American Locomotive Company

"Alco" redirects here. For other uses, seeAlco (disambiguation).

TheAmerican Locomotive Company(often shortened toALCO,ALCoorAlco) was an American manufacturer that operated from 1901 to 1969, initially specializing in the production oflocomotivesbut later diversifying and fabricating at various times diesel generators, automobiles, steel, tanks,munitions,oil-production equipment, as well asheat exchangersfornuclear power plants.

American Locomotive Company

Company type	Private
Industry	Rail transport Energy generation
Predecessor	List Brooks Locomotive Works Cooke Locomotive & Machine Works Dickson Manufacturing Company Manchester Locomotive Works Pittsburgh Locomotive and Car Works Rhode Island Locomotive Works Richmond Locomotive Works Schenectady Locomotive Works
Founded	1901(1901)
Defunct	1969(1969)
Headquarters	Schenectady,New York , United States
Area served	Worldwide
Products	Armed tanks automobiles diesel enginesand​ generators diesel–electric locomotives electricity high-quality steel specialized forgings steam locomotives
Subsidiaries	Montreal Locomotive Works Rogers Locomotive Works

The company was formed by the merger of seven locomotive manufacturers andSchenectady Locomotive Engine ManufactoryofSchenectady, New York.A subsidiary, American Locomotive Automobile Company, designed and manufactured automobiles under the Alco brand from 1905 to 1913. ALCO also produced nuclear reactors from 1954 to 1962.AfterWorld War II,Alco closed all of its manufacturing plants except those in Schenectady and Montreal.

In 1955, the company changed its name toAlco Products, Incorporated.In 1964, theWorthington Corporationacquired the company. The company went out of business in 1969,although Montreal Locomotive Works continued to manufacture locomotives based on Alco designs.

The ALCO name is currently being used byFairbanks Morse Enginefor their FM|ALCO line.

History

The AlcoSchenectadyplant in 1906

Builder`s card of Natal Government Railways 2-6-6-0 MalletType MBlocomotive

An Alco builder's plate onLake Superior and Ishpeming2-8-0No. 24 at theNational Railroad Museum

Foundation

The company was created in 1901 from the merger of seven smaller locomotive manufacturers with theSchenectady Locomotive Engine ManufactoryofSchenectady, New York:

• Brooks Locomotive WorksinDunkirk, New York
• Cooke Locomotive & Machine WorksinPaterson, New Jersey
• Dickson Manufacturing CompanyinScranton, Pennsylvania
• Manchester Locomotive WorksinManchester, New Hampshire
• Pittsburgh Locomotive and Car WorksinPittsburgh, Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island Locomotive WorksinProvidence, Rhode Island
• Richmond Locomotive WorksinRichmond, Virginia

The consolidation of the seven manufacturers was the brainchild of financier Pliny Fisk Sr. of the brokerage house Harvey Fisk & Sons. The consolidated ALCO was intended to compete with Baldwin Locomotive Co. which controlled two-fifths of the industry.

The new company was headquartered in Schenectady.Samuel R. Callawayleft the presidency of theNew York Central Railroadto become president of Alco.When Callaway died on June 1, 1904,Albert J. Pitkinsucceeded him as president of Alco.

In 1904, the American Locomotive Company acquired control of the Locomotive and Machine Company ofMontreal,Quebec, Canada; this company was eventually renamed theMontreal Locomotive Works.In 1905, Alco purchasedRogers Locomotive WorksofPaterson, New Jersey,the country's second-largest locomotive manufacturer behindBaldwin Locomotive Works.

Steam era

Milwaukee Road 261,a 1944 American4-8-4steam locomotive

Alco produced more than 75,000 locomotives, including more steam locomotives than any U.S. company exceptBaldwin Locomotive Works.(Alco outlasted Baldwin, in part by shifting more readily to diesel.) Railroads that favored Alco products included theDelaware & Hudson Railway,theNew York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad,theNew York Central Railroad,theUnion Pacific Railroadand theMilwaukee Road.Among Alco's better-known steam locomotives were the4-6-4Hudson,4-8-2Mohawk,and the4-8-4Niagarabuilt for the New York Central; and the4-8-4FEFand the4-6-6-4Challengerbuilt for the Union Pacific.

