Carlisle and Finch Electric Trains

Carlisle and Finch Electric Trains Collections Essay nNovember 1896,justin time forChristmas,Scient# icAmericancar ried an advertisement for a child' s electric train, 7be Complete Electric Railloay,manufactured by the Carlisle and Finch Company [ C and F] of Cincinnati. Although windup or " clockwork" toy trains had been available for years, the first known electric train had appeared just a year earlier. With that 1896 ad,C and F introduced the world's first massproduced and marketed electric train. Morton Carlisle and Robert S. Finch were twentyone year old electrical engineers when, on July 1, 1893, they purchased a small electrical repair shop for $ 2500 from the General Electric Company' s Cincinn·ati Division. The summer of 1893 was not the best time to start a new business . The New York stock market had collapsed the previous June,plungPREIRRIE , t. LJ LJ Ur ' 18111* * 11 * rp 1 4J W W W 1 Electrical Scientific Novelties MODELS OF RAILWAYS, MOTORS, LOCOMO· TIVES, DYNAMOS, MINIATURE LAMPS,ETC. 1'1,(, ti: aTids of 111, 5,) lieite( l testimonials to prove t}tat they are > al'e.practical. dui· al,le. and the most amu. ing ati, 1 #: trile: live artit·les ever inver,ted. Prices fronl * 2. 50 up. Illustrated booklet tells all 111„, wittlic,11. Se,it. 1,· ee. I)„ n't ntake mistake of waiting unt. il height of holi( lay Reason. Send now. THECARLISLE& FINCHCO. 233 E. Clifton Avenue, CINCINNATI, 0. Largest Mfrs.Electrica] N ovelties in theWorld Carlisle and Finch ad,Scientific American,October 25, 1902,showing the No. 4 Engine & Tender. COMPANY ARCHIVES. ing the country into a deep economic depression. During a challenging first year, in a building at Fifth and Elm Streets, Carlisle and Finch repaired electric motors and rewound armatures for local businesses. In July of the following year,the company moved to a larger, betterequipped facility on Sixth Street. With the addition of a steam engine to generate power and an electric oven with which to bake their own armatures and transformers, C and F began to rrlanufacture small motors and marine arc searchlights, products that became the foundation of the company. For the young company to survive difficult economic times, mass produced products with broad popular appeal were to be essential. Well aware of the public fascination with anything electric or mechanical,C and F designed and manufactured a toy electric trolley car. Three years later,in September 1896, the company manufactured the first five hundred sets of the No.1 Complete Electric Railway, which included a single trolley car,a circular piece of track, and battery components for the price of $ 3.50. This was the beginning of the electric train industry. By 66 OHIO VALLEY HISTORY 1 June 16, 1897] THE ELECTRICAL ENGINEER. hH 4, Spuz COMPLETE ELECTRIC RAILWAY, 3.00_ca HAND -POWER r r 9,. 4 L Price, $ 6. 50. 3 i--- ELECTRIC RAILWAY, Lilcillat 1„, ck 31{(> t 111 411: imeter. 2 11, 1>9 milg€ Car made of poltlmi W b 111;Ks:, 7 Illehe'% king 4 inche. high Riin• 130 feet 5% i mit} ute Illmt zatesthel„ actle 11 oikit: of th<, modem t: „ Ile, * u, 1,litirc < Jittlit 1, 1,ked 111 4 011% 10,„ len 1) 0\, j n , iglit lia,1, f„ 1 411'proe,14 d 5 11. r-CS - ' -3 ' jlt » " D}52, 5L Y, rUL,Tde 1 lu y. £ 9 ,Artied to kil, the gleate.St # 15 X315-2r1 -- - -4 „ ELK& 25· 81# - 4 m,1, 1 It Ketwiati.dint ,11 .„, I c „ rli I 10 t,) ti,e p„ Wi' t t $ " e|I' llt„, 111, 15.c h., ge.. toi Hir, 1,al leile-i t, 11 c [; cht iii 5 M,\ 0 11). 11,1,zbtl 'in, lip< i AGENTS WANTED i*rt , 4); 3 THE CARLISLE & F 830 W 6th Street, 1 NC H CO., Cl NCI N NATI , OHI 0 2it/** p/* 41;:: 51kfal' W Ef Carlisle and Finch ad,The Electrical Engineer, june '\ 6 1897,showing the No 1 Complete Electric Rallwaynd the No 7 HandPowe Dynamo COMPANY ARCHIVES Electrical Scientifici 4 Novelties A ull line of Miniature Railroad T a ns S ee lars, Mining locnoves and liand Dynamos Dynamos and Ga,Eng nes Reproduct on in miniatu e of the ate„ t tlantic T, pe locomot,ve IZ f Ope ated 67 Dry Batter es A FINE LINE FOR SUPPLY HOUSES Send for Catalogue B THE CARLISLE & FINCH COMPANY 3* 215 East Clifton Apenue CINCINNATI, OHIO Carlisle and Finch ad, Electrical Review, November 28,1903,showing the No 45 AtlanticType Locomotive c ANY ARCHIVES Carlisle and Finch No 4 Freight Set Cincinnati Museum Center Collections PHOTOGRAPHBYROBERTWEBER 1%= P CINCINNATI MUSEUM CENTER COLLECTIONS I--.... Carlisle and Finch No 3 Coal Mining locomotive Cincinnati Museum Center ·41{ Collections PHOTOGRAPH BY ROBERT WEBER, UNCINNATIMUSEUM CENTER COLLECTIONS WINTER 2007 67 CARLISLE AND FINCH ELECTRIC TRAINS November, C and F had produced fifteen hundred sets. ' Ihe seveninch long No. 1 trolley car was made of stamped sheet brass and driven by a twopole electric motor. Ihe track consisted of thin metal strips set into notched wooden ties. In early production,No.1 trolley cars used a threerail track, but the company changed to a tworail system for added realism in early 1897. Because most homes were not wired for electricity at this time, a crude battery ( made of zinc/ carbon strips suspended in a solution of chromite and water)supplied power to the tracks. ' Ilie No. 1 Electric