iss: •^ (jfarnell HmoerHtty 2Iibrarg 3tJ)ata, Sfem ^ork QvT) •CaY'4-Tt?uncl^ Co. The date shows when this volume was taken. To renew this book copy the call No. and give to S"p .■ the librarian. JU _^- _ * h.„.« ^ HOME USE RULES rrETD il In, 1*^^^ K . *^ Books subject to recall All borrowers must refzis- jj.» _^j^_^^^j^i^^^. .yi. -I,, '-ter in the library to Vjorrow iSlPI'l-fi) lySS i* -^ books for home use. ""' J"-^"- All books must be re- turned at end of college tJl^T^ M j QH/ n y^^^ f'^'r inspection , and tniCnibrSii^^ LtP^" Limited boo^s must be ..1.1 1. K returned within the four *^'*JtSlt.f wsek limit and not renewed.^ Students must return all « books before leaving town. Officers should arranpe for the return of bools wanted during their absence from town. Volumes of periodicals and of pamphlets are held in the library as much as possible. For special pur- poses they are given out for ri limited time. '•*• Borrowers should not use their library privileges for the benefit of other persons. Books of special va\u^ and gift books, when the giver wishes it. are not ■^ allowed to circulate. ■ Readers are asked to re- .,' port all cases of books marked or mutilated. Do not deface books by marks and writing. Cornell University Library HD9999.R2 A51 + + The American Car and Foundry Co. in khak 3 1924 030 100 071 olin Overs ^ /J THE AMERICAAI CAR AAfD F O VAI D RY COMPATMY \t^ KHAKI \\ ==!t V rr I \m 3iii iii "^ William H. Woodin president V -a MinillllHHMlMTTr illl|!||n[!!|in!i!i|i|n!|ir!i!!|lii|H!l|l||!!!|H!|!![|l!l||||||||||n^ •* TH E ■* AMERICA/M CAR. Ay^D F OVA DRY CO. \N KHAKI zProduetion Achievements in the Qreat ^War hife m THE AMERICA/sJ CAR AND FOVADRY COMPAMY 165 BROADWAY AEWYORK AEW VORK AIAETEEAJ HVADRED A/^D AITNETEE/^ . ^\X<^{, ^ A^U2L?.\ ^v5~ 4;.; '/i. WILLIAM M. HAGER ASSISTANT TO PRESIDENT WILLIAM C. DICKERMAN VICE PBESIDENT IN CHABGE OFWAR DIVISION r WILLIAM F. KING5TOH VICE- PRESIDENT WILLIAM F. LOWRY DISTRICT MANAGER FRED A STEVENSON ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER FRANK FAUST ASSISTANT WSTBICT MANAGER HERBERT W. WOLFF VICE-PRESIDENT JAMES M. BUICK VICE-PRCSIDCNT AHD CCNCnAl. MANAGER A.E.OSTRANDER CEKEOAL MECHANICAL ENGINEER %'\ FOVyNDRY-- COMPA/MY- IN - I.-' tJ A V IC I m ^Q)ipQy\)orQ) fe mm T H F AyN - CAFL-AyND auj_ujxi.iLa FOVyNDRY- COM P AMY- lAI ^ By The Chief of Ordnance The loar record of American industry is a complex story of which one man may ivrite but a little part. It is a wonderful story — a fitting complement to the record of deeds of our heroic fighting men. It is a history of achievement that this generation may well feel proud to pass on to posterity and of which the wonder and appreciation will continue to increase as the herculean nature of the task becomes more apparent ivith time. The American Army Ordnance Department, in this world war , functioned chiefly to coordinate the activities of the thousands of munition manufacturing plants extending over the breadth and length of our country. Modern war has outgrown arsenals and reaches with its demands into every city, town and hamlet, into almost every store , factory and shop. American manufacturers and the American Ordnance Department faced, side by side, the task of forging and forming from the fire and steel of united American industry a weapon suitable for the successful wielding of the American fighting giant of three million manpower. In trying to visualize the scope and magnitude of American Ordnance work, I sometimes picture it as a river of human effort. Branches and tributaries almost innumerable flowed from every locality in America into the main stream, each branch, however small, adding to the general level. There is something almost over- whelming in the thought of the potentialities possessed by this great silent, swiftly moving river of human energy, the sole purpose of whose power ivas to overwhelm autocracy. Can any one conceive an outpouring of human ejiergy capable, if used for that purpose, of building a Panama Canal every thirty days, or a city of New York every year? Yet this was the rate of floiv of human energy as applied in the United States to Army Ordnance work. It was the task of the Ordnance Department to map the channel for this great THE - AMERICAAI - CAR- AND river, to take soundings of its depth and to measure its rate of flow, to watch constantly for eddies, whirlpools and stoppages and to search continuously for new tributaries. But it was the far greater task of American industry to fill this channel to overflowing with a rushing stream of energy and accomplishment. Even those of us whose daily task was to sound and measure the main stream of ordnance effort found it difficult to visualize with our finite minds the depth or breadth or swiftness of this great river. And so one must, if he would have knowledge of these things, turn his thoughts away from the main stream and study the tributaries that made the main stream possible. The American Car and Foundry Company, with its vast organization and widely distributed plants, was one of these great tributaries. I am glad that the history of its able war efforts has been ivritten. It is a difficult task to convey an adequate image even of a tributary when it was one of such volume as to have carried into the main stream of accomplishment the millions of shells, the thousands upon thousands of artillery vehicles and the many other vital items chronicled in this volume. I take pleasure in repeating here what I said to Mr. Woodin in January, 1919, that it is indeed gratifying to me to be able to compliment him, his associates and the entire organization of his company on such successful performance in the execution of war contracts. Every executive, employee and stockholder in the organization may justly feel proud of the part played by " The American Car and Foundry Company in Khaki.'' Major General, Chief of Ordnance, U.S.A. m^ 10 FOV/MDRY- COMPA/MY- IN ~ KHAKI ^ troc) uctioT) M = ■■'!liih!iiliilr^;il -r* R I r A AJ C A R - A /M D WAR DEPARTMENT OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF ORDNANCE WASH INGTON January 9, 1919 Mr. W. H. Woodin^ President, American Car & Foundry Co., 165 Broadway, New York, N.Y. My Dear Sir: I desire to express to you appreciation of the hearty co-operation and the valuable assistance the Ordnance Department has received from your Company in supplying the artillery vehicles and artillery ammunition requirements of the Army. It is gratifying to me to be able to compliment you, your associates, and the entire working organisation of your company on such successful performance in the execution of your contracts. I extend to you all my best wishes for your future success. Respectfully, Major General, Chief of Ordnance, U.S.A. P Of all the commendations ever received by this company, Major General Williams' is the most deeply appreciated, setting, as it does, the seal of our Government's approval on our record and richly rewarding every man and woman in our organiza- tion who had to do with the making of that record. For the high honor it does them and our Company the communication is here repeated. 12 OV/MDRY-COMPA/^Y- IN - K H ^ ^ I ■'.'/:»aS¥r«;«^^S"-- ^ trod uetioT) In the general office of our Company, framed and in positions of prominence, are two communications of which I am very proud. One is the letter from Major General C. C. Williams which appears on the opposite page; the other is a telegram reading as follows: Atlantic City, N. J., April i, 1917. W. H. Woodin, President, American Car and Foundry Co., 165 Broadway, N. Y. C, N. Y. Delighted to hear you have successfully completed your contract. Heartiest congratulations. p n v-'- 'I I 54 FOV/MDRY- COMPAyNY- IN - KJIAJ^ Motor Boats m Process ^ of Construction H|i!!ill!!|l!ll!!l!l!lll!lllll!ll!l!!l!!|!