Transportation - Overview
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.
"Transportation - Overview" showing 20 items.
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Steam Locomotive, Southern Railway 1401
- Description
- The 4-6-2 "Pacific" type steam locomotive for passenger trains was introduced late in the 19th century and perfected after 1910. It was among the most numerous type of steam locomotive for passenger trains operated in the United States from about 1910 to 1955. This type was characterized by four leading or "pilot" wheels, arranged in a "truck" to guide the locomotive in curves; 6 large-diameter driving wheels for power and speed; and a pair of "trailing wheels" in a "trailing truck" under the rear of the engine to help support its great weight.
- Far from ordinary, the Class Ps-4-type steam locomotives of the Southern Railway were inspired by handsomely painted British locomotives. The Ps-4's green and gold livery set these locomotives apart from the funereal black associated with most American steam locomotives in the 20th century. The distinctive green was exclusive to locomotives on the Southern Railway that were assigned to the company's principal passenger trains, such as the Crescent Limited, the Piedmont Limited, and others.
- The Charlotte Division was part of the Southern's Washington–Atlanta mainline, with extension of the mainline to Birmingham and New Orleans on track leased by Southern. The Charlotte Division included the line between Greenville, S.C., and Salisbury/Spencer, N.C. Thus the 1401 rarely, if ever, ran north of Spencer, home of the Southern's vast Spencer Shops for the heavy repair of locomotives from throughout the system.
- A Ps-4 was capable of hauling 12–15 steel passenger cars, about 700–1000 tons, at 80 mph on level track. (The hill-and-dale profile of the Charlotte Division, however, kept average speeds to about 50–60 mph.) The 14,000 gallons of water in the tender permitted runs of about 150 miles—the full length of the Division—between water stops, although there would be one intermediate water stop normally scheduled. Fuel (16 tons of bituminous coal) in the tender was good for the full 150 miles.
- Date made
- 1926
- user
- Southern Railway
- maker
- American Locomotive Company. Richmond Works
- ID Number
- TR*320000
- accession number
- 196330
- catalog number
- 320000.01
- accession number
- 196330
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
- No Image Available
James J. Hill Scrapbook, 1916
- Notes
- Hill was the son of a farmer in Ontario, Canada. At 18 he moved to St. Paul, Minn., and took a job as a clerk with a steamship company. In 1873 he and a partner took over the bankrupt St. Louis and Pacific Railway. This line was reorganized in 1879 as the St. Paul, Minnesota and Manitoba Railway, with Hill as General Manager; in 1883 he became its President. Hill extended his rail line into the Great Northwest and opened it up to commerce. He amassed a fortune, estimated at between 200 to 250 million dollars at his death
- Summary
- Scrapbook contains clippings of the news stories and obituaries printed after the death of James J. Hill on May 29, 1916, drawn from newspapers throughout the United States and Canada
- Cite as
- James J. Hill Scrapbook, 1916, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Date
- 1916
- 1910-1920
- collector
- Warshaw, Isadore d. 1969
- Subject
- Hill, James Jerome 1838-1916
- Great Northern Railroad
- St. Paul, Minnesota and Mantioba Railway
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
- No Image Available
Samuel Morse Felton Family Papers, 1841-1930
- Notes
- Felton (1), civil engineer, is best known as the president of the Philadelphia, Wilmington, and Baltimore RR (PWBRR,) which he rebuilt and restored; president of the Pennsylvania Steel Company; and in 1869 as a commissioner appointed by President Grant to inspect the Pacific railroads. In April 1857, Felton placed the engine "Daniel Webster" in service on the PWBRR--probably the first successful coal-burning passenger engine in regular service on any American railroad. He was born in Philadelphia, 1853; graduated from M.I.T. 1873. 1889: became president of the Chicago and Alton Railroad, later assumed the presidency of the Mexican Central Railroad, and became president of the Chicago Great Western Railroad in 1909. During World War I he was appointed Director General of Military Railways and had charge of the organization and dispatch to France of all American railway forces and supplies. As of 1928 he was Chairman of the Board of the Chicago Great Western Railroad; president, Western Railroad Association; and chairman, Western Association of Railway Executives, to name only a few of his positions. At his death he was an advisor and associate of the Central Trust Company of Illinois