Alco built many of the biggest locomotives ever constructed, includingUnion Pacific'sBig Boy(4-8-8-4). Alco also built the fastest American locomotives, theClass AAtlantic andClass F7Hudson streamliners for theMilwaukee Road'sTwin Cities Hiawatharun. Among the ambitious state-of-the-art designs of the late steam era, Alco's Challengers, Big Boys, and high-speed streamliners stood out for their success in operations.

American No 75214 Tr2 1319 at theFinnish Railway Museum

Alco built the second production steam locomotive inNorth Americato useroller bearings(after the Delaware & Hudson's 1924 addition ofSKFroller bearingsto the drivers and main and side rods of their own 4-6-2 locomotives). This wasTimken 1111,a 4-8-4 commissioned in 1930 byTimken Roller Bearing Companyand ultimately used for 100,000 miles (160,000 km) on 15 major United States railroads before it was purchased in 1933 by theNorthern Pacific Railway.The Northern Pacific renumbered theFour Acesto No. 2626 and ran it on theNorth Coast Limited,as well as its pool trains betweenSeattle, Washington,andPortland, Oregon,and excursions, through 1957.

Narrow gaugeAlco locomotive built for themilitary service behind the trenches of World War I

During World War II, Alco produced many2-10-0 Decapodsfor theUSSR.Many went undelivered, and ten of these were sold toFinlandin 1947. One, Alco builder's No. 75214, is preserved at theFinnish Railway Museum.

Though the dual-service 4-8-4 steam locomotive had shown great promise, 1948 was the last year that steam locomotives were manufactured in Schenectady. These were the sevenA-2a class9400-seriesPittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad2-8-4"Berkshires." Their tenders had to be subcontracted toLima Locomotive Works,as Alco's tender shop had been closed. The building was converted to make diesel locomotives to compete with those of the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors.

Joseph Burroughs Ennis (1879–1955) was a senior vice president between 1917 and 1947 and was responsible for the design of many of the company's locomotives.

Alco automobiles (1906–1913)

1913 ALCO Model Six Berline Limousine at Crawford

The company diversified into theautomobilebusiness in 1906, producing FrenchBerlietdesigns under license. Production was located at Alco'sRhode Island Locomotive WorksinProvidence, Rhode Island.Two years later, the Berliet license was abandoned, and the company began to produce its own designs instead. An Alco racing car won theVanderbilt Cupin both 1909 and 1910 and competed in the firstIndianapolis 500in 1911, driven on all three occasions byHarry Grant.

• 
  Alco car by American Locomotive
• 
  1912 ALCO – an example of abrass eracar
• 
  An Alco automobile winning the 1910 Vanderbilt Cup

ALCO's automotive venture was unprofitable, and they abandoned automobile manufacture in 1913.The Alco automobile story is notable chiefly as a step in the automotive career ofWalter P. Chrysler,who worked as the plant manager. In 1911 he left Alco forBuickinDetroit, Michigan,where he subsequently founded theChrysler Corporationin 1925.

Electric locomotives

Alco made 60-ton center-cab electric freight motors from 1912 through the 1920s for electric railway lines in Oregon.

Diesel–electric locomotives

Further information:List of ALCO diesel locomotives

An Alco RSD-16 used forfreightservices inArgentina,1999

Already a leader insteam locomotives,Alco produced the first commercially successfuldiesel–electricswitch engine in 1924 in a consortium withGeneral Electric(electrical equipment) andIngersoll-Rand(diesel engine). This locomotive was sold to theCentral Railroad of New Jersey.It built additional locomotives for theLong Island Rail Roadand theChicago and North Western Railway.

The company bought theMcIntosh & SeymourDiesel Engine Company in 1929 and henceforth produced its own diesel engines, though it always bought its electrical equipment from GE. The diesel program was largely overseen byPerry T. Egbert,vice president in charge of diesel locomotive sales and later president of the company.