|tll!lllll S6 F O V yN D R Y '- C O M P A A' V - I A] " m KHAKI :;Lii[|llMllUiliM ton by our Government on April 30, 1917. The building of these sea scouts was not by any means all that the ship-builders at the Wilmington plant were called upon to do in the way of war duty. For, in the busy Delaware, teeming with unusual activity, collisions and minor accidents were of frequent occurrence. Many damaged boats were taken to the shipyard of the American Car and Foundry Company at Wilmington where emergency repairs were made for Uncle Sam. Thus, the work of building submarine chasers was interspersed with other vitally impor- tant war service. The contract specified that two boats should be delivered within a period of seven months and that the six additional chasers should be ready not later than January 1, 1918. This meant that a total of eight months was allowed for the building of the eight boats. Six months from the date of contract, in spite of the additional repair work that has been mentioned before, the eight boats were launched. Throughout all of this time one hundred men busily hammered and sawed, fitted and caulked, watched each day's growth of their maritime progeny, and worked with the enthusiasm of men who knew that each hammer blow was a blow for freedom and democracy. And so eight of these scourers of the sea were built for Uncle Sam in a car shop and largely by car builders. For the shipyard was not used for this work but kept open to care for the repairs so vitally important to the cause. The car shop, as shown in the illustrations, became transformed into a veritable indoor shipbuilding plant in which the few ships' carpenters that could be obtained multiplied their skill through the hands of many car builders. The first journey of these sea scourers after completion was an overland journey. Mounted on trucks they were hauled by puffing loco- motives for a distance of over half a mile and then launched in Brandy- wine Creek. In the coming years, when these car builders of Wilmington, who built ships when ships were needed, are asked what they did to help win the war, they will tell with pride of the sea scourers that they built for Uncle Sam. 57 THE AMERICA/^ - CAR.-A/ND MONSTER MOUNTS FOR RAILWAY GUNS N former wars, the range of a big gun measured its potency. Ijljl But in the World War from which we have just victoriously Ml emerged, the potency of a big gun was measured by the distance between where it was on Monday and where it could place a shot on Tuesday. The range of a modem big gun is not merely the number of miles that it can shoot, but is its firing range plus its range of mobility. And thus came railway artillery which made the fort a portable institution. These giant railway mounts were the last touch that modern engineering skill gave to modem artillery. Eight, ten, twelve, fourteen and even sixteen inch monsters accompanied by their ammunition cars, their supply cars, their fire control cars, and their spare parts cars, crept silently through the night to strategic positions, where they transformed defenceless terrain into a veritable Metz or gun-bristling Mons. Wherever tracks could be laid these monster guns would go, playing tag with the enemy's heavy artil- lery, firing their shots and then taking new positions so that the counter- fire could not find them. Thirty minutes after one of these Leviathans had belched forth its charge of destruction and shaken the earth with the reverberation of its thunder, gun and cars would be hurrying away before the enemy could obtain their range. It is in keeping with war's diverse demands on American industry that the American Car and Foundry Company, which furnished Uncle Sam with tiny cast-iron candlesticks for tent lights should be called upon to provide also giant mounts for railway guns. When the United States entered the World War both the Allies and the Huns were using heavy artillery mounted on railway cars. These mounts, however, were not at all like the ones that are pictured in this book. All fell 58 FOVyvjDRY- COMPAAJY- lAI - KHAKI ^ of them were limited in range except for a slight angular variation to the general direction of the track. In other words, if you desired to aim one of these guns at a certain object it was necessary to lay the track so that the entire car would point in this direction. You could not fire these guns crosswise of the car without building up extensive braces and foundations to take the recoil and to prevent the kick-back throwing the car from the track. If you built these extensive foundations it meant losing mobility; if you did not build them it meant sacrificing flexibility of range. To overcome these hardships our Army Ordnance Department designed the railway gun mount known as the Model of 1918-MI. This mount was used with the eight-inch Army rifle, the twelve-inch seacoast type mortar and the seven-inch Naval rifle; monsters which weighed with their mounts complete, from one hundred and sixty thousand to one hundred and eighty thousand pounds. In one of these mounts the gun could be swung entirely around a horizontal circle, aimed and fired at any point of the compass without moving car or tracks. The mounts themselves represented the ultimate in steel railroad car construction. Built not only to carry enormous weight but also to resist the almost unmeasurable shock of firing, they involved, in addition to strength, mechanisms of wonderful ingenuity and efficiency. One man could with ease swing the heavy gun either horizontally or up or down, handling it as easily as one would handle a seventy-five millimeter field piece. In design this mount was undoubtedly the most advanced type of heavy artillery railway mount. To provide stability and to care for the enormous recoil shock, steel arms were pivoted to the car body. These swung in close and clamped to the car when not in action but swung out from it and were braced against the kick-back of the gun when the latter was fired. Jacks were provided as an integral part of the car body, so that the weight of trucks and gun could be taken from the wheels and placed upon the track. Yet with all of this apparent complexity, a trained gun crew could place the piece in action or withdraw it in about thirty minutes. The initial contract was for twelve mounts and was dated April 27, \^ikM iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii ijiiijiMiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiHiiiiiiillliliiiiiiiliiiillli^^ 59 T w r A A i V. I r M -CAR \ N D fe tr 1917. Detailed drawings, requisitions and orders for materials, dies for forming parts, templets and tools, in fact all of the many details needed for a new design had to be provided and materials obtained at a time when busy manufacturers were working to capacity on other Government work. The Car Company's obligations required delivery of a sample mount by August 13th. Work in the shops started early in May, and hardly had it begun when urgent requests to make delivery came pouring in. When one considers what an enormous task it was to build not only such a giant monster under such adverse conditions, but also to assume responsibility for producing the first one in less than four months, it is a remarkable tribute to the energy and ability of the officials and workmen of Berwick that the promised delivery date was anticipated by fully fifty days. For on June 23, 1917, nearly two months before it had been promised, the first American eight- inch railway mount rolled out of Berwick on its way to the proving grounds. Altogether seventy-seven of these monsters. Model 1918-MI, were built for Uncle Sam. One should bear in mind that each unit of railway artillery required the building of an armored train of ammunition cars, spare part cars, supply cars, and fire control cars, the latter having as complete a range finding and testing equipment as any of our permanent coast fortifications. And there was built at Berwick, in addition to this fleet of mobile guns, the giant Model E mount for the great fourteen-inch Army rifle which fires its twelve hundred pound projectile close to twenty miles. Primarily designed for the defence of unprotected parts of our seacoast, this mount ready for service with the gun in position weighed four hundred and thirty- six thousand seven hundred pounds. But one of these was built, for this was an experimental mount and not fated to be of service in the great war. In a history of war achievements which must of necessity be written in superlatives to be in keeping with the facts, it is difficult to give proper emphasis and impossible to draw comparisons. But the cold figures suffice in this case to tell a graphic story. In sending forth six thousand seven hundred and fifty tons of these fighting monsters, the men of Berwick have won their service stripes ! i 6o r-^O Vy\DRY- COMPAyNY- IN - THE *. f a. RICAAI - CAR.-A/NJD .