CENTIPEDES, SHARKNOSES AND THE END OF BALDWIN LOCOMOTIVE WORKS

OF the big three American locomotive builders of the steam era – Baldwin, American Locomotive Co, and Lima – the Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was the longest established and had by far the greatest output. Founded by Matthias W Baldwin in 1831, it was for many years a slightly eccentric organisation to modern managerial minds. Until 1911, there was no Baldwin Locomotive Corporation as such, but instead a series of private partnerships that sold their products under the Baldwin trade name.

Similarly, the original manufacturing plant was very much of the 19th century. When built in 1835/36, the works facing Broad St, Philadelphia, were practically out in the country on a former 18th century country estate called Bush Hill. By the end of the century, the 20-acre factory was surrounded by densely-packed heavy industry and cut about by several public roads. There was no scope for expansion except upwards and so some of the shops were on two, three and even four floors.

Despite the obvious inefficiencies of such a cramped location, Baldwins prospered greatly and in 1906 a workforce of more than 17,000 men produced the astonishing annual total of 2666 locomotives to a value of $46 million. That was equivalent to one locomotive every three hours round the clock.

The secret of Baldwin’s success was to provide sound and serviceable locomotives, largely assembled from a range of standardised components, delivered quickly, and at a price the customer could afford.

Bold expansion plans

With an apparently inexhaustible demand for locomotives, the partners decided upon a breathtaking plan of expansion. In that climactic year of 1906, they purchased 600 acres of farmland at Eddystone – a few miles south of Philadelphia – and over the course of the next 22 years built what was to become the world’s largest locomotive manufacturing plant. With a covered area of more than 100 acres, it was designed to produce 5000 to 6000 locomotives a year for domestic and world markets. The doors at the Broad St factory finally closed in 1928.

Eddystone proved to be a step too far. Except for 1942-1945, when some 7200 locomotives were turned out, the plant failed to reach