In the early to mid-1930s, ALCo was the pre-eminent builder of diesel–electric switch engines in the United States. It was slower than its competition to develop reliable diesel power for full-size mainline trains, though it did provided motive power for theGulf, Mobile and Northern Railroad'sRebelstreamliners in 1935.

In 1939, ALCo started producing passenger diesel locomotives to compete withGeneral Motors'Electro-Motive Corporation.The following year, ALCo teamed up with General Electric (Alco-GE) for much-needed support in competing with EMC. In 1941, ALCo introduced theRS-1,the first road–switcher locomotive. The versatile road–switcher design gained favor for short-haul applications, which would provide ALCo a secure market niche through the 1940s. The entry of the United States into World War II froze ALCo's development of road diesel locomotives.

During that time, ALCo was allocated the construction of diesel switching locomotives, their new road–switcher locomotives, a small quantity ofALCO DL-109dual-service engines and its proven steam designs, whileEMD(formerly EMC) was allocated the construction of mainline road freight diesels (the production of straight passenger-service engines was prohibited by theWar Production Board). Still, ALCo ranked 34th among United States corporations in the value of wartime production contracts.

Alco'sRS-1road switcher was selected by theUnited States Armyfor a vital task: rejuvenating theTrans-Iranian Railwayand extending it to the Soviet Union. This gave the U.S. ally a new supply line at a time when the German air force and navy had reduced Allied shipments to theSovietport ofMurmansk.The U.S. Army chose as locomotives theRSD-1,a six-axle, six-traction motorvariant of the light ALCo RS-1. Not only was the company prevented from selling these locomotives to mainline U.S. railroads, but the 13 RS-1s that had already been built were commandeered for Iranian duty and converted to RSD-1s.

Post-war era

The postwar era saw ALCo's steam products fall out of favor while it struggled to develop mainline diesel locomotives competitive with EMD'sEandFseries road locomotives, which were well-positioned from GM-EMC's large development efforts of the 1930s and its established service infrastructure. ALCo would prove unable to overcome that lead.

AnALCO S-1diesel switcher at theMid-Continent Railway Museum,North Freedom, Wisconsin

ALCO wordmark recreation

In 1946, ALCo controlled 26% of the diesel locomotive market.The ubiquitous S series (660and1000horsepower) switchers and RS series (1000and1500horsepower)road switchersrepresented ALCo well during the late 1940s. Much of its success in this period can be tied to its pioneering RS locomotives, representing the first modern road–switcher, aconfigurationwhich has long-outlasted ALCo. The success of their switcher and road–switcher locomotives was not matched with thePAandFA-type mainline units, however.

The244engine, developed in a crash program to compete with EMD's powerful567engine, proved unreliable and sales of ALCo's mainline units soon went into decline. In 1948, ALCo-GE produced a prototypegas-turbine–electric locomotiveto address the concerns of operators such asUnion Pacificthat sought to minimize the number of locomotive units needed for large power requirements. In 1949, ALCo embarked on a clean-sheet design project to replace the 244. 1949 also saw the introduction of theEMD GP7road–switcher, a direct challenge in ALCo's bread-and-butter market.

In 1953,General Electric,dissatisfied with the pace of ALCo's efforts to develop a replacement for the troubled 244 engine, dissolved their partnership with ALCo and took over the gas turbine–electric venture that had started series production the previous year. In 1956, ALCo made long-overdue changes, modernizing its production process and introducing road locomotives with its new251engine. However, the benefits to ALCo were negated by bad timing; the market for locomotives was declining after the height of thedieselizationera and EMD'sGP9was on the market as a proven competitor backed by a service infrastructure that ALCo, since the dissolution of the GE partnership, lacked. Sales were disappointing and ALCo's profitability suffered.

GE entered the export road-diesel locomotive market in 1956, then the domestic market in 1960, and quickly took the No. 2 position from ALCo, and eventually eclipsed EMD in overall production. Despite continual innovation in its designs (the first AC/DC transmission among others), ALCo gradually succumbed to its competition, in which its former ally, General Electric, was an important element.

