American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Search this
Container:
Box 1, Folder 1
Type:
Archival materials
Date:
1984, undated
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
American Society of Mechanical Engineers Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Collection documents the activities of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).
Content Description:
Collection consists of pamphlets, brochures and correspondence, and publications for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), especially the Applied Mechanics Division. Also included is documentation for the History Heritage Committee of ASME, particularly nomination forms and brochures for the Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark Program.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into three series.
Series 1: History and Heritage Commission, 1970-1984
Series 2: National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark Brochures National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark Brochures, 1973-2003
Series 3: Applied Mechanics Division Applied Mechanics Division, 1926-1981
Historical:
ASME was founded in 1880 to provide a setting for engineers to discuss the concerns brought by the rise of industrialization and mechanization.
The Society's founders were some of the more prominent machine builders and technical innovators of the late nineteenth century; led by prominent steel engineer Alexander Lyman Holley, Henry Rossiter Worthington and John Edison Sweet.
Holley chaired the first meeting, which was held in the New York editorial offices of the American Machinist, on February 16th, with thirty people in attendance. From this date onward, the society ran formal meetings to discuss development of standard tools and machine parts as well as uniform work practices. However, it wasn't until 1905 that a major turning point gave new definition to ASME's purpose and impact on civilian life.
Steam powered the technology of the late 19th century. Despite their power, boilers and pressure vessels were temperamental, requiring constant attention and maintenance. Although there were numerous boiler explosions throughout the 19th century, there were no legal codes for boilers in any state in the Union. Undoubtedly one of the most important incidents that proved the need for developing boiler laws was the Grover Shoe Factory Disaster in Brockton, Massachusetts on March 10, 1905.
An older boiler, used as a backup during maintenance on the newer model, exploded, rocketing through three floors and the building's roof. Broken beams and heavy machinery trapped many workers who survived the initial explosion and collapse. Burning coals thrown from the boiler landed throughout the crumbling superstructure, starting fires that were fed by broken gas lines. The explosion resulted in 58 deaths and 117 injuries.
It was this catastrophe that gave Massachusetts the impetus to establish a five-man Board of Boiler Rules, whose charge was to write a boiler law for the state; this board published its boiler laws in 1908.
Having established the Boiler Testing Code in 1884, ASME formed a Boiler Code Committee in 1911 that led to the Boiler & Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) being published in 1915. The BPVC was later incorporated into laws in most US states and territories and Canadian provinces.
ASME's rich publication history—including standards, theory, and technical journals—made a great deal of technical and biographical information available to engineers and policy makers. These publications form a substantial and tangible connection to the past that proves inspirational to ASME members to this day.
Source
American Society of Mechanical Engineers website, https://www.asme.org/about-asme/engineering-history (accessed on September 19, 2023)
Provenance:
Collection assembled by the Division of Work and Industry.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Genre/Form:
Brochures
Correspondence
Pamphlets
Citation:
American Society of Mechanical Engineers Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
The archivist has arranged the collection into seven series. The collection consists primarily of photocopied material assembled by John White for many of his books about railroads. Many files contain original photographs, brochures, advertisements, correspondence, and trade literature. Original Pullman Palace Car photographs can be found across many files. It appears that original Pullman Palace Car photopgraphs were removed from sequence and filed among John White's files. Researchers should consult the Pullman Palace Car Photograph Collection, NMAH.AC.1175. Additionally, original Baltimore & Ohio Railroad documents are found among many of the files. Researchers should also consult the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company Records, NMAH.AC.1086.
Series 1: Car Builders, arranged alphabetically by company or individual.
Series 2: Equipment, Rolling Stock, arranged in two sections: alphabetically by White's heading: Articles in Progress and alphabetical by type of railroad car under White's heading: Research Files for Book in Progress.
Series 3: Locomotives, arranged alphabetically by Locomotive builders in two sections, first by individual company and second by individuals.
Series 4: Railroad Companies and Lines, arranged alphabetically by railroad companies and railroad lines.
Series 5: Publications, White's files for his book The American Railroad Freight Car, which are arranged into two sections, Illustrations and Text. Both sections are arranged numerically by chapters or sections of the book.