-r^*' Acid Pot, Used in one Process of Nitrating Guncotton Powder Buggy. These buggies were used in handling guncotton after it was nitrated. They were lined on the inside with galvanized iron and mounted on Ford wheels Solvent Recovery Car used in the manufacture of smokeless pov/der. The object of this car was to reclaim the solvents consist- ing of ether and alcohol FOVyNDRY- COtAPANY- IN - KHAKI ,ii]iiimi i iiiiiiiii n i!iiiii!i HELPING OTHERS TO HELP UNCLE SAM HE most vivid imagination would hardly picture the war work ' I ^ of the American Car and Foundry Company as extending to the making of shirts for soldiers. As a matter of fact, how- ever, Jeffersonville, among its many other martial activities, made possible the making of these shirts. Across the river from Louisville was the great Jeffersonville Quarter- master's Depot, the largest in the world, where thirty thousand women faced the daily task of turning out twenty thousand shirts for Uncle Sam's fighting men. At this depot was an old-fashioned cloth-shrinking machine, as inadequate for its gigantic task as an old muzzle loading cannon would be for modem barrage fire. The limited capacity of this machine curtailed the output of the Amazons of Jeffersonville, and a more modern machine was not available anywhere. And so the Quartermaster's Department appealed to the Jeffersonville plant of the American Car and Foundry Company. Within an incredibly short time, two of the most modem cloth-shrinking machines were delivered to the Depot, ready for their war work of shrinking millions of yards of cloth. Later came the production of more than two thousand cloth rollers, on which the cloth was rolled after it left the shrinking machine. And following this came the manufacture of cloth-laying apparatus, ingenious machines which automatically spread the cloth upon tables to facilitate the work of the cutters. Thus did Jeffersonville speed up the making of soldiers' shirts. These neighborly actions were not the exception but rather the rule. The Wilmington plant was in close proximity to the plants of the du Pont Powder Company which were undergoing prodigious expansion to meet the demands for explosives. And so Wilmington was called upon to make a =jy/. 63 A r A R. A A D vast amount of apparatus for this and other powder plants in the vicinity. Among the first of these services was the making of solvent recovery cars, used for recovering the solvent in which smokeless powder was dissolved. A solvent car consists of a framework of wood, mounted on trucks, and covered inside and out with steel and copper plates. One of them weighs over a ton, and Wilmington built more than five thousand of them. Miscel- laneous powder cars, to the number of over seventeen hundred, each weigh- ing about three tons, built of wood v/ith steel trucks and reinforcements, took their place in the procession coming from the doors of Wilmington. Then came gun cotton storage cars, over five hundred of them and an equal battalion of powder dryhouse cars, with their frameworks of steel slides for trays on which the powder was spread to dry. Seven thousand welded steel acid buckets, and more than seventy-five thousand trays for powder cars, swelled the score which marked Wilmington's aid to the powder makers. And the spirit of helping others to help Uncle Sam was as evident between the constituent plants of the Company as it was between these individual plants and their neighbors. Typical of this was the making at Jeffersonville of axles and wheels for the fifty thousand escort wagons that the St. Charles plant was producing for the Government. The original method of making the forgings for escort wagon axles was found to be entirely inadequate to meet the enormous demand. The making of these axles as a blacksmith would ordinarily make them, and as Jefferson- ville began to make them, hammering out the shape from hot metal and "upsetting" the collar, limited the output to one hundred and fifty per day — a considerable number, by ordinary standards, but for war needs, a mere bagatelle. So the engineers at Jeffersonville invented, through the stimulus of necessity, what they called the "rolls and upsetting machine." And when the mechanics at Jeffersonville carried out in iron and steel the thoughts that had been laid down on paper by these engineers, the making of escort v/agon axles was no longer a matter of hammering and forging, but one of rolling and squeezing, in which a tireless machine delivered its daily quota of a thousand axles. 64 OV/NDRY- COMPAAIY-IAI " KHAKI Then there was the matter of wagon chains. Beginning with com- paratively small orders, the demand for chains of various lengths and sizes by the war wagon makers soon mounted to formidable figures. Presto, change, and the old blacksmith shop at Jeffersonville became a chain shop! Enlarged and equipped with twenty foot-power hammers and two chain link winders (these designed and built at Jeffersonville), ring winders and cutters, this rejuvenated smithy turned out more than three hunderd thousand chains. To build the hundred thousand wheels, which Jeffersonville contributed to the escort wagons that St. Charles completed, thousands upon thousands of feet of green hickory and oak required to be robbed of moisture, not by the slow agency of sun and air but through the torrid heat of the "dryhouse." The old dryhouse, with its daily capacity of two hundred and forty thousand feet was insufficient for the need, and so a new one sprung up, built of brick, steel and glass, and with a daily stint of seven hundred and twenty thousand feet of lumber. Deeds of this kind are quickly written and more quickly read, but it is difficult to tell in words what a vast volume of earnest effort precedes their accomplishment. And mark the inter-relationship of the helping hand. For while Jeffer- sonville was forging axles, building wheels and making chains for the escort wagons built at St. Charles, St. Charles was in turn fashioning the chests and tompions, grindstone frames and packing strips for all of the artillery vehicles built at Detroit. Being exclusively a passenger car plant, the cabinet shop at St. Charles was particularly well fitted to fashion these accessories of wood which comprised hundreds of thousands of items. Almost without end are the incidents that could be related in this story of the helping hand. Each one deserves a chapter to itself. There is the story of how Detroit, installing one of the largest electro-galvanizing plants in existence, built more than twenty thousand huge hollow steel balls, six- teen and a half and twenty inches in diameter, to float the nets that fished for submarines. There is a story in how Milton, the only plant in the United States to make large deliveries of toxic gas cylinders, solved difficult prob- •^^ x^ 6s H F AM^R. ICAAi - CAR-A/ND lems in the deep drawing of steel and delivered to Uncle Sam more than twenty-five thousand of these huge containers for the cryptic and terrible poison gases — gases that were held so secret that they were not named but were known by symbols such as X3 or Nl. There are stories, and fascinating ones, in the making of seventeen miles of smokestacks for the Government cantonments ; in the making of thousands of cast-iron can- tonment stoves and more than twenty thousand all steel field ranges; in the building of pontoon bridge members for the Engineer Corps; in the manufacturing of nearly two hundred thousand washing and cooking boilers and one hundred and fifty thousand bake pans for the Commissary De- partment; in the building of trucks for airplanes and the making of brass drain plugs for submarines. Every one of these, and the many others that are set forth in the Statistical and Historical Notes, are romances of accom- plishment. The tragedies and the comedies that went to make them, while not set down in written words, will live undimmed in the hearts and minds of those who made these romances come true and who helped others to help Uncle Sam. Progressive Treatment of Shell from Billet to Completion 66 OViNDRY' COMPA/MY- l/^ - f^HAKl iii KEEPING THE WAR WORKER ON HIS TOES HE soul of an individual or a corporation is best developed by intentional planning. Haphazard growth does not give satis- factory results. The interest and enthusiasm which kept the war workers of the American Car and Foundry Company liter- ally "on their toes" did not come by chance, but through conscious plan- ning. Its results are measured by the fact that every day and every night of production was a day and night of battle and rivalry for honors, day gang against night gang, foreman against foreman, workman against workman, from the date that contracts were awarded to the date that they expired filled to the letter and with a surplus for safe margin. Each day marked a progressive increase in output. The last month's production was the biggest month's production, the last week was the biggest week, the last day was the biggest day, the last night was the biggest night and the last hour was the biggest hour. In the nature of things most of the men who sought employment had had no previous experience at the plants where they were employed. Most of them had never seen a shell or an artillery vehicle or a railway gun mount. It was apparent that if war work was to be carried on successfully an esprit de corps must be developed. A sociological department was organized for this purpose and for social service. There is no question but that the spirit of plant pride, patriotism, enthusiasm and team work which developed through the efforts of this sociological department were extremely important factors in the successful fulfilment of the Company's various undertakings. For although schedules were made that were pronounced impossible by many men of long experience, yet not once did these employees fall behind, but on the contrary, on every contract kept well in advance of the severest schedule laid down for it. 67 THE - AMERICAAI - CAR.-A/MD Knowing what you have to do and being told daily what you have done is the greatest of aids in accomplishing a given task. To this end organiza- tion charts were made up and definite lines of work assigned to each man, fixing his responsibility as well as his authority. Operation and time study charts were prepared covering in detail the progressive order of each opera- tion to be performed. Weekly conferences and special meetings were called where officials and foremen met to discuss problems, solve difficulties and exchange ideas. Systems were devised whereby increased output and improved quality on work was substantially rewarded, while on the other hand a system of penalties discouraged careless, inefficient work. If you had visited one of these great war plants during the peak of production you would have noted with interest the production black- boards that were maintained at each operation showing the previous day's hourly record on that particular operation in comparison with the current day's output. Here also you would find the number or name of the operator holding the previous day's high record. If you had entered the office of the plant manager you would have seen the hourly production reports giving the output by operations and also the output of individual machines. You would have seen the machine tool "condition board," a gigantic cribbage board, representing the pro- duction shop, the machines being shown in outline in their proper places and numbered. White pins indicated machines in operation, red pins those down for repairs and blue pins those that were idle for other reasons. You would have noticed that the red and blue pins changed their color to white with remarkable rapidity, following the corrective measures promptly taken to see that the "out of service" percentage did not rise above the accepted normal. All kinds of men were engaged in the production department, big men and small men, old men and young men of all nationalities and colors, but, as a whole, remarkable for physical fitness and intelligence. Visitors to the various plants often asked, "Where do you find such men?" On one operation alone in the shell plant at Detroit were grouped twelve men 68 FOV/vJ DRY- COMPAtNY- Submarine Net Buoys Being Galvanized and Washed Artillery Vehicle Wheels Submarine Net Buoys Ready to be Galvanized Cutting Copper Tubing to Make Copper Driving Bands for 3" Naval Shells THE- k A r~ R. I CAN CAR- A yN D ':;.;=) FOV/vJDRY- COMPA/^Y- IN - KHA vx., - CAR.-' AyNJD m. Motor Boats in Process of Construction 56 FOVyNDRY-COMPA/^Y- IN - KHAKI varying in height between six feet and six feet ten inches, and in weight between one hundred and ninety and two hundred and sixty pounds. On account of the uncertain duration of the war, mechanical means for handhng the heavy shells was resorted to only in a very limited way. Shop space was at a premium and could not be spared for conveyor systems, hence the material was handled by man power; the shell forgings with single two-wheel trucks and the scrap in wheelbarrows. One man would wheel out from eight hundred to twelve hundred pounds of chips per load, in some cases for a distance of two hundred yards, and thus in ten hours would transport from ten thousand to thirty thousand pounds of chips, an almost incredible feat and one which eloquently bespeaks the high morale existing in the lower ranks. The colored men in particular displayed almost childish eagerness in their war efforts to defeat the Hun. Some of them, were employed in rolling the hot shells along the floor from the heat treating furnaces to the places where they were laid in rows to copl. It was hot, fast work and required dexterity, and many of these men talked to the hot shells as they rolled them. One of these was overhead to say to a companion, "Dat's right, Sid, talk to dem and talk fast." And Sid replied, "Sure, man, I'se gwine talk to dem, I'se gwine instruct dem how to behave 'mongst dose Germans." At Detroit a monthly magazine, known as "Our Social Magnet," was issued. This was carefully edited, the patriotic thoughts and utterances by our foremost statesmen and military officials being given prominent expression. Particular emphasis was laid upon the ways of maintaining health, and instructions were printed for the care and development of home gardens. A band of forty pieces was organized, trained and uniformed. Patriotic concerts were given from time to time, and the employees of the plant headed by their band marched in the various win-the-war parades given in Detroit. That all of these things helped to sustain morale is indisputable. The spirit engendered seemed even to add physical strength, enabling the workers to accomplish feats that would have normally been classed as impossible. At one operation on the ten-inch shells, for example, )- 73 T M F A R I .\ M - CAR- AMD the machine attendant Hfted the four hundred pound shell by means of a chain hoist a distance of four and one-half feet and placed it in the machine, performed the operation, gaged the work and finally lowered the piece to the floor. He did this for as many as one hundred to one hundred and twenty pieces in ten hours and hence handled from forty thousand to fifty thousand pounds through a distance of four and one-half feet, or expended over two hundred thousand foot-pounds of energy in a day's work, not con- sidering the energy required to performing the actual cutting operation. To provide warm and palatable food for the employees, kitchens and commissary buildings were built and food prepared and distributed to con- veniently located stations in the various plants, from which it was sold at actual cost. Women made an enviable record in the war work of the American Car and Foundry Company. One of them held the record for painting escort wagon wheels, finishing one hundred and ninety wheels complete in seven hours, this including giving them one coat of oil and two coats of olive drab paint. Special quarters were fitted up where the women could change from street clothes to shop clothes and vice versa, and rest rooms were provided. Nothing was left undone to give the company employees, both men and women, every convenience and comfort, and the splendid spirit that they displayed in rising to the stress of the emergency proved without question that they were "on their toes," eager at all times to give all that they could give to help win the war. There were quite a large number of women employed in the several plants of the Company in machining, painting artillery wheels, camouflaging artillery vehicles, soldering, and various other occupa- tions. In addition; each plant had its own emergency hospital and the necessary number of nurses and attendants. At the Detroit plant there was a very large and competent Red Cross chapter. The work done by these women was beyond criticism. They learned quickly and soon adapted themselves to any work given them. Their loyalty was inspirational and to their imflagging efforts is due in large measure the production achievements of the Company. „^ _-„.