India during 1960s began gradual withdrawal of Steam locomotives from Indian Railways so the Diesel electric locomotive WDM series was developed byBanaras Locomotive Workswith help of American Locomotive Company (ALCO) for Indian Railways. In 1962 Alco locomotives entered in service and since then Thousands of Alco class LocomotiveWDM-2,WDM-3A ,WDM-3Dwould be manufactured and rebuilt which would make most successful locomotives of Indian Railways serving both passenger and freight trains and still retain operational status for Indian railways today

A new line ofCentury locomotivesincluding the630(the first AC/DC transmission), the430and the636,the first 3,600 horsepower (2.7 MW) locomotive, failed to keep the enterprise going. Third-place in the market proved to be an impossible position; ALCo products had neither the market position nor reputation for reliability of EMD's products, nor the financing muscle and customer support of GE. It could not earn enough profits. In the late 1960s, Alco gradually ceased locomotive production, shipping its last two locomotives, a pair ofT-6switchers to theNewburgh & South Shore Railroad(#1016 and #1017) in January 1969.ALCo closed its Schenectady locomotive plant later that year, and sold its designs to theMontreal Locomotive Worksin Canada. The vast ALCo Schenectady plant was completely demolished by 2019, and its site is now occupied by a large industrial park.

Diversification

Alco diversified into areas other than automobiles with greater success. DuringWorld War II,Alco builtmunitionsfor the war effort, in addition to locomotive production; this continued throughout theKorean War.After the Korean War, Alco began making oil production equipment andheat exchangersfor nuclear plants.

In 1955, the company was renamedAlco Products, Incorporated.By this stage, locomotive production only accounted for 20% of the business.

The firstnuclear power plantconnected to the electrical grid, the SM-1, was built for theArmy Nuclear Power ProgramatFort Belvoirin Virginia in 1957.Another complete plant, the PM-2A, was shipped to and constructed at Camp Century in Greenland. The Camp Century plant was filmed by the U.S. Army.

Purchase and division

The company was purchased in 1964 by theWorthington Corporation,which merged with theStudebakercorporation in 1967 to formStudebaker-Worthington,Alco remaining a wholly owned subsidiary.Former divisions of Alco became semi-independent subsidiaries in 1968.

After the termination of locomotive production in 1969, the locomotive designs (but not the engine development rights) were transferred to theMontreal Locomotive Works,which continued their manufacture. The diesel engine business was sold toWhite Motor Corporationin 1970, which developedWhite Industrial Power.In 1977 White Industrial Power was sold to the BritishGeneral Electric Company(GEC) which renamed the unit Alco Power. The business was subsequently sold to theFairbanks-Morsecorporation, which continues to manufacture Alco-designed engines in addition to their own design.

The heat exchanger business continued as Alco Products for a time. At some later point, some of the heat exchanger products were manufactured by the Alco Products Division of Smithco Engineering in Tulsa, Oklahoma (Smithco). In January 1983, certain assets of the Alco Products Division of Smithco, namely double-pipe and hairpin-type heat exchanger products sold under the "Alco Twin" name, mark and style, were sold in an asset sale by Smithco to Bos-Hatten, a subsidiary of Nitram Energy. Following the sale of these assets, Smithco remained in business, manufacturing other heat exchange products. In 1985, the assets acquired from Smithco were assigned by Bos-Hatten to its parent, Nitram. In 2008, Nitram was acquired byPeerless Manufacturing CoIn 2015, Peerless sold its heat exchanger business toKochHeat Transfer Co.

Epilogue

AnALCO 251engine used as a backup generator at a wastewater plant inMontreal

After the closure of Alco's Schenectady works, locomotives to Alco designs continued to be manufactured in Canada byMontreal Locomotive Worksand in Australia byAE Goodwin.