Railway was an immediate success and remained one of the companys best sellitig toys, in part because of its low price. To enhance the trolley : ind increase sales,C and F soon upgraded the No. 1 set with an optional reversincy motor b and additional brass trail cars. Within a few months,Carlisle and Finch rapidly expanded their product line and became the premier manufacturer of electric trains in the country. In c. irly 1897,it produced the No. 2 Electric Railway,a twelveinch long ,double truck brass trolley,similar to the fullsize streetcars that rattled through the streets ofCincinnati . Shortly thereafter,C and F intrc,duced the No.. 3 Coal Mining Locomoti' ue,a simple tow motor pulling three dump cars. It would become one of the most popular of all the C and F products. Railway accessories, pieces that added that allimportant realism and play value to the layouts,also appeared at this time, including the No.5 Ornamental Rail' way Bridge,the No.9 Buffalo Railway Station, and several track switches. ' Ilic Buffalo railway station w, is a finely crafted tinplate building with color lithographed details and operating electric semaphore signals. Ihis highly popular accessory would remain in production for years to come. C and F greatly impri, ved its electric power sources with the development of the No. 7 HandPower Dynanto, & stndl handcranked generator, and the No. 8 Complete WaterPower Plant, a waterpropelled dynamo. 1] he fifteenpound , caststeel No.8 power plant, which sold for eight dollars, when placed in the kitchen sink and connected to the faucet with : i rubber hose and metal clamps,provided forty to fifty pounds ofwater pressure that turned the dynamo: s internal wheel. It generated up t(, ten volts of electricity tc,the model railroad. Mechanical power plants and dry cell batterics were welcome alternatives to open jars of liquid chromite, especially for watchful parents of small children. Queen City landmarks influenced the design of Carlisle and Finch products . In March 1897 the company manufactured one hundred motorized No.4 Inclined Plane Railways, later increasing the total number ofinclines to one hundred and twenty. 1he Price Hill incline was near the C and F building on Sixth Street, and it undoubtedly served : is the inspiration for the twentyinch tall model. Although the overall specifications of the incline are unknown, the model consisted of a motor house mounted on four metal OHIO VALI. EY HISTORY 68 DAVID C. CONZETT Carlisle and Finch Clifton Avenue Workshop with baskets of electrictrains,ca. 1905. COMPANY ARCHIVES poles and two incline planes that descended from the front of the building. A small electric motor pulled a pair of platforms along the incline and,like the Price Hill incline, as one platform went up,the other one went down. The No.4 Incline Railway,which originally sold for four dollars, was a rare toy at the time. None are known to have survived. Carlisle and Finch continued to produce trolleys, mining locomotives, and a variety of railway accessories,but no new designs appeared for nearly two years. During the summer of 1899 the company released the battery operated No. 19 Electric Automobile as well as the twentyfour inch long No.20 Electric Torpedo Boat,likely inspired by the naval engagements of the ongoing SpanishAmerican War. In September 1899,the company created what is today often considered the first true electric train,one that looked like an actual steam locomotive: the No. 4 Electric Locomotive and Tender. Early No. 4 engines and tenders were made of tin, with the cab,window,and boiler details simulated on an att·ached lithographed paper label. Early engine cabs bore the number 683. The second and third models of the No.4 engines had a nickelplated boiler, embossed boiler bands, and painted details. Engine cabs were embossed with the number 171. Later period engines retained the embossed details, WINTER 2007 69 CARLISLE AND FINCH ELECTRIC TRAINS but the company eliminated nickelplated boilers in favor of an overall,and more realistic,black paint scheme,with the cabs stamped with the number 131. With the exception of the engine number,paint,and embossed details, the engines remained largely unchanged from 1899 to 1905. A smaller vcrsion of the No.4 engine,the No. 20 S' witch Engine,was released in 1904. Tle No.4 Electric Locomotive and Tender,sold separately,became available in freight and passenger sets. E·irly No. 4 freight sets, produced from 1899 to 1905, consisted of a flat car and a boxcan Not until the latter ye·ar did the comp·any produce red cabooses for use with this set. Like the early engine and tender,the first freight cars were made of tin with details printed on color lithographed paper labels,while later cars, with embossed details, were painted. C and F freight cars would eventually include a cattle car, gondola car,tank car,and a motorized crane mounted on a flatcan I[ he No. 32 p·assenger set was composed of a baggage car and two brass coaches, while later coaches were made of nickelplated as well as painted tin. No. 4 freight and No. 32 passenger sets, as well as their many related accessories, were among the most popular of all C and F products, as