Roebling, Washington Augustus, 1837-1926. Search this
Collector:
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of History of Technology Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Work and Industry Search this
Extent:
18.5 Cubic feet (62 boxes, 1 map-folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photograph albums
Specifications
Reports
Price lists
Photographs
Newsletters
Letterpress books
Correspondence
Blueprints
Ledgers (account books)
Genealogies
Notebooks
Patents
Date:
1836-1975
bulk 1930-1950
Summary:
Collection documents the work of the John A. Roebling's Sons Company, builders of bridges. The materials consist primarily of photograph albums documenting some of the bridges, tramways, ski lifts and chair lifts that Roebling's Sons Company was involved with. The documentation also includes specifications, patents, and reference materials about the engineering process of building bridges and bridges in general.
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the work of the John A. Roebling's Sons Company, builders of bridges. The materials consist primarily of photograph albums documenting a variety of bridges, mostly in the United States. The documentation also includes specifications, patents, and reference materials about the engineering process of building bridges and bridges in general.
Series 1, Historical background materials, 1895-1958, is divided into two subseries: Subseries 1, John A. Roebling's and Sons Company materials, 1895-1949 and Subseries 2, Newsletters, 1929-1931.
Subseries 1, John A. Roebling's and Sons Company materials, 1895-1949, contains a variety of items related to the company such as historical narratives, correspondence, price lists, testing data, and a ledger with cost estimates. The correspondence is partially bound (pages 1 to 104) from a letter press book (handwritten and typescript) belonging to John A. Roebling's and Sons Company. William Hildebrand and Charles G. Roebling are the chief correspondents. The correspondence documents daily activities related to the design and erection of bridges as well as finances and supplies. Charles G. Roebling's notebook, undated, contains calculations and notes about various bridge projects.
Subseries 2, Newsletters, 1929-1931, contain copies of Blue Center and Wire Engineering, which were John A. Roebling's and Sons Company publications intended for employees. The newsletters were apparently used as scrapbooks, with black-and-white photographs pasted into the pages. Found among the pages of Blue Center are photographs of the Hudson River Bridge and in Wire Engineering, there are photographs of the Maysville, Kentucky Bridge.
Series 2, Photographs, 1926-1975, comprises the largest series in the collection. The photographs are primarily black-and-white and document aerial tramways, tramways for logging or mining, chair lifts, ski lifts, floods, and bridge construction projects. The latter makes up the majority. Most photographs were assembled into albums with corresponding captions and dates, and almost all of the photographs document bridges in the United States. There is one exception, the Yauricocha Tramway in Peru. In some instances, the captions are recorded on the back of the photographs, and others were recorded on album pages. The series is arranged alphabetically by name of bridge and/or project.
Series 3, Specifications, 1855-1962, consists of printed textual documents (both bound and loose) that contain information for bidders, proposals, contracts, and bonds, and the detailed specifications. This series is arranged alphabetically by bridge name.
Series 4, Reports, 1928-1938, contains bound reports (both progress and final) detailing problems, requirements, research, manufacture, plant installation, cable equipment, strand adjustments, and Roebling Company developments. This series is arranged alphabetically by bridge/and/or project.
Series 5, Patent materials, 1849-1952, consists of issued patents (to a variety of individuals) for cable and cable appliances, cables, and cable apparatus, cableways and tramways, and grips. The patents are arranged by subject area, then by patent number.
Series 6, Reference materials, 1836-1964, contains a wide range of materials—articles, biographical files, drawings, photographs, newspaper clippings, advertising, correspondence, notes—documenting all aspects of bridges. This series is arranged alphabetically by topic.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1, Historical background materials, 1895-1958, undated
Subseries 1, Biographical, 1900-1958, undated
Subseries 2, John A. Roebling's and Sons Company materials, 1895-1949
Subseries 3, Newsletters, 1929-1931
Series 2, Photographs, 1926-1975
Series 3, Specifications, 1855-1962
Series 4, Reports, 1928-1938
Series 5, Patent materials, 1849-1952
Series 6, Reference materials, 1836-1964
Biographical / Historical:
John Augustus Roebling (1806-1869) was the founder and proprietor of John A. Roebling's Sons Company. Born in Mühlhausen, Germany, he was a civil engineer famous for his wire rope suspension bridge designs, in particular, the design of the Brooklyn Bridge. Roebling married Johana Herting in 1836 and they had nine children: Washington A. Roebling (1837-1926); Laura R. Methfessel (1840-1873); Ferdinand W. Roebling (1842-1917); Elvira R. Stewart (1844-1871); Josephine R. Jarvis (b. 1847); Charles Gustavus Roebling (1849-1918); Edmund Roebling (1854-1930); William Roebling (b. 1856, d. 1860); and Hannah Roebling (died in infancy). Roebling's three sons, Washington Augustus Roebling; Ferdinand William Roebling and Charles Gustavus Roebling, worked for the company.
Roebling's Sons Company was active in the design and manufacture of wire rope used in the erection of suspension bridges since the 1840s. Roebling devised a system of spinning the wires together where weights and swivels turned the wire coils in the opposite direction from the twisting, thereby removing kinks. Method of and Machine for Manufacturing Wire Rope (US Patent # 2,720) issued on July 16, 1842. Roebling would adapt this wire rope to his suspension bridge principle. In 1848, he established a company—John Roebling's Sons Company—in Trenton, New Jersey, to manufacture his wire rope. Roebling manufacturing plants were sold in 1952 to the Colorado Fuel and Iron (CF&I) Company of Pueblo, Colorado. In 1968, the Crane Company purchased the CF& I.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
George S. Morison Collection (AC0978)
Modjeski and Masters Company Records (AC0976)
Materials at Other Organizations
The Rutgers University, Special Collections and University Archives
Roebling family papers, cicra 1820s-1950s
Provenance:
This collection was donated by Blair Birdsall, former chief engineer at John A. Roebling's Sons Company in 1981.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Researchers must handle unprotected photographs 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.
Military and sporting arms ; automatic machine guns ; rifles ; pistols ; revolvers. Electrical products - magnetic motor starters ; magnetic A. C. contactors ; "Noark" protective products - meter service systems, safety switches, fuses, fuse accessories, and fuse boxes, etc. "Baxter" portable steam engines ; "Colt's Armory" platen presses for printing, embossing and paper-box cutting and creasing ; "Vulcabeston" compressed asbestos, sheet & rod packings, pump valves, and valve discs.
Includes:
Trade catalog
Black and white images
Physical description:
51 pieces; 2 boxes
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
Hartford, Connecticut, United States
Date:
1800s
Topic (Romaine term):
Architectural designs and building materials Search this
steel measuring tapes for hardware and engineering trades ; patented automatic handle opener on tape rolls ; no date given, late 1800's or early 1900's? ; company history: http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3983/is_200412/ai_n9467143
The Roots Blower Co. ; Roots-Connersville-Wilbraham ; The Connersville Blower Co. ; Wilbraham-Green Blower Co. ; P.H. & F. M. Roots Co. ; Roots Connersville Wilbraham Green Blower Co. ; International Stacey Corp. ; International Derrick and Equipment Company ; Dresser Equipment Group, Inc. (IDECO); Halliburton Co. Search this
Notes content:
invention of