In addition, Until 2022, Alco-derived locomotives accounted for most of the diesel power on theIndian Railways.Many thousands of locomotives with Alco lineage are in regular mainline use in India. Most of these locomotives were built by theDiesel Locomotive Works(DLW) atVaranasi, India.The Diesel Loco Modernisation Works (DMW) at Patiala, India, do mid-life rebuilding and upgrading the power of these locomotives, typically the 2,600 horsepower (1.94 MW)WDM-2to 3,100 horsepower (2.31 MW).

An Alco DL537metre gaugelocomotive of the Hellenic Railways Organisation at Corinth Old Railway Station, Greece

A number of Alco and MLW diesel–electric locomotives (models DL500C, DL532B, DL537, DL543, MX627 and MX636) are in daily use hauling freight trains of theHellenic Railways Organisation(OSE) in Greece. The oldest of them (class A.201, DL532B) were delivered to the formerHellenic State Railways(SEK) in 1962. In addition to a variety ofstandard gaugelocomotives, the fleet includes 11metre gaugeAlco locomotives, mainly used for departmental trains in the Peloponnese network. The MX627 and MX636 locomotives have been extensively rebuilt at Piraeus Central Factory of OSE. The remaining Alco locomotives are also being rebuilt, starting with models DL532B and DL537.

TheALCO 251diesel engine is still manufactured byFairbanks-MorseofBeloit, Wisconsin,a company which also manufactured diesel locomotives. Additionally, Alco diesel engines are used to power theNASACrawler Transporter.

Alco RSD-16s were used inSan Martín LineofArgentinauntil 2014.

Some Alcos survive on Australian networks, as well as in Bangladesh and Pakistan. Another fleet of Alco Bombardier locomotives run in rugged terrain on the Sri Lanka railway network. Argentina also has a healthy fleet of Alcos DL540 running commuter and cargo trains.

TheGlenbrook Vintage RailwayNew Zealand, has a2-4-4-2articulated compound mallet, built by Alco in 1912. Only four mallets with this wheel arrangement were ever built; the other three by Baldwin. This unique loco is currently out of service awaiting overhaul.

During the 1970s, Romania'sUCMR Resitamade licensed engines from ALCo, putting the engines 6&12R251 into naval gensets and also with the 6R251 in FAUR factory were made locomotives known as LDH 1500 CP. (CFR Classes 67/68/70/71 and CFR Class 61). They were also exported inIranandGreece(OSE)

Operational Alco steam locomotives

Several Alco-built mainline engines are still operational, such asUnion Pacific 844,Union Pacific Big Boy 4014,Milwaukee Road 261,Soo Line 1003,andFlorida East Coast 148.

UP Challenger 3985ran in UP excursion service until 2010, but is now being restored by the Railroad Heritage of Midwest America museum.

Alco and MLW locomotives still work on many regional and tourist railroads across the United States and Canada, including theDelaware-Lackawanna RailroadinScranton, Pennsylvania,theCatskill Mountain RailroadinKingston;theLivonia, Avon and Lakeville Railroadfamily of lines based inLakeville, New York,the Lake Whatcom Railway in Wickersham, Washington and theMiddletown & Hummelstown RailroadinMiddletown, Pennsylvania.The latter owns one of the last true ALCO switchers ever built, #1016. The 1016 is a T-6 type switcher engine. This and ALCO sister 151 (exWestern Maryland RailwayS-6) provide daily service in Middletown. Two original Alco RS-2's that were delivered to theNevada Northern Railwayare still in operation.

ALCO-Cooke 2-8-0 #18, built in 1920, survives in passenger service on theArcade & Attica Railroadin Arcade, New York. It returned to service in May 2009 after a six-year overhaul to bring it into compliance with the FRA's new steam locomotive regulations.

Great Western 60,a 2-8-0 built in Schenectady in 1937, currently operates in passenger service on theBlack River & Western Railroadin Ringoes, NJ.

Oregon Coast Scenic RailroadinGaribaldi, Oregon.This railroad owns theMcCloud Railway 25.One of only 4prairie type(2-6-2) locomotives ever built by ALCO. This locomotive is operational, and is used in daily service six months of the year and weekend service an additional four months of the year.This locomotive appeared in the film "Stand by Me".

