﻿MECHANICAL 
  TRANSPORT 
  MITMAN 
  537 
  

  

  & 
  Hamburg 
  Railroad 
  in 
  1830 
  and 
  1831, 
  respectively, 
  and 
  the 
  Dewitt 
  

   Clinton, 
  sucessfully 
  operated 
  on 
  the 
  Mohawk 
  & 
  Hudson 
  Railroad, 
  

   the 
  forerunner 
  of 
  the 
  New 
  York 
  Central 
  system, 
  in 
  1831. 
  The 
  

   foundry 
  owners, 
  however, 
  did 
  not 
  regard 
  locomotive 
  building 
  as 
  a 
  

   very 
  promising 
  business, 
  and 
  after 
  completing 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  additional 
  

   engines, 
  declined 
  further 
  orders. 
  

  

  Meanwhile, 
  as 
  agitation 
  in 
  favor 
  of 
  railroad 
  building 
  intensified, 
  

   small 
  machine 
  shop 
  owners, 
  watchmakers, 
  and 
  even 
  a 
  United 
  States 
  

   topographical 
  engineer 
  all 
  dabbled 
  in 
  locomotive 
  construction. 
  

   Their 
  first 
  big 
  chance 
  to 
  show 
  what 
  they 
  could 
  do 
  came 
  in 
  1831 
  when 
  

   the 
  Baltimore 
  & 
  Ohio 
  offered 
  a 
  premium 
  of 
  S4,000 
  for 
  a 
  locomotive 
  

   that 
  would 
  pull 
  15 
  tons 
  at 
  a 
  speed 
  of 
  15 
  miles 
  an 
  hour. 
  Five 
  would-be 
  

   locomotive 
  builders 
  entered 
  the 
  competition: 
  Johnson, 
  a 
  machinist 
  

   of 
  Baltimore, 
  in 
  whose 
  shop 
  Peter 
  Cooper 
  assembled 
  the 
  Tom 
  Thumb 
  ; 
  

   James, 
  a 
  mechanical 
  genius 
  of 
  New 
  York, 
  who 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  invented 
  

   the 
  link 
  motion 
  for 
  locomotives; 
  Davis 
  and 
  Gardner, 
  a 
  watchmaker- 
  

   machinist 
  combination 
  of 
  York, 
  Pa.; 
  Costell, 
  a 
  watchmaker 
  of 
  

   Philadelphia; 
  and 
  Childs, 
  also 
  a 
  watchmaker 
  of 
  Philadelphia. 
  Davis 
  

   and 
  Gardner 
  won 
  with 
  their 
  locomotive 
  York, 
  and 
  Davis 
  became 
  

   manager 
  of 
  the 
  Baltimore 
  & 
  Ohio 
  shops 
  shortly 
  afterwards. 
  Three 
  

   years 
  later 
  he 
  was 
  killed, 
  when 
  one 
  of 
  his 
  locomotives 
  overturned 
  

   while 
  on 
  a 
  trial 
  run 
  from 
  Washington 
  to 
  Baltimore. 
  Of 
  Costell, 
  

   Childs, 
  and 
  Johnson, 
  nothing 
  further 
  was 
  heard 
  after 
  their 
  first 
  

   venture. 
  

  

  Besides 
  these 
  somewhat 
  casual 
  experimentalists 
  there 
  were 
  others 
  

   who 
  organized 
  shops 
  specifically 
  for 
  locomotive 
  building. 
  Many 
  

   soon 
  passed 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  picture, 
  but 
  a 
  sound 
  beginning 
  toward 
  an 
  Ameri- 
  

   can 
  locomotive 
  works 
  was 
  made 
  when 
  Col. 
  Stephen 
  Long 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  

   States 
  Corps 
  of 
  Topographical 
  Engineers 
  and 
  Jonathan 
  Knight, 
  

   first 
  chief 
  engineer 
  of 
  the 
  Baltimore 
  & 
  Ohio 
  Railroad, 
  obtained 
  a 
  

   charter 
  in 
  1830 
  from 
  Pennsylvania 
  for 
  the 
  American 
  Steam 
  Carriage 
  

   Co. 
  When 
  Long's 
  locomotive 
  proved 
  a 
  dismal 
  failure 
  this 
  company 
  

   came 
  to 
  a 
  premature 
  end, 
  but 
  it 
  was 
  resuscitated 
  two 
  years 
  later 
  as 
  

   Long 
  & 
  Norris, 
  and 
  operated 
  successfully 
  for 
  many 
  years. 
  In 
  fact 
  

   it 
  was 
  the 
  admirable 
  performance 
  of 
  Norris's 
  locomotives 
  in 
  England 
  

   and 
  on 
  the 
  Continent 
  in 
  the 
  1850's 
  that 
  first 
  established 
  an 
  interna- 
  

   tional 
  reputation 
  for 
  American 
  locomotives 
  generally. 
  

  

  MATTHIAS 
  W. 
  BALDWIN 
  

  

  Matthias 
  W. 
  Baldwin, 
  the 
  founder 
  of 
  the 
  Baldwin 
  Locomotive 
  

   Works 
  at 
  Philadelphia, 
  was 
  also 
  drawn 
  into 
  the 
  locomotive 
  industry 
  

   in 
  this 
  period 
  and 
  in 
  a 
  rather 
  unusual 
  way. 
  Though 
  he 
  had 
  been 
  a 
  

   jeweler 
  and 
  silversmith 
  by 
  trade 
  from 
  the 
  ago 
  of 
  16, 
  in 
  1830 
  he 
  formed 
  

   a 
  partnership 
  with 
  a 
  machinist 
  for 
  manufacturing 
  bookbinder's 
  tools 
  

   and 
  calico 
  printing 
  cylinders. 
  For 
  the 
  firm's 
  use 
  Baldwin 
  had 
  built 
  a 
  

   steam 
  engine 
  which 
  was 
  both 
  unique 
  in 
  design 
  and 
  most 
  eflicient 
  for 
  

  

  