„-„ ^-^^ 74 liniiiiiiiiiHiiiimiiiiiiillifi FOVAJDRY- COMPAiNY'- lAI - KHAKI 1 HOW INGENUITY WON ITS SPURS HE general who must plan the strategy of battle and upon whose correct judgment rests victory or defeat is faced with scarcely I more responsibility than is the plant executive who must direct the industrial battle of munition making. The correct selection of machines, the selection and training of a working force, the arrangement of processes and buildings, are things in which an error of judgment will prove fatal to the successful execution of the contracts. And the failure of a war contract means not merely loss of profits or the endangering of the lives of fighting men, but perhaps the prolonging of the struggle — per- haps the loss of the cause. Each day the engineers and executives and workmen in American munition plants were faced with impossible tasks that had to be accom- plished. Many such were faced by the men of the American Car and Foundry Company, and to their honor it must be said that each one of these tasks was met successfully. It was in such combats of mind against matter, man against time, that ingenuity won its spurs. Typical of this was the making of copper driving bands at Detroit. Before a shell can be fired from a gun, its steel body must be embraced by a copper driving band whose function is twofold. This band accom- modates itself to the spiral rifling in the bore that sends the shell whirling and spinning, true to its target. It also seals against the escape of powder pressure. Each shell, before one can call it finished, must have its copper band. Detroit was faced with the problem of making these bands because they could not be obtained elsewhere in time to meet Detroit's production of the British 9. 2 -inch shell. The making of the copper bands is an art in itself. If too soft they will be torn from the shell by the enomaous stresses of 75 THE ERirA,N - CAR-AAin ISmT-rrnn-.T; firing; if too hard they will crack when the great jaws of the hydraulic band seating machine squeeze them down upon the steel shell body. Many trials and discouragements were met, but co-operation and deter- mination overcame them all, until the production of copper bands at Detroit was greater than that of any other plant and sufficient not only to meet the needs of the American Car and Foundry Company's shell shops but also to supply a large demand in this country and for export. Copper came from the mills in the form of plates each twenty-eight inches square and a half-inch thick and each weighing one hundred and thirty pounds. From these square sheets, round blanks twenty-seven and a half inches in diameter were punched. Then came an operation in which a cup was made sixteen inches in diameter, ten inches deep and with a half- inch wall, and then three more operations in which this cup was deepened at the expense of the diameter until it became a tube ten inches in diameter and twenty-two inches long. From this tube five bands were cut for the 9.2-inch shell, and then the remaining piece was passed through dies which reduced it to eight and a half inches in diameter, again increasing its length. From this tube in turn three bands were cut for eight-inch shells and then three more passes through dies reduced the remainder to 4.94 inches in diameter. From this were cut five bands for 4.5-inch shells. Thus one flat copper plate, through the medium of ingenuity and powerful machines, becatne thirteen cylindrical bands for three different sizes of shells. The 9.2-inch band when machined had a portion near one edge of greater diameter than the remainder of the band. Prior to the time that the Car Company undertook their manufacture, the rough bands were made of a uniform thickness equal to that required for the thickest part which meant the cutting away of the excess metal in the form of chips. But the Car Company's engineers devised ways and means for making the rough band not to the maximum but to the minimum thickness and then of enlarging and thickening it where required. Thus twenty-five per cent, of the weight of the band was saved — a most valuable accomplishment in view of the scarcity of copper. New methods of cutting the bands from the tubes 76 FOVAIDRY- CQMP I N - m 1 75 mm. Gun Caisson 2 3-Inch Battery and Store Wagon 3 75 mm. Gun Caisson i I CAR- AND Artillery Vehicles Stored - Ready for Shipment e;:^ Thousands of Artillery Vehicles Stored — Awaiting Shipping ■f U ;ii|!iM|!Hi|||!||ir 78 OVyNDRY- COMPAAIY- IN - KHAICI 1= was also devised which accomplished the work with a minimum loss of material. Forty-five tons was the daily consumption of copper that Detroit thus cleverly and economically transformed into shell bands. " Tin hats" for fighting men must resist the impact of an army automatic pistol bullet fired ten feet away from them. Their making is no easy task, for the manganese steel composing them is one of the toughest metals to form and to cut that is encountered by shop men and shop machines. But the engineers of Berwick found time between their tasks of building battalions of artillery repair shops and fleets of giant railway mounts to solve the difficult problems of helmet making. They did this so efficiently that five thousand helmets were made each day, each of which was capable of meet- ing this crucial bullet test. In every one of the Company's plants ingenuity was put to its test. It came to Detroit with the making of heat treated shells, for the engineers and mechanics at this plant had had but little previous experience in this branch of metallurgy. Yet without resorting to expert assistance, and by methods devised wholly within the organization this problem was solved without the loss of a single forging. The test of ingenuity came from the necessity of cutting steel from shell forgings as steel had never been cut before and was met when the engineers of Detroit machined two shells in the time that one shell had formerly required. Their reward was not alone in the successful performance of their contract but also in seeing their methods duplicated in part and in whole in a large number of shell factories on both sides of the Atlantic. The test of ingenuity came when Jefferson- ville invented its special cast-iron branding irons. Branders made of copper had always before been used for branding horses and mules but had made the flesh and hoofs sore and sensitive. So Jeffersonville made its special cast-iron and later its special wrought-steel branding irons, the first concern in the United States to make this type and making over thirty thousand of them. It was in these many things that ingenuity won its spurs in the war work of the American Car and Foundry Company. Not alone were they won in 79 T n N. CAR,-- A AI D the forging of the thunderbolts of war, or in the machining of millions of projectiles, or in the building of the chariots of Mars, or in the making of sea scourers, or portable machine shops, or giant railway guns. They were won not only through the great accomplishments of which these things typify the final fruit, but they were won daily in planting and cultivating the seeds from which these and lessers fruits matured. For it was the successful doing of the daily tasks, the successful meeting of the daily problems that made possible the doing of the things that are set forth in this War Story of the American Car and Foundry Company. Hi •\^\, In appreciation of the devotion shown by its men and women employees, the Company had an Honor Medal designed by a competent sculptor. These medals were awarded to 7,500 em- ployees who gave their energies continuously to the production of war munitions up to the time of signing the armistice. ii So FOVAiDRY- COMPAMV- IN - KHAKI HiiiiiHiiiiiiiii 1 STATISTICAL AND HISTORICAL NOTES j|^<'*«*-^' HE Berwick plant started the war activities of the American Car Tand Foundry Company. This plant began work on a contract for il^Ss^Siifts.