Collection context
Summary
- Title:
- Whitcomb Locomotive Company records
- Dates:
- 1906-1952
- Abstract:
- The Whitcomb Locomotive Company Records include the corporate records of the George D. Whitcomb Company from 1916-1931, the Whitcomb Locomotive Company from 1931 to 1940, and the Whitcomb Division of the Baldwin Locomotive Works from 1940 until 1950, when Baldwin purchased the Lima-Hamilton Company and became Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton, until the Whitcomb Locomotive Company name was retired in 1952. Material includes locomotive drawings, specifications, photographs, manufacturing records, operations and parts manuals, and sales department records.
- Extent:
- 300 Linear Feet 269 record cartons +14 card boxes + 12 filing cabinet drawers
- Language:
- English .
Background
- Scope and content:
-
The Whitcomb Locomotive Company Records include the corporate records of the George D. Whitcomb Company from 1916-1931, the Whitcomb Locomotive Company from 1931 to 1940, and the Whitcomb Division of the Baldwin Locomotive Works from 1940 until 1950, when Baldwin purchased the Lima-Hamilton Company and became Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton, until the Whitcomb Locomotive Company name was retired in 1952. Material includes locomotive drawings, specifications, photographs, manufacturing records, operations and parts manuals, and sales department records. They provide detailed information about every locomotive type they manufactured, including detailed specifications of any modifications or parts purchased for every locomotive they manufactured. There are records from their sales and manufacturing departments, and photographs of some locomotives taken were routinely taken and appended to the sales orders after 1931.
- Biographical / historical:
-
The Whitcomb Locomotive Company was a builder of gasoline and diesel powered industrial locomotives that supplied companies around the world with a variety of configurations for moving cars within factory environments.
The George D. Whitcomb Company was incorporated by George D. Whitcomb on May 6, 1896 in Illinois. George's son George Card Whitcomb replaced George D. Whitcomb as General Manager in 1907, and after George senior's death in 1914 he took over the company.
The company sold its first gas-mechanical locomotive in 1906. In October of 1914 Whitcomb introduced and shipped its first electric storage battery locomotive. Its first gas-electric locomotive was manufactured in 1928. Whitcomb introduced its first diesel-electric locomotive in 1929.
A friendship between Baldwin President Samuel L. Vauclain and Whitcomb President George Whitcomb led to Baldwin taking a financial interest in the George D. Whitcomb Company. In 1927, Baldwin Locomotive Works began representing Whitcomb in the sales division. Baldwin acquired a half-interest in Whitcomb stock in 1928. After suffering a downturn in orders during the Great Depression, Whitcomb lost control of the company to Baldwin Locomotive Works. After declaring bankruptcy on behalf of Whitcomb in 1931, Baldwin reorganized it as the Whitcomb Locomotive Company and operated it under that name until 1940. Starting in 1934 the Baldwin Locomotive Works took over the sales, repair, and renewal parts business from the Whitcomb Company.
In July 19, 1932, Whitcomb acquired the Milwaukee Locomotive Manufacture Company.
Whitcomb became a division of Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1940. During World War II, Whitcomb supplied the United States Army Transportation Corps with diesel-electric switchers.
In December 4, 1950, Baldwin Locomotive Works bought the Lima-Hamilton Company and became the Baldwin – Lima – Hamilton Corporation. Whitcomb construction facilities moved from Rochelle, Illinois to Eddystone, Pennsylvania. BLH continued to use the Whitcomb name until December 1952.
- Acquisition information:
- Gift of the Baldwin - Lima - Hamilton Company, 1979.
- Custodial history:
-
This collection was donated by the Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton Company who kept the corporate records of the Whitcomb Locomotive Company and the Sterling Engine Company at their manufacturing plant in Honey Brook, Pennsylvania.
- Arrangement:
-
These records have been arranged into the following series: Series 1. Card Files Series 2. Manufacturing Records Series 3. Operating and Maintenance Manuals Series 4. Specifications Series 5. Photographs and Negatives Series 6. Drawings Series 7. Bills of Material Index Sheets and Drawings Lists Series 8. Sales Department Records Series 9. Vendor Files Series 10. Whitcomb Renewal Parts Books
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Indexed terms
About this collection guide
- Date Encoded:
- This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2025-09-30 21:39:58 +0000 .
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
Collection is open for research. Contact Library Staff for details.
- Terms of access:
-
Copyright has not been assigned to the California State Railroad Museum. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the CSRM Library & Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the CSRM as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.
- Location of this collection:
-
111 I StreetSacramento, CA 95814, US
- Contact:
- (916) 323-8073