Series 6: Freight Cars
Series 7: Passenger Cars
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into seven series. Most material arranged alphabetically and then chronologically.
Series 1: Car Builders
Series 2: Equipment--Rolling Stock
Subseries 2.1: Articles in progress
Subseries 2.2: Research Files for Books in Progress
Series 3: Locomotives
Series 4: Railroad Companies and Lines
Series 5: Publications
Series 6: Freights Cars
Series 7; Passenger Cars
Historical:
John H. White, Jr., (1933- ), historian and museum curator, was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He graduated with a B.A. in history from Miami University, Ohio, in 1958. Shortly after receiving his degree, White joined the staff of the Smithsonian Institution as Assistant Curator of the Division of Transportation, Department of Science and Technology, National Museum of History and Technology (NMHT). White became Associate Curator of the Division, 1961-1966, Curator, 1967-1985, and Senior Historian, 1986-1989. White specialized in land transportation, particularly the history of railroads. He retired in 1990. His papers, the John H. White, Jr., Papers, circa 1959-1989 are at the Smithsonian Institution Archives.
This collection of railroad materials was begun many years ago by employees of the Smithsonian Institution, and maintained later by curators and museum specialists working in the Division of Transportation, NMHT, later named the National Museum of American History (NMAH).
Some of the clippings date back to the time of J. Elfreth Watkins in the 1880-1890s. In 1885 Watkins was appointed Curator of the Section of Steam Transportation, which was successively known as Transportation and Engineering, and Technological Collections. Other portions of White's collection were clearly from Carl Mitman, author of several hundred entries on inventors and engineers in the Dictionary of American Biography and a Smithsonian employee who served as Curator of Mechanical Technology in 1919. In 1921 Mitman took the title of Curator of the Divisions of Mineral and Mechanical Technology, serving in this capacity until 1931. In 1931 the Division of Engineering was established. Mitman served as Curator of the Division and in charge of Mineral Technology, 1931-1938, Head Curator of the Department of Arts and Industries, 1932-1938, and Head Curator of the Department of Engineering and Industries, 1938-1948.
Some portions of this collection were acquired under the time of Frank A. Taylor (Mitman's protégé) who was Assistant Curator, 1928-1931, Assistant Curator for Mechanical Technology, 1932, Curator of the Division and in charge of Mechanical Technology, 1932-1948, Head Curator of the Division of Engineering and Industry, 1948-1957. In 1955 Taylor was appointed Assistant Director, United States National Museum (USNM), with special responsibility for planning the new NMHT, and in 1958 was appointed the first Director of the new museum. In 1962 Taylor became Director of the USNM with responsibility for both the National Museum of Natural History and NMHT.
Smith Hempstone Oliver of the Division of Transportation also kept up the files to a degree, though his main interest was in automobiles.
When White started employment at the Museum in June, 1958, there were, perhaps, two file cabinets on railroads. As Mr. White mentions in a letter to the archivist in March of 2002, "It was and is a great mix of odds and ends -- photos, news clippings, small prints, manufacturing catalogs, post cards, etc. Some junk and some treasure."
White found the material very useful for research and greatly expanded the collection. It more than doubled in size during his years in the Division, 1958-1990. The collection was White's working file and was set up to meet his needs. According to White, the collections greatest lack was cross referencing -- which was mostly in his head. He could usually find things but the organization might be confusing to other users. It was not intended for public use.
White is the author of many books on railroads, including:
American Locomotives: An Engineering History, 1830-1880. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1968; 1997.
Early American Locomotives, with 147 engraving. New York: Dover Publications, 1972.
American Single Locomotives and the "Pioneer". Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1973.
The Pioneer, Chicago's First Locomotive. Chicago: Chicago Historical Society, 1976.
The American Railroad Passenger Car. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978.
The John Bull, 150 Years a Locomotive. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1981.
A Short History of American Locomotive Builders in the Steam Era. Washington, D.C.: Bass, 1982.