Preserved Alco steam locomotives (nonoperational static display)

While regular production of steam locomotives by Alco ended in the 1950s, Alco-built steam engines have been preserved in locations across North America. They can be found on theNevada Northern Railwayin Ely, Nevada; at theOrange Empire Railway Museumin California, on the Lake Whatcom Railway in Washington and on theDurango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroadin Colorado.

InPortugalan Alco 2-8-2 locomotive built 1945 (Construction number: 73480) is displayed at theNational Railway MuseumatEntroncamento.

Another, preserved, Alco-built locomotive, is a 2-10-0 construction number 75506/1947 (local nameTy246), stored at Zduńska Wola Railway Museum, Poland.

InSpainan Alco 4-6-0 locomotive built 1916 (Construction number: 57068) is displayed at theCeutaold Station.

In India, the very firstWDM-1andWDM-2are preserved at theNational Rail Museum, New Delhi.

Popular culture

In February 2014, in the episodeThe Locomotive Manipulationof the TV seriesThe Big Bang Theory,takes place on a train pulled by what is described as an "Alco FA-4". Actually, theNapa Valley Wine Train(the setting for the episode) owns four Alco FPA-4 not FA-4.

Noted railroad artistHoward L. Foggbegan his career at Alco. Hired in 1946 as Alco's new company artist, Fogg began painting locomotives in the livery of prospective customers and taking photographs of them.

At an Alco gala at theWaldorf Astoria Hotel,Lucius Beebe,a noted journalist with theNew York Herald-Tribune,sought out Fogg. Beebe was considering leaving New York to write railroad books. They began a long-term collaboration, with Beebe buying Fogg's paintings and commissioning new ones for use in his books. In 1947, Beebe's book,Mixed Train Daily,was the first of many to use a Fogg painting on the cover. Fogg was also used by many other railroad authors because of his skill at capturing action shots. With commissions from individuals, authors, publishers, railroads, and related industrial firms flourishing, in 1957 Fogg ended his formal agreement with Alco. He continued to paint periodic commissions for them for a number of years.

See also

• List of ALCO diesel locomotives
• Locomotives of India
• Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Class A-2a
• The pony truck affair

References

• Steam Locomotive Builders
• Churella, Albert J. (1998).From Steam To Diesel: Managerial Customs and Organizational Capabilities in the Twentieth-Century American Locomotive Industry.Princeton: Princeton University Press.ISBN978-0-691-02776-0.
• Kirkland, John F. (November 1989).The Diesel Builders volume 2: American Locomotive Company and Montreal Locomotive Works.Glendale, California:Interurban Press.ISBN0-916374-81-5.

Further reading

• Ingles, J. David (June 1975)."Alco's Big Bid to Be Best-1"(PDF).Trains.Vol. 35, no. 9. pp. 22–32.ISSN0041-0934.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2019-08-06.Retrieved2018-03-16.
• Ingles, J. David (July 1975)."Alco's Big Bid to Be Best-2"(PDF).Trains.Vol. 35, no. 10. pp. 22–43.ISSN0041-0934.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2019-08-06.Retrieved2018-03-16.
• McDonnell, Greg (2006). "Alco: Tougher than the rest".Classic Trains Special Edition.No. 4,Diesel Victory.pp. 32–35.ISSN1541-809X.

External links

• American Locomotive Company (ALCO) Records,Syracuse University
• The Alco Racers(VanderbiltCupRaces.com)
• Preserved locomotives by builder
• Historic American Engineering Record(HAER) No. NY-40, "American Locomotive Company, Foundry, 320 South Roberts Street, Dunkirk, Chautauqua County, NY",1 photo, 2 data pages, 1 photo caption page
• U.S. Army documentary film showing the construction of Camp Century (Greenland) and the shipment and construction of PM-2Aposted by DocumentaryTube.net. The arrival occurs at 16:11 in the 27-minute film.