CAR-BUILDING. 



129 



never be accomplished. About 1819 Benjamin 

 Dearborn, of Boston, petitioned Congress in 

 regard to wheeled-carriages for the conveyance 

 of mails aiid passengers ' with such celerity as 

 had never before been accomplished, and with 

 complete security from robbery on the high- 

 way." His memorial points to the sleeping- 

 car and the train-restaurant as among the 

 possibilities of the future. But Congress was 

 indifferent then, as now, to matters outside of 

 practical politics, and the committee to whom 

 the matter was referred never saw fit to rescue 

 it from oblivion. 



In the mean time the problem had been suc- 

 cessfully solved on the Stockton and Darling- 

 ton Railway in England, and in 1825 William 

 Strickland was sent abroad in the interest of 

 the Pennsylvania Society for the Promotion of 

 Internal Improvement. As a result of his 

 reports on English railways, private enterprise 

 took courage in America. The first cars here, 

 as in England, were constructed for tramway 

 service. They were in connection with the 

 granite-quarries at Quincy, Mass., and in Dela- 

 ware County, Pa., in 1826; and in 1827 a 

 coal-road nine miles long was opened from the 

 Mauch Chunk mines to Lehigh river. The 

 rolling-stock of these early roads was the work 

 of wagon-builders, whose purpose was merely 

 to mount stout boxes upon wheels suitable for 

 running upon rails. The complicated prob- 

 lems of oscillating trucks and passing curves 

 at high speed came in later. 



The early annals of car-building are neces- 

 sarily somewhat incomplete. One of the first 

 references to the infant industry is found in 

 the Philadelphia "American Daily Adver- 

 tiser," under date of Nov. 26, 1832. It de- 

 scribes the trial trip of the locomotive built by 

 M. W. Baldwin, of that city: 



It gives us pleasure to state that the locomotive en- 

 gine built by our townsman, M. W. Baldwin, for the 

 Philadelphia, Germantown, and Norristown Railroad 

 Company, has proved highly successful. In the 

 presence of a number of gentlemen of science and in- 

 formation on such subjects, the engine was yesterday 

 placed on the road for the first time. All her parts 

 nad been previously highly polished and fitted to- 

 gether in Mr. Baldwin's factory. She was taken to- 

 tally apart on Tuesday and "removed to the com- 

 pany's depot, and yesterday morning she was com- 

 pletely put together, ready for travel. After the regu- 

 lar passenger-cars had arrived from Germantown in 

 the afternoon, the tracks being clear, preparation was 

 made for her starting. The placing the tire in the 

 furnace and raising the steam occupied twenty min- 

 utes. The engine (with her tender) moved from the 

 oepot in beautiful style, working with great ease and 

 uniformity. She proceeded about one half a mile be- 

 yond tbe Union Tavern at the township line, and re- 

 turned immediately, a distance of six miles, at a 

 speed of about twenty-eight miles to the hour. Her 

 speed having to be greatly slackened at all road-cross- 

 ings, and it being after 'dark, but a portion of her 

 power was used. 



_ It is needless to s-ay that the spectators were de- 

 lighted. From this experiment there is every reason 

 to believe that this engine will draw thirty tons gross, 

 at an average speed of forty miles to th"e hour, on a 

 level road. The chief superiority of this engine over 

 any of the English ones, now consists in the light 

 VOL. xxvni. 9 A 



weL'ht which is but between four and five tons 

 her small bulk, and the simplicity of her working 

 machinery. We rejoice at the result of this experi- 

 ment, as it conclusively proves that Philadelphia, al- 

 ways famous for the skill of her mechanics, is enabled 

 to produce steam-engines for railroads, combii: 

 many superior qualities as to warrant the belief that 

 her mechanics will hereafter supply nearly all the 

 public works of this description in the country, and 

 by our superiority in the adaptation of this motive 

 power, as we have hitherto in navigation, perhaps 

 supply England herself. By the company's adver- 

 tisement in to-dav's paper, it will be seen that this 

 engine will take her place regularly on the road this 

 day. 



Cars are here mentioned, incidentally as it 

 were, in connection with the new locomotive, 

 but the citation proves that the "regular pas- 

 senger-cars" were already familiar to the pub- 

 lic. Other early allusions are somewhat un- 

 certain as to date. About 1830 "Peter Par- 

 ley- " wrote : 



Now, in order to carrv on all this business more 

 easily, the people are building what is called a rail- 

 road. This consists of iron bars laid along the 

 ground, and made fast, so that carriages with small 

 wheels may run along upon them with facility. In 

 this way, one horse will be able to draw as much as 

 ten horses on a common road. A part of this rail- 

 road is already done, and, if you choose to take a ri.de 

 upon it. you can do so. You will mount a car som2- 

 thing like a stage, and then you will be drawn along 

 by two horses, at the rate of twelve miles an hour. 



Such was the beginning of the Baltimore 

 and Ohio Railroad, now known so familiarly 

 to millions of people that it is called the " B. 

 & O." for short. Its construction was begun 

 in 1828, and the first section of fifteen miles 

 was ready for traffic in May, 1830. Fig. 2 is 

 the sketch, probably somewhat fanciful, that 

 accompanied Peter Parley's description. 



In November, 1832, an advertisement ap- 

 peared in Philadelphia papers in the interest 

 of the Philadelphia, Germantown, and Norris- 

 town Railroad, in which, after the schedule of 

 trains, was the following paragraph : 



Passengers wishing to take a short excursion will 

 find this a very pleasant one. The scenery alons; the 

 road is very beautiful, and at Germantown Mr. tVun- 

 der's hotel is fitted up in a stvle that will render com- 

 fort on a warm day, as refreshments of the best quali- 

 ty and in abundance will be constantly on hand ; and 

 persons wishing to take a walk in the fields will find 

 the scenery on the Wissahickon very romantic and 

 beautiful, and but a few minutes' walk from the rail- 

 road. 



The firm of Kimball & Davenport, of Cam- 

 bridgeport, Mass., was probably the first in the 

 United States to take up car-building on a large 

 scale. They entered upon the business in 1834, 

 and for twenty-two years were among the lead- 

 ing establishments in that branch of industry. 

 Charles Davenport was the active member of 

 the concern. He delivered his first passenger- 

 car to the Boston and Worcester Railroad in 

 the spring of 1835. It was a departure from 

 the English coach-body pattern, though it re- 

 tained the side doors. The seats all faced one 

 way, which necessitated turning the car at the 

 end of the route. Mr. Davenport soon devised 

 reversible seats, but did not patent them, and 