Great Yellow Fleet: A History of American Railroad Refrigerator Cars. Golden West Books, 1986
The American Railroad Freight Car: From the Wood-Car Era to the Coming of Steel. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993.
Provenance:
Collection materials donated by Jack White in 1995.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Exhibition Collectors Historical Organization Search this
Names:
New York World's Fair (1939-1940 : New York, N.Y.) Search this
Extent:
130 Cubic feet (417 boxes, 25 map-folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Souvenirs
Photographs
Pamphlets
Guidebooks
Exhibition posters--1930-1940
Diaries
Ephemera
Film transparencies
Motion picture film
Posters
Place:
Flushing Meadows Park (New York, N.Y.)
New York (N.Y.)
Date:
1835-2000, undated
Summary:
Collection documents the 1939 New York World's Fair in Flushing Meadows, New York. Also includes material relating to other fairs, the Exhibition Collectors Historical Organization (ECHO), New York City tourism and The Walt Disney Company.
Scope and Contents:
Collection primarily documents the conception, planning, construction, management, and operations of the 1939 New York World's Fair located in Flushing Meadows, New York. Materials provide historical context and cultural significance as recorded in publications, artwork, photographs, ephemera, postcards, maps, plans, exhibitor's literature, souvenirs, and motion picture film. Most of the materials were primarily created for people who attended the fair. Some of the materials include scrapbooks created by fair visitors to document their experiences. There is a significant amount of material relating to other fairs, New York tourism, the Exhibition Collectors Historical Organization (ECHO) and the World's Fair Collector's Society. Other forms of entertainment such as festivals, the Olympic games, and Disney World are also found among these materials. There is little information relating to Edward Orth's personal and professional life as a city planner. The collection is arranged into eleven series.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into eleven series.
Series 1, Edward J. Orth Personal Papers, 1915-1989, undated
Subseries 1.1, Correspondence, 1939-1989
Subseries 1.2, Other Materials, 1915-1989, undated
Series 2, Exhibition Collectors Historical Organization (ECHO) and World's Fair Collector's Society, Incorporated Records, 1942-1990, undated
Subseries 2.1, General Information, 1960-1988, undated
Subseries 2.2, Correspondence, 1942-1990, undated
Subseries 2.3, Classified and Wanted Advertisements, 1956-1988, undated
Edward Joseph Orth grew up with a strong interest in history, particularly the history of the 1939 New York World's Fair. Orth's visit to the fair as a twelve-year-old boy led to a life-long passion of collecting. At the time of his death, he had amassed enough materials to fill two homes in California. Orth also collected materials from several other fairs. In addition, he saved some of the records of the Exhibition Collectors Historical Organization (ECHO) and the World's Fair Collector's Society.
Orth was born April 19, 1927, to Andrew Joseph Orth and Florence Minnie Gordon Orth in Glendale, New York. In the 1930s, the Orth family lived in several locations in New York including Ridgewood, Brooklyn, Glendale, and Queens. The home that made the most impact in young Orth's life came in 1935 when the family moved to St. Albans, Queens seven miles from Flushing Meadow Park, the future site of the 1939 fair. Sadly in 1939 there were several deaths in the family including three grandparents. The severe loss of life limited family social activities but a drive by the future site of the fair provided Orth a glimpse of the Trylon and Perisphere. He would later remark that the sight appeared to be magic. In the summer of 1939, he went to the fair with his classmates from Public School 136. The next summer Orth and his father purchased a 10-admission ticket from an elementary school in Hollis, Queens, New York. He saved every souvenir and any information he could find about the fair. He filled scrapbooks with images from newspapers and postcards from the Curt Teich and Manhattan Postcard companies. When his family moved from an apartment to a house, he acquired a fair bench which was kept in the backyard.
In 1941, Orth attended Newton High School in Elmhurst, and Queens, New York. The high school offered a college preparatory program with heavy emphasis on mathematics, science, mechanical drawing, and workshop courses. Orth's education and training combined with the knowledge he gained from motion picture films viewed at the fair, including Thomas Edison's "The City of Light," Ford Motor Company's "Road of Tomorrow," "Democracy," and General Motors' "Futurama" provided the foundation and inspiration for a career in architecture and landscaping. He ultimately became a city planner for the state of California. By 1943, Orth was exploring used magazine and bookstores in New York City to acquire more fair materials before enlisting in the United States Army in 1945. Upon his discharge he resumed buying and trading fair postcards. From 1948-1953, Orth attended the University of California and the University of Connecticut where he studied architecture and landscape design. During these years he posted advertisements in various publications in his continued pursue for fair materials.