^ 300,000 Russian 3-inch high explosive shells early in June, 1915, and finished it on December 15, 1916, the order in the interim having been increased to 341,162 shells. A total of approximately three million 3-inch projectiles was completed at Berwick, consisting of 341,000 Russian 3-inch high explosive shells, 2,432,000 U. S. Naval 3-inch common shells, 48,000 U. S. Naval 3-inch target shells, and 22,860 U. S. Naval 3-inch illuminating shells. The equipment for the manufacture of these shells consisted of about 125 machines and also presses and furnaces suitable for the various opera- tions, and necessitated the employment of 850 workmen, who turned out an average of six thousand complete shells a day. Contracts were closed in September, 1916, with the British Government for forging and machining 75,000 9.2-inch and 45,500 8-inch high explosive howitzer shells, the machining contracts being assigned to the Detroit plant. On June 14, 1916, a third contract was received for 125,000 9. 2 -inch high explosive shells, and on August 1 of the same year an additional 310,000 were ordered, making a total of 510,000 9.2-inch and 45,500 8-inch British shells. The freight car paint shops Nos. 1 and 2 were selected as production shops because they were of about the right shape and required a minimum of expense for preparation. Shop No. 1, a brick building 80 feet wide by 366 feet long, was laid out as the Roughing Department and Shop No. 2, of similar construction, 80 feet wide by 4?0 feet long, as the Finishing Depart- ment. Shop No. 3 was equipped as an Experimental and Reclaim Depart- ment and later was used as a "booster" for the main production shops. .UM ^m Wd 8i THE A AI '- C A I^ A y^J D A portion of Shop No. 2 was first equipped as a tool room, but later the space was required for production and a new tool room 90 feet wide by 110 feet long was built and equipped for the manufacture and repair of tools and equipment. On December 18, 1915, three months after receiving the first contract, production started and on January 15, 1916, shipment was begun. On March 31, 1917, the expiration date of the last contract, the entire order for 555,500 8-inch and 9.2-inch shells was completed. During the last few months of this period a daily output of 3,500 shells was maintained, with occasional record of 4,500 per day. The first U. S. shell contract was assigned to Detroit on June 13, 1917. It called for 24,360 10-inch heat-treated common shells. By the time the shop had reached its scheduled daily production on this order, another contract for 60,000 10-inch shells was received. The output was increased until an average of 500 per day was reached, when an order for 400,000 9.5-inch shells was accepted in November, 1917. The output desired was 2,000 per day of these concurrently with 500 per day of the 10-inch. In January, 1918, the 9.5-inch shell was changed to 240 millimeters, and in April, 1918, an additional order of 215,000 10-inch shells was received. The production then requested by the Government was 1,000 240-milli- meter and 1,000 10-inch shells per day. Work was immediately started on the shop layout and tool arrangement to increase the 10-inch output from 500 to 1,000 per day concurrently with a production of 1,000 240- millimeter shells per day. This schedule necessitated a large increase in space and machining facili- ties. Annexes were built on the side and on each end of the Roughing Shop No. 1 and a 100-foot addition was built on the north end of the Finishing Shop. A new hammer, annealing and heat treating shop was built, a new Reclaim Department organized, a new oil storage building put up and the old one torn down to make way for the addition of the Finishing Shop. Increased equipment was purchased for the 240-millimeter shell produc- tion and every machine tool in the Finishing Shop and a large number % Ik" !n- ; 11; J iililJ-L< ^.JUM iUJiLHiiUili 82 F O V /vl D RY- COMPAMY- lAJ - KHA ! r^ A AJ C A FL - A yvj D Artillery Vcliicles Crated for Shipment Abroad FOV/sIDRY- COMPA/MY- IN - KHAKI ■Eii in the Roughing Shop were moved to permit running the 10-inch and 240-millimeter in parallel and to bring about a suitable sequence in the order of operations. The schedule of 1,000 per day of each size was reached in September, 1918. It was announced in October, however, that the 10-inch shell was to be abandoned and the shop was to be swung over to a production of from 3,000 to 4,000 240-millimeter shells per day. Work to that end was under way when the armistice was signed on November 11, 1918, shortly after which permission was granted to proceed with a limited production of both types of shell. From September, 1915, until the armistice was signed in November, 1918, the Detroit shell shops were operated 22 hours per day; 10 hours for the day shift and 12 hours for the night shift. Shell Forgings Made at Detroit In the fall of 1916, a British contract for 240,000 forgings for 9.2-inch shells was received. Production was begun in December of that year. All of the forgings made were shipped direct to England to be machined, and the contract was completed in May, 1917. The first forging contract from the U. S. Government was received in November, 1917, and was for 1,750,000 155-millimeter shell forgings. This contract was divided between the Detroit and the Depew plants. It was followed in January, 1918, by a contract for forgings for 90,000 240- millimeter shells. This required the installation of a new forging plant, consisting of four 400-ton and two 775-ton presses; six motor-driven pumps; an accumulator, the ram of which was loaded with 875,000 lbs. of dense iron ore to give the required pressure and a battery of eleven heating furnaces. A shop area of 92,000 square feet was occupied by this plant. By February, 1918, the production of 155-millimeter forgings was started, and Detroit's quota was completed by November 27, 1918. During R I r \T - n A R M n September, the daily average was 6,200 forgings, and on some days over 7,000 were turned out. In all, 851,340 forgings were shipped from the Detroit plant, distributed as follows: Depew Plant 426,342 Detroit Shell Co 250,000 Harroun Motors Corporation 100,000 Jackson Munitions Co 35,216 International Arms & Fuze Co 25,000 Army Reserve Depot, Columbus, O. . . . 14,782 As the 240-millimeter shell forgings were to be made as a reserve supply for Detroit, in case of any interruption in the flow of forgings supplied by the Government, production was not begun until September, 1918, and then at the rate of about 500 per day. Work on this contract was suspended after the signing of the armistice, a total of 19,261 having been completed. In addition to making forgings for shell bodies, 30,528 forgings for base plugs were made at Detroit in connection with the British shell contract, and about 206,000 forgings for nose plugs for the U. S. 10-inch shells. Making 155 Millimeter Projectiles at Depew The initial order was for 970,000 shells. On receipt of forgings from Detroit, the manufacture of shells was begun on February 21, 1918. The first shell was finished on March 1, and an initial shipment of twenty was made on March 18. On April 30, the Depew plant was producing approxi- mately 2,000 shells a day, had placed more than 41,000 shells in operation, and Government inspectors had passed 12,500 shells for shipment. A record day in early November marked the production of 6,575 forgings and the shipment of 7,049 finished shells. The Car Erection Shop at Depew was divided for war work into three units. The first was cleared of all car work and a new floor laid. 86 FOVAIDRY- COMPAiNY- IN - KHAKI while car repair work was temporarily continued in the remaining two units. At the time the machinery was being installed in Unit No. 1, the entire car apparatus and tracks were removed from Unit No. 2 and foundations put in for new machinery. Unit No. 2 was approximately fifty per cent, completed before the car work was finally removed from the third unit. Approximately 460 machines of various types were installed together with their necessary foundations, overhead rails, belting, electric motors, lights, and wiring. The Steel Underframe Shop was chosen for the forging department. Concrete tanks were built for the storage of oil, and pipes were installed for conveying it to the furnaces. A large number of small trucks for carrying billets had to be constructed, and two transfer tables were erected. Four hydraulic