- Summary
- Biographical material on both Feltons; correspondence, 1861-1927 to and from both Feltons; a report by Felton on the construction of the Norfolk Co. railroad, 1847-49; reports, 1917-19; and news clippings and articles, 185?-1930. The correspondence includes a 1926 letter regarding Conray Felton's article about an attempt to asssassinate Abraham Lincoln
- Cite as
- Samuel Morse Felton Family Papers, 1841-1930, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Date
- 1841
- 1841-1930
- 1840-1930
- Civil War, 1861-1865
- 1840-1940
- author
- Felton, Samuel Morse (son) 1853-1930
- Felton, Samuel Morse (civil engineer) 1809-1889
- collector
- Transportation, Division of, NMAH, SI
- Subject
- Fletcher, Andrew
- Atterbury, W.W
- Davis, Robert C
- McAdoo, W.G
- Ames, Oliver
- Smith, M.H
- Milliken, J
- Lomonossoff, G
- Cooke, Jay
- Scott, Thomas A
- Lincoln, Abraham 1809-1865
- Philadelphia RR
- Philadelphia, Wilmington, and Baltimore RR
- Louisville Southern Railway Co
- Southern Railway and Steamship Association
- American Locomotive Sales Corporation
- United States. War Department
- United States Army
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
Loading bananas at Costa Rica, Central America. 1491 photonegative 1905
- Notes
- Company catalog card included
- Currently stored in box 2.1.12 [87]
- Date
- 1905
- 1890-1920
- 1900-1910
- publisher
- Underwood & Underwood
- American Stereoscopic Co
- Local number
- RSN 9990
- Video number 09262
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
Among the finest bananas in the world--shipping station on a great banana plantation, Zent. Caption no. 4446 [?] stereo interpositive
- Notes
- Currently stored in box 3.2.14 [200]
- Date
- 1895
- 1921
- publisher
- Underwood & Underwood
- Local number
- RSN 21249
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
- No Image Available
William E. Woodard Patents, 1909-1949
- Notes
- Woodard was directly responsible for many developments in steam locomotive design. As an inventor of locomotive equipment, he had ninety-two patents on various mechanical features of steam locomotive and electric locomotive design. He worked for the Baldwin Locomotive Works, Cramp's Shipyard, the Dickson Locomotive Works, the Schenectady Locomotive Works, the American Locomotive Works (1900-1916), and, finally, the Lima Locomotive Works (1916-1942); during the same period he worked as a consultant to the Franklin Railway Supply Company. At the Lima Locomotive Works, he was vice president in charge of design until his death in 1942
- Summary
- Includes ninety-one patents exclusively issued to William E. Woodard; eleven others were joint issue in the name of Woodard and his associates. Among them are three United States patents, copies which are not in their original form
- Cite as
- William E. Woodard Patents, 1909-1949, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Date
- 1909
- 1909-1949
- 1890-1960
- 20th century
- author
- Woodard, William E (inventor) 1873-1942
- Subject
- Baldwin Locomotive Works
- Local number
- 1986.3183 (NMAH Acc.)
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
- No Image Available
Thomas Norrell Railroad Photographs Collection, circa 1840-circa 1960 (bulk 1870-1940)
- Notes
- Norrell was a collector of photographic and print materials on the history of railroads, and was a scholar on railroad history.
- Summary
- The collection contains approximately 11,000 images (original photographic prints and photographic postcards, original film and glass plate negatives, and duplicate/copy photographic prints and negatives) the majority of which are external views of single locomotive engines of North American railroad and industrial companies. Images of international railroad company locomotives and of representative locomotives from various locomotive works and builders are also included. The collection contains a small number of subject-specific images covering such topics as train wrecks, funeral trains, experimental locomotives, miniature trains, and locomotives at the 1933 and 1939 World's Fairs
- Cite as
- Thomas Norrell Railroad Photographs Collection, 1899-1985, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Date
- 1836
- 1836-1960
- circa 1840-circa 1960 bulk 1870-1940
- 19th century
- 20th century
- donor
- Norrell, Thomas 1899-1985
- collector
- Work and Industry, Division of, NMAH, SI
- Subject
- Century of Progress International Exposition (1933-1934 : Chicago, Ill.)