In March 1953, Mr. Orth moved to Los Angeles, California. There he formed lasting friendships with other collectors. By 1967, Orth and several of his closest friends including Peter Warner, Oscar Hengstler, David Oats, Larry Zim, and Ernest Weidhaas conceived the idea of a fair collector's organization. By the summer of 1968, the group had formally created the Exhibition Collectors Historical Organization (ECHO).
As time passed Orth became increasing concerned about the welfare of his collection. He wanted it to go to a museum rather than be sold in parts. In his will he stipulated that the collection would be given to the Smithsonian Institution upon his death. Jon Zackman, former Smithsonian employee, interviewed Orth's brother George and fair collector Peter Warner. Orth and Warner corresponded and traded objects over many years. Mr. Orth primarily covered the west coast area while Peter Warner was his east coast counterpart. Edward Orth died on September 6,1989 in Los Angeles, California at the age of sixty-two.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
New York World's Fair Collection, NMAH.AC.0134
Landor Design Collection, NMAH.AC.0500
Warshaw Collection of Business Americana, Subject Category, World Expos, NMAH.AC.0060
Larry Zim World's Fair Collection, NMAH.AC.0519
Alice R. Hillis World's Fair Film, NMAH.AC.0531
Borden Company 1939 New York World's Fair Collection, NMAH.AC.1063
Memories of the New York World's Fair, NMAH.AC.0592
Archives Center World Expositions Collection, NMAH.AC.0825
Daniel H. Meyerson World's Fair Collection, NMAH.AC.0745
Division of Community Life World's Fairs Collection, NMAH.AC.1132
Princeton University Posters Collection, NMAH.AC.0433
Smithsonian Speech Synthesis History Project, NMAH.AC.0417
Messmore and Damon Company Records, NMAH.AC.0846
Thomas Norrell Railroad Collection, NMAH.AC.1174
William L. Bird Holidays on Display Collection, NMAH.AC.1288
Wurlitzer Company Records, NMAH.AC.0469
Victor A. Blenkle Postcard Collection, NMAH.AC.0200
Materials at Other Organizations
New York Public Library The New York World's Fair 1939 and 1940 Incorporated Records, 1935-1945, MssCol 2233.
New York City 1939 World's Fair architectural drawings, circa 1935. Museum of the City of New York. Museum of the City of New York.
New York City 1939 World's Fair Collection, 1939-1940. Museum of the City of New York. New York World's Fair 1939/40 Collection. Queens Museum.
1939 New York World's Fair Postcards, Identifier: 1972-320, Audiovisual Collections Repository, Hagley Museum & Library
Separated Materials:
Materials at the National Museum of American History
Artifacts from the collection include several thousand souvenirs and examples of memorabilia commemorating the fair to include buttons and badges, ceramics, glassware, clothing, costume jewelry, coins and medals, commemorative spoons and flatware, toys and games, and philatelic material which are all part of the Division of Home and Community Life's holdings (now Division of Cultural and Community Life).
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves. Researchers must use reference copies of audio-visual materials. When no reference copy exists, the Archives Center staff will produce reference copies on an "as needed" basis, as resources allow. Viewing film portion of collection requires special appointment, please inquire. Do not use when original materials are available on reference video or audio tapes.
Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Exhibitions -- 1930-1940 -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Papers contain archival materials comprising Bathe's research on Oliver Evans (1755-1819), an American engineer engaged in the development of steam engines. The collection includes copies of letters, design drawings, pamphlets and a book written by Evans, patents, a scrapbook, articles, genealogical information, Evans's will, and writings by Bathe on Evans, including his book about him. Correspondence with libraries and other scholars is included, as are papers relating to the book such as reviews, notebooks, and papers relating to the printing and publishing. There is also research material on American engineer Jacob Perkins, for Bathe's books Citizen Genet (1946), Horizontal Windmills (1948), and Ship of Destiny...Merrimac (1951), and assorted trade catalogs and materials pertaining to Bathe's manufacturing companies in London and Philadelphia. A photograph album compiled by Bathe containing photographs and sketches of models built by Bathe is also included.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1: Correspdondence, 1893-1960
Series 2: Photographs, 1897-1954
Series 3: Writings, 1933-1960
Series 4: Catalogs/Trade Literature, 1905-1985
Series 5: Research about Oliver Evans (1955-1819), 1933-1962
Series 6: Research about Jacob Perkins (1766-1849), 1937-1944
Series 7: Miscellaneous, 1919-1980
Biographical:
Greville I. Bathe (1883-1964) was born in Cambridge, England. He attended the London Polytechnic Institute, earning a degree in mechanical engineering. Bathe worked in England as a model maker and in 1919 came to the United States to establish a model making business in Philadelphia which he ran until 1936. Bathe retired to Florida in 1948.
Bathe built and collected working scale models of steam engines, a hobby that dates to his childhood in England. During his lifetime he amassed a significant library of books (1,500) on the history of technology before and after the Industrial Revolution. Bathe wrote extensively about steam engines and was the author of many articles and books which included Jacob Perkins: His Inventions, His Times, and His Contemporaries (1943), Horizontal windmills, draft mills and similar air-flow engines (1948), The rise and decline of the paddle-wheel (1962), The St. John's Railroad, 1858 to 1895: a contemporary history of a pioneer railroad (1958), and his definitive biography of Oliver Evans (1935).
Related Materials:
Swarthmore College Libraries
Bathe Collection in the History of Technology
The Bathe Collection is comprised of some 1,500 volumes on the history of technology before and after the Industrial Revolution. The collection was willed to Swarthmore by Greville Bathe, author of several books on the history of technology, and contains primary source material from the 16th through 18th centuries as well as contemporary bibliographies, biographies, histories, and secondary materials. The collection's range of subject matter extends from steam engines and their inventors to post-Newtonian mechanics, early aeronautics, and the Atlantic cable. In addition, it includes Greville Bathe's books, galley proofs, and manuscripts.
Separated Materials:
The Division of Work and Industry, National Museum of American History holds artifacts related to Greville I. Bathe, specifically scale models built by Bathe.
Provenance:
Originally a bequest to the National Museum of American History from Greville I. Bathe.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Subgroup II: Technology and Culture Records
Series 2: Correspondence, 1965-1988
Files are restricted for thirty years from the most recent date of the correspondence. They may be opened, on a case-by-case basis, through appeal to the SHOT Editorial Committee.
Series 4: Editorial Review of Articles, 1960-1993
Files are restricted for thirty years from the most recent date of the review. They may be opened, on a case-by-case basis, through appeal to the SHOT Editorial Committee.
Series 9: Published Files, 1982-1994
Files are restricted for thirty years from the date of the last correspondence in the individual folder. They may be opened, on a case-by-case basis, through appeal to the SHOT Editorial Committee.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Society for the History of Technology Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Melvin Kranzberg Papers, 1934-1988, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
Turbine Engines (photos) / Jet Engines History (documents)
Collection Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Collection Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.
Collection Citation:
Revista Aérea Collection Collection, Acc. 2003-0028, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.
Collection Citation:
Charles Ingram Stanton, Sr., Papers, Acc. NASM.1987.0076, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection Citation:
Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering Bridges Reference Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History
National Air and Space Museum. Archives Division. Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Restrictions:
The majority of the Archives Department's public reference requests can be answered using material in these files, which may be accessed through the Reading Room at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. More specific information can be requested by contacting the Archives Research Request.
National Air and Space Museum. Archives Division. Search this
Type:
Archival materials
Collection Restrictions:
The majority of the Archives Department's public reference requests can be answered using material in these files, which may be accessed through the Reading Room at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia. More specific information can be requested by contacting the Archives Research Request.