pumps were installed to furnish power for the presses. Two hydraulic accumulators were installed, one with a total weight on its founda- tion of 970,000 pounds, the other having a total weight of 633,000 pounds. The six presses in the forge shop were capable of exerting a pressure of 500 tons each. Three distinct departments were created for acetylene welding, grinding, hardening, and the tempering of tools. In eleven months Depew completed 970,000 finished shells and 616,000 shell forgings. Detroit's Production of Copper Shell-Bands Seven contracts, totaling 2,910,000 copper driving bands for shells of various sizes were booked, shipments being made to plants in the United States, Canada, and Great Britain. Production on a quantity basis began on December 11, 1915. These contracts were finished on June 30, 1917, a total of 3,465,500 bands of various sizes having been produced; a maxi- mum of 5,000 9.2-inch bands and 40,000 4.5-inch bands a day having been attained and the daily consumption of copper reaching approximately forty-five tons. j mTTMITMmiMIiniM^ 87 THE - AMERICAAI - CAR- AAID Making Fifty Thousand Artillery Vehicles The Detroit plant received three major groups of vehicle contracts. The first, on June 5, 1917, was for vehicles to complete 3-inch and 4.7-inch gun batteries. Included in the 3-inch battery vehicles were 661 gun carriage limbers, 3,348 caissons, 3,348 caisson limbers, 333 battery wagons, 333 store wagons, 333 forge limbers; while the 4.7-inch vehicles included 433 gun carriage limbers and 1,848 caissons. In August, 1917, a second group of contracts was received covering the following vehicles, all for 75-millimeter gun battery: 800 gun carriage limbers, 2,400 caissons, 2,400 caisson limbers, 200 battery wagons, 200 store wagons, 200 forge limbers, 200 store limbers. These contracts covered a total of 6,400 vehicles, all of which were duplicates of the vehicles covered by the first group. A third group of contracts was received in December, 1917, and included the following, all for 75-millimeter gun battery and duplicates of the previous lots: 2,053 gun carriage limbers, 14,608 caissons, 14,368 caisson limbers, 1,338 battery wagons, 1,122 store wagons, 1,338 forge limbers and 1,122 store limbers. The total of these contracts was 35,949 vehicles, and the grand total of all of the artillery vehicles on order at the Detroit plant was 53,319. In July, 1917, October, 1917, and February, 1918, contracts were re- ceived for War Reserve Parts, Replacement Vehicles, etc., in which were included duplicate parts of the vehicles, the quantities of some individual items running into the hundreds of thousands of pieces. Other miscellaneous orders for artillery vehicle materials were given the Company at various times by the Ordnance Department, the principal of which were 2,936 75-millimeter axles, and 1,165 4.7-inch axles. By April, 1918, the promised delivery of 100 vehicles per day was being steadily maintained, but by reason of the expansion of the Government's programme the Company was called upon to increase the output to its limit. By June, 1918, an output of 200 per day was attained; by September 1, ja 88 FOV/N DRY- COMPAAIY- IN - KHAKI fe 1918, 250 per day; and at the cessation of hostilities, in November, 1918, 275 completed vehicles and spare parts equivalent to 25 full vehicles, or an output of 300 vehicles per twenty-four hours was the regular schedule. Work on these contracts was terminated by order of the War Depart- ment, at which time out of 53,319 vehicles ordered, a total of 47,825 had been completed and accepted. Simultaneously with the designing and making of tools, the machines required for the manufacture of the vehicles were purchased and installed, there being about 475 in all. For the maintenance of the tools a department, having an area of about 6,000 square feet and more than 50 machines, was operated throughout the working period. It became necessary to make additions of 42,000 square feet each at both ends of the former car-erecting shop and to construct a new building, 160 feet wide by 320 feet long, for the finishing and painting of vehicles and also to add 18,500 square feet to the storehouse for supplies. It was neces- sary, in addition, to build a warehouse for tools and accessories, which covered 18,000 square feet. A special department was organized for boxing and crating the product, four buildings were erected for this purpose, two having an area of 7, 200 square feet, one of 4,300 square feet and one of 1,800 square feet. A building 300 feet long, in which was a five-ton overhead electric traveling crane of 40 feet span, was erected from which to load the vehicles into cars. For making vehicle axles, an area of 60,000 square feet was required and 225 machines were purchased and installed for this purpose, involving the construction of foundations, erecting of shafting, belts, wiring and piping systems for compressed air and lubrication. To summarize, there were 163,855,137 separate operations performed on parts for vehicles and spare chests. The daily average during the best production month was approximately 900,000 separate operations. There were 173,779,668 holes drilled in parts for vehicles and spare chests, or 954,000 holes drilled each day during the best production month. 59,565,210 TMIM MIIMIDMilJJllMyilJJIillliy 89 THE VVEFLICAyN - CAFL-'AAID ■ rivets were driven in vehicles and spare chests, or a daily average of 328,000 during the best production month. 28,933,100 separate pieces, exclusive of rivets were handled and assembled in vehicles. In addition, there were 5,368,000 separate pieces manufactured for battery spares and war reserve spare parts. This gives a daily average during the best production month of 189,000 pieces manufactured. The construction of these vehicles required 265,679 steel castings weigh- ing 5,584,784 pounds; 638,090 bronze castings weighing 1,188,095 pounds; 41,154 grey iron castings weighing 823,080 pounds; and 58,941 aluminum castings weighing 6,549 pounds. Berwick's Motor Trucks On October 1, 1917, came an order from the U. S. Government for build- ing bodies for 120 equipment trucks and 384 artillery repair trucks. On November 21, 1917, an order was received which covered the application of the body to the chassis and the installation of machinery on the artillery repair trucks. One dated January 11, 1918, provided for furnishing and applying conduit roofs to equipment trucks, and this was followed by another dated February 18, 1918, requiring the application of air-compressor tanks to the artillery repair truck bodies. Then came still further contracts in 1918, as follows: February 20, 700 artillery repair trucks; March 18, 248 artillery repair trucks; March 28, 60 equipment bodies; April 15, 118 equipment bodies; June 13, 576 trailer trucks; and on August 7, 624 heavy artillery mobile repair trucks. Of the artillery repair trucks, the Berwick plant drivers took 82 and Government drivers 928 to Philadelphia under their own power. The remainder of the 1,332 and the 48 motor train units were shipped by rail. WH9 liti^a 90 OV/sJDRY- COMPAyNY" I A' - KHAKI IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIHlllllllllllllllTf Making Monster Railway Gun Mounts The initial contract was for twelve mounts, Model 1918-MI, and was dated April 27, 1917. The Car Company was obligated to deliver a sample mount by August 13. Work in the shops started early in May, but hardly had it begun when Berwick began receiving urgent requests to anticipate delivery. After extraordinary effort, the first car was completed and shipped from the Berwick shops on June 23, 1917, more than 50 days ahead of schedule. Seventy-seven Model 1918-MI gun cars were built on the contracts of April 27, 1917, and December 13, 1918. One Model E car was built on a Government order dated August 10, 1917. In addition to the contracts for various models of gun cars, the following miscellaneous items were ordered by the Government : Tools and accessories for eleven 7-inch Navy mounts; spare parts for eleven 7-inch Navy mounts; tools and accessories for sixty-five Model 1918-MI gun cars; spare parts for forty-six 8-inch gun cars; spare parts for seventeen 12 -inch motor cars; and two complete units of spare parts for ammunition cars. Wilmington^s Submarine Chasers and Its Other War Work A Government