attested by the letter that the company received from a young enthusiast in Indianapolis, Indiana,in early 1900: Gentlemen: January 16,1900 The Carlisle and Finch Co., Cincinnati,0. I have received the train and am much pleased with it,and tell you it is all you claim and more. I am going to buy more tr·ack and 1·ay out a railro·, id,and I think I will have two or three bridges,and keep on adding more until I have the largest toy railroad in Indianapolis. Yours truly, Master Fernor S. Cannon In 1900, C·arlisle and Finch moved their growing business to a fivestory buildine at 228231 East Clifton Avenue. Although C and F faced serious competition from several other electric train manufacturers, including Lionel, Smith and White, and Howard Manufacturing Co., the company continued to design high quality products and remained competitive in the rapidly growing toy industry. With the production of the No. 45 Locomotive,a detailed twentyeight inch long steam engine and tender in 1903, C and F introduced their largest and most impressive electric traiti. Not a true scale model by today' s standards,the No.45 was nonetheless an accurate depiction of the Atl·anticType locomotive then in use by the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad. Hobbyists and antique collectors consider it one of the most authentic and handsome models of the period. Ihe No. 45 locomotive had a nickelplated boiler and rooftop with black 70 01110 VALLEY HISTORY DAVID C. CONZETT painted accents,the engine' s hand rails,piping and drive rods were made of brass. A powerful sixpole electric motor with heavy spur gears created a smooth operation and high speed. Largescale tinplate freight and passenger cars, similar to those of the No. 4 sets, were manufactured for use with the No. 45 locomotive. The company introduced a smaller version of the No. 45 Atlantic, the No. 34 Locomotive, in 1908. Early No. 34 engines h.ad a nickelplated boiler, simulated boiler b.ands, and brass h·andrails. Later No.34 engines and tenders were painted in an overall black paint scheme with gold details and lettering. Manufacturing of electric trains by Carlisle and Finch ceased almost as quickly as it had begun. INith the approach ofthe First World War in 1914, the company received the first of several lucrative government contr·acts to produce marine search and signal lamps for the U.S. Navy and Merchant Marine. Electric train production ended in 1915 and never resumed. In the immediate postwar years C and F continued to manufacture marine scarchlights, as well as electric fans, radio headphones, electric clothes dryers,and other household goods for the growing consumer mtirket . Morton Carlisle sold his entire interest in the business to Robert Finch iii August 1926,but the company name remained unchanged. 1he company seriously considered reentering the electric train market in the early 1930s, creating several prototype model trains, but it never resumed production. Ihe onset of the Great Depression · as well as the strong competition from Lionel,American Flyer,and other train manufacturers,doubtless influenced C and F' s reluctance to reenter the electric train business. During World War II, C·arlisle · and Finch once ag·ain manufactured signal and searchlights for the U.S. Navy,Co·ast Guard, · and Merchant Marine, and further est·ablished their position as a leader in scarchlight technology. In 1950 the business moved from the fivestory factory it had occupied for more than fifty years on Clifton Avenue to a more modern facility at 4562 West Mitchell. Even before the company had completed its move to Clifton,a fire destroyed the old factory and with it barrels and boxes of early tinplate trains and catalogs that had yet to be moved to the new address. Today,the grandson and great grandsons of founder Robert S. Finch direct the Carlisle and Finch Company. Entering the Mitchell Avenue plant,an old brass searchlight surrounded by modernday office cubicles and the sound of clicking computer keyboards greet visitors. Computerized machine tools on the nearby factory f[ oor produce the latest highintensity searchlights and beacons. ' Ihe U.S. Navy,U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal Prison System and the International Commercial Marine Industry use C and F searchlights widely. Although Carlisle and Finch has entered the modern age, the Finch family has not forgotten its toymaking past. In an adjacent conference room,stands a large wall case display of shiny brass trolleys, bright red dynamos,and nickelplated electric trains. WINTER 2007 71 CARLISLE AND FINCH ELECTRIC TRAINS Cincinnati Museum Center is fortunate to have some fine examples of Carlisle and Finch model trains,including the No.3 Coal Mining Locomotive with one dump car and the No.4 Freight Set with locomotive,tender,freight car,and caboose. CMC is actively collecting additional Carlisle and Finch toys ·, ind trains. If readers have a Carlisle : ind Finch product they wish to donate,or if they would like to support the acquisition of C and F electric trains, please contact the CMC History Collections at ( 513)2877063 . David C. Conzett Curator,CMC History Collections 01110 VALLEY HISTORY 72 ...