department, which included the various field repair shops, carpenters, saddlers, harness-makers, blacksmiths, wheelwrights, wagon builders, and the like, belonging to the Army of the Potomac. When in full operation it was a very extensive establishment, and one of much importance to the army. Thousands of mules and horses were here shod every month, and almost an equal number of disabled wagons, ambulances, &c., repaired, the rough usage to which the trains were subjected breaking down even the strongest-built army wagons. In addition to the repairs done here, there were made tables, seats, and desks, for office furniture, required by the various departments in camp. Indeed, it would be difficult to say what the Quartermaster might not have to construct or mend at a moment's notice. Sometimes Col. Pierce, the officer in charge, would find a whole division of cavalry upon his hands, in the most unexpected manner; just in from a raid or a fight, their own proper depot out of reach, and all in want of shoes to their horses and repairs to their equipments. Then there were lively times at the repair shops; harness-sewers working to distraction, and blacksmiths punishing their anvils day and night, while the cry was "still they come." At other times, while the summer campaigns were in progress, there would be little to do but keep the mules harnessed for a start, and lounge upon the ground, or around the sutler's wagon.
This train numbered about two hundred and forty wagons – no trifling command to move with precision and safety over a country almost destitute of paved roads; but when compared with the entire transportation of the army, it was a small matter. For the carriage of ordnance, commissary and quartermaster stores, the baggage of the troops, and for transporting the sick and wounded, nearly six thousand wagons and ambulances had to be put in motion, requiring at least sixty miles of road to string out upon. Moving upon dirt roads, generally cut up by the wheels of over three hundred guns, the same number of caissons, the accompanying forges and battery wagons, and a pontoon train or two – the labor required by the draught animals was excessive. As for the swearing done by the teamsters, no words can describe its amount, nor can any memory do justice to its variety and originality. But for these immense trains, and their cumbrous movements, many a battle would have remained unfought, an engagement sometimes being absolutely necessary for their preservation. One of these was the battle of Bristow Station, where the rebel army made a flank attack upon the Second Corps, hoping, by a vigorous assault, to drive our men, and cripple the army by destroying its train, moving under cover of the column of infantry.
When collected in one encampment, the sight of the vast parks of wagons was very imposing. On one occasion, two days before the battle of Bristow, almost the entire transportation of the army was accumulated in the vicinity of Bealton, covering the fields in all directions as far as the eye could reach with white covers, all stamped, with the badge of their respective corps, division and brigade.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1863-05
maker
Gardner, Alexander
ID Number
1986.0711.0283.14
accession number
1986.0711
catalog number
1986.0711.0283.14
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H.
Description
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H. O'Sullivan, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.
The South Side Railway, between Petersburg and Lynchburg, crosses the Appomattox river and its broad valley, by what is now well known as High Bridge. With one exception, it is the highest structure of the kind on this continent, being one hundred and twenty-eight feet above the level of the river, and two thousand four hundred feet in length.
On the morning of the 7th of April, 1865, the Second Corps of the Army of the Potomac, in pursuit of the enemy, came up with them at this point. The Confederates endeavored not only to burn the railroad bridge, but also the common road bridge, which crosses the river a short distance below. The latter was fortunately saved, and but three spans of the former were burned. The picture shows that this damage has since been repaired by the substitution of, a trestle bridge along the sections destroyed. Owing to the great height of the piers, and the haste with which the bridge was repaired, it is now rather insecure, rendering it necessary for the trains to pass over at a very slow rate of speed. At high water the river covered the whole of the flats, and extended above the stone base of the piers.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Gardner, Alexander
ID Number
1986.0711.0283.48
accession number
1986.0711
catalog number
1986.0711.0283.48
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Alexander Gardner, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.The principal object in this picture is the ruin of what was once one of the finest flour mills of the country.
Description
Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Alexander Gardner, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.
The principal object in this picture is the ruin of what was once one of the finest flour mills of the country. Haxall's Mill had a floor surface of eight acres, and a water-power that never failed. The great preservative qualities of the flour made here procured for it an extended reputation, and rendered it very desirable in the navy, as on shipboard it would keep a couple of years unchanged. On this account large quantities were purchased for the British navy. During the war the mill was kept busy by the rebel government, supplying the wants of the army, and when Richmond was evacuated, fell a prey to the fire, which, in its progress, burned over thirty squares of the business part of the city, consuming many of the public buildings. Crenshaw's Mill on the left of the canal, escaped the torch of the incendiary, and owing to a favorable wind was preserved, as were also the wooden shops on the right.
The canal was of much value in bringing supplies to the Confederate capital, thus relieving the overworked railroads. From its position it was very difficult to permanently injure it. Wyndham reached it during Stoneman's raid in 1863, but for want of powder to blowup the aqueduct, did only temporary damage. Sheridan in the spring of 1864, again destroyed a portion of it, which was not repaired until after the surrender of Lee.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1865-04
maker
Gardner, Alexander
ID Number
1986.0711.0283.42
accession number
1986.0711
catalog number
1986.0711.0283.42
St. George's Engineering Company of Birmingham, England manufactured this New Rapid safety bicycle in 1889. The cycle has an improved cross frame with crank-bracket stay and a small footrest on the front wheel for coasting.
Description
St. George's Engineering Company of Birmingham, England manufactured this New Rapid safety bicycle in 1889. The cycle has an improved cross frame with crank-bracket stay and a small footrest on the front wheel for coasting. A small leather tool bag hangs from the steering-head stay. Attached to a bracket on the front of the steering head is an oil lamp marked "Zacharias & Smith, Bicycle Sundries, Newark, N. J." The cycle is emblematic of the type produced in Britain during the 1880s.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1889
ID Number
TR.201660.1
catalog number
201660
accession number
35291
The stiff wood and metal frame of velocipedes resulted in a rough ride, garnering them the “boneshaker” moniker. Propelled by pedals attached to the front axle, velocipedes were the historical antecedent to the high-wheeler and safety bicycle later in 19th century.
Description
The stiff wood and metal frame of velocipedes resulted in a rough ride, garnering them the “boneshaker” moniker. Propelled by pedals attached to the front axle, velocipedes were the historical antecedent to the high-wheeler and safety bicycle later in 19th century. This velocipede bears a brass plate that reads "J. Shire, Patent Reallowed May 10, 1879, Detroit, Mich." The plate is somewhat curious as the only patent granted to John Shire was patent number 216,231 which he applied for on May 6, 1879 and was granted June 3, 1879. Shire’s patent was an “improvement in velocipedes” that mainly related to an adjustable hammock-seat on the cycle.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1879
ID Number
TR.248087
accession number
47898
catalog number
TR.248087
Elbert C. Wood used this ordinary (high-wheeler) bicycle as a child in 1885. The ordinary has a 32-inch front wheel and a 12-inch rear wheel. The bicycle is made of iron with wooden grips and a learther-covered iron saddle.Currently not on view
Description
Elbert C. Wood used this ordinary (high-wheeler) bicycle as a child in 1885. The ordinary has a 32-inch front wheel and a 12-inch rear wheel. The bicycle is made of iron with wooden grips and a learther-covered iron saddle.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1885
ID Number
TR.317075
catalog number
317075
accession number
229882

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