contract received April 30, 1917, specified that two sub- marine chasers should be delivered within seven months and that six addi- tional chasers should be delivered not later than January 1, 1918. All of these chasers were built in the car shop under cover, the work being done for the most part by car builders. They were mounted on trucks, hauled by locomotive for half a mile, and launched in Brandywine Creek. The Wilmington plant was called upon to manufacture equipment for the du Pont and other powder plants which were undergoing vast expansion. The first order received in March, 1915, called for some small cars to haul acid tanks. In May an initial order for 348 solvent recovery cars was ^;^^-:£Z»3ri' i5SSi3i-:l;.:i=: 91 THE AMERICAM - CAR- A/MD r :|= received. Altogether 5,695 solvent cars were built and delivered to munition works. Miscellaneous powder cars to the number of 1,772 were manufac- tured. These cars were built principally of wood with steel trucks and reinforcements. They weighed about 6,000 pounds each. Some 600 shell car- riers, used in munition plants for handUng and loading shells, were also made. Among other articles furnished by Wilmington to various powder com- panies were: 573 gun cotton storage cars; 50 dope trucks (used for carrying cotton after it is partly made into gun cotton); 7,033 welded steel acid buckets; 556 power dryhouse cars; 20,000 trays for powder cars, and 55,985 miscellaneous trays. In the car department a thousand complete field ranges were built. These were all steel, weighing 160 pounds each. The contract for these was awarded on May 31, 1917, and they were finished in November, 1917. Following are other articles manufactured at Wilmington plant: 120 airplane trucks; 8,372 mess tables; 18,697 mess table benches; 348 trestles (pontoon bridge equipage); 12,450 long balks (the technical name given a piece of Douglas fir wood that acts as a stringer for pontoon bridges); 1,260 short balks; 48,310 long chesses (cross boards of white pine for pontoon bridges); 4,104 short chesses; 660 cypress sills; 624 white pine saddle tran- soms; 144 pontoon chests; 36 spare cover boxes; 348 cap levers (used for lifting the supports at the trestles of the approach to a bridge) ; 2,784 pickets (wooden stakes driven in bank to keep the current from washing boats down stream); 144 pontoons, and 4,150 smoke boxes. Jeffersonville^s Contributions to the Cause The first Government order was dated December 15, 1915 — during the Mexican disturbances — and was for 400 cast-iron candlesticks, double pointed, to stick on a tent pole or in the ground. This order was later increased to 3,166. In July, 1915, an initial order for couplers for Russian railroad cars was received. This was followed by other orders for car parts ^ for the Russian and Italian Governments. 92 FOVAl DRY- COMPA/^Y- IN - KHAKI The escort wagon wheel department was housed in the old caboose shop. A new dry house, built of brick, steel, and glass, was erected and operated in conjunction with the old one. This building was 100 feet by 240 feet and had 12 drying compartments, each having a capacity of 60,000 feet of un- seasoned lumber. To expedite forging, 7 additional steam hammers were installed, ranging in size from 2,500 pounds to 6,000 pounds, while many new trimming machines were also found necessary. Other Articles Manufactured at the JefFersonville Plant 3,500 Escort Wagons, complete. 1,250 Bodies, or beds 4,700 Axle beds 1,840 Bolsters 8,000 Sides 3,730 Tail gates 5,450 Seats 2,450 Springs for seats 700 Ridge poles 1,535 Feed and tool boxes 250 Tool and wheelright chests 150 Ration carts 56 Powder cars 1,100 Solvent recovery cars 181,042 Forgings for base plugs for 10-inch shells 47,310 Forgings for nose adapters for 240-mm. shells 23,972 Army field-ranges, with boiling plates and Alamo attachments 18,035 Alamo attachments 4,814 Boiling plates 760 No. 3 Army ranges — six holes 61,789 Pan rests for army ranges 1,054 Left tile Unings for army ranges 600 Dorsey oil burners, for field bakeries 400 Fire hooks, for cleaning ranges and bakeries 5,426 Tent guards, for army ranges 800 Tent shields 4,000 Tent hoods 100 Pipes, upper and lower, for field bakeries 910 Pan hooks, for field bakeries 431 Incinerator pans 191,356 Boilers, round and square holding from 6 to 20 gallons each, used for cooking, washing, etc. Small meat hooks Large meat hooks Boiler hooks Large flesh forks Cake turners THE - A M E IP C A AJ - CAR. AMD ^,/A/;w/W/^/^ 50,012 143,271 433 16,553 1,296 16,311 1,772 153,586 12,460 4,060 4,200 30,310 12,204 2,620 33,670 4,500 3,400 17,000 5,500 32,200 10,687 210,000 12,259 Large and small perforated skimmers Tin dippers, one and two quart Sheet iron dough troughs, 6 feet long, 2 feet deep, 2 feet wide at bottom and 3 feet wide at top Dam and moulding boards for dough troughs Moulding board stands Sponge cans, used for "set- ting" bread Sponge can covers Bake pans, large and small Tongues Double-trees Single-trees Coupling-poles Brake levers Brake beams Brake blocks Brake shoes Axle wrenches Hubs Sets of fire irons for march kits, used when cooking in the open Camp kettles, with covers, for march kits Mess tables Mess stools, 4 legged Tent poles, round, square, and octagon Steel plates and chains, for pyramidal tents 2,055,154 Brass tent slips, for fasten- ing tent ropes 475,000 Aluminum shelter-tent pins 2,000 Sheet iron tent stoves 1,805 Joints of stove pipe 121,092 Folding army cots 930 Cot straps, with buckles 112 Sixty-two-inch Aparejos pack-saddle back frames, to fit on pack-saddles for carrying supplies. 7,133 Aparejos saddle sticks 5,170 Boot sticks, used in Apare- jos saddles 1,102 Daley ribbings, forming frame for pack-saddle for carrying extra load 44,757 Cincha hooks for Aparejos saddles 8,862 Pack frames, complete 14,014 Pack frame bodies 303,937 Pack frame parts 5,783 Clinch irons, used in shoe- ing horses 21,584 Wooden bungs for ranges, water kegs, etc. 1,579 Wooden plugs for water wagons 5,613 Wooden buttons for water bags 3,292 Brass drain plugs and nuts, furnished the Submarine Boat Corporation 300 Display frames, for posters at recruiting stations , ^-ciT-f -^^-.■.TFfsm 94 F O V Ai n R Y - c O M P ^ MY-- I \1 - K h^ A K I Miscellaneous Items from Various Car and Foundry Plants On September 5, 1917, Berwick received a trial order for 5,000 steel helmets. Orders were immediately placed for the necessary equipment and a sample helmet was produced the third week in October. This original order was completed by November 1 , at which time an additional order was received for 100,000. By November 21 the daily production had reached 5,000, and this rate was maintained until completion of the contract. Various orders for smoke stacks and pipe for U. S. Government Canton- ments at Chillicothe, Camp Admiral, Md., and Camp Merritt, were assigned to Berwick. These consisted of 6,760 roof jacks, aggregating 92,907 lineal feet of pipe, or a matter of over seventeen miles. A small section of the Car Department was set aside for this particular work, the entire quantity being completed in eight weeks. To complete this work in this time re- quired shipments from Berwick of from three to four full carloads per day. In addition to building escort wagons, the St. Charles, Mo., plant turned out all the woodwork and chests for the artillery vehicles that were built at Detroit. This work comprised the following: 2,535 chests for spare breech mechanism; 2,535 chests for spare sights; 2,223 chests for spare cleaning materials; 2,183 chests for spare small supplies; 2,207 chests for miscellaneous spare parts; 9,992 tompions for gun muzzles; 2,207 grindstone frames; 20,800 packing strips; 41,794 pieces of wood lining for forge limber chests; 61,972 pieces of wood lining for store limber chests. Another of the diversified war activities was the manufacture of cast- iron stoves, which were used for heating buildings at the Army Cantonments in the United States and France. The large foundry facihties of the Car Company made it possible to supply these in quantities to meet the demands of the Army for the rapid construction and equipment of these ramps. Of these the following numbers were made: At Buffalo, N. Y. . 2,282 At Detroit, Mich. . 5,537 At Chicago, 111. . . 1,848 At St. Charles, Mo. 2,208 95 Frank presbrey Co. NEW YORK »/l I y II Ill: ^^ 1 ^X/rt