- New York World's Fair (1939-1940)
- Local number
- 266009 (NMAH Acc.)
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
- No Image Available
Southern Iron & Equipment Company Records, 1900-1960
- Notes
- The Southern Iron & Equipment Company, a family-owned business located in Atlanta, Georgia, was a major reconditioner of locomotives in the period ca. 1900-1960. The company purchased locomotives, refurbished them, and then sold them. In addition, the company did repair and reconditioning work on behalf of various railroads
- Summary
- These records document the rebuilding of locomotives by the Southern Iron & Equipment Company. They consist of one folder of "Memorandum of Locomotive Numbers" and a number of 6" x 4" cards recording sales of rebuilt locomotives. The "Memorandum," 48 pages total, lists the locomotive, manufacturer, and buyer. The cards, alphabetically arranged by purchaser, record the type of locomotive, manufacturer, its number, and purchase price. The cards contain most complete information on the period ca. 1903-1924; after that, only the number of the locomotive was noted on the card
- Cite as
- Southern Iron & Equipment Company Records, 1900-1960, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Date
- 1900
- 1900-1960
- author
- Southern Iron & Equipment Company
- donor
- Bond, Edward
- Subject
- Southern Iron & Equipment Company
- Local number
- 1990.3083 (NMAH Acc.)
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
- No Image Available
Timken Roller Bearing Company Collection, 1925-1957
- Notes
- The Timken Roller Bearing Co., Canton, Ohio, produced its first tapered roller bearings in the 1890s. The bearings were first used in horse-drawn vehicles and later in automobiles. As automobiles improved in design, power, and endurance, Timken made improvements in its bearings to compensate. The company soon realized that the only way to ensure quality in its product was through the production of its own special alloy steel. It organized the Timken Steel & Tube Company to supply itself and other manufacturers with high-grade steel. In the late 1920s, the company entered the railroad equipment supply market with special tapered bearings for locomotives
- Summary
- Primarily technical papers by Timken engineers, presented in journals and meetings of professional societies. The papers concern the use of Timken roller bearings and other products in locomotives and other rolling stock on U.S. railroads and rapid transit systems. Also articles from trade magazines and brochures advertising Timken products, and a 1925 U.S. Bureau of Mines study of friction in mine-car wheels
- Cite as
- Timken Roller Bearing Company Collection, 1925-1927, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Date
- 1925
- 1925-1927
- 1925-1957
- 20th century
- collector
- Timken Roller Bearing Company
- donor
- Pauly, Frank G
- author
- United States. Bureau of Mines
- Local number
- 1990.3162 (NMAH Acc.)
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
- No Image Available
Grand Central Terminal Collection, 1831-1978 (bulk 1903-1933)
- Notes
- New York City's Grand Central Terminal was constructed between 1903 and 1913. It replaced an earlier and smaller depot at the same location
- Twelve photographs in this collection, donated by Smithsonian Secretary S. Dillon Ripley in 1965, may have been taken by his grandfather, J. Dwight Ripley, who was "in charge of the contract to build the Grand Central Tunnel under Park Ave. These were photos of his taken at time of the construction," according to an undated handwritten note from Ripley accompanying the donation
- Summary
- Records include linen tracings, blueprints, and sketches made during time of construction; Construction Committee minute book, 1916; bound statements of cost of work; contract estimates, 1903-1933; miscellaneous photographs; histories of Grand Central Terminal; contractors' daily reports, 1914; miscellaneous printed agreements between railroad & city
- Cite as
- Grand Central Terminal Collection, 1831-1978 (bulk 1903-1933)
- Date
- 1831
- 1831-1978
- 1831-1978 bulk 1903-1933
- 19th century
- 20th century
- 1900-1950
- donor
- Morrison, Donald H
- Ripley, Sidney Dillon 1913-2001
- collector
- Work and Industry, Division of, NMAH, SI
- History of Technology, Division of, NMAH, SI
- Mechanical and Civil Engineering, Division of [former name], NMAH, SI
- Subject
- Grand Central Terminal
- Local number
- 259,268 (NMAH Acc.)
- 1981.0598 (NMAH Acc.)
- 2007.3213 (NMAH Acc.)
- 2007.3219 (NMAH Acc.)
- Data Source
- Archives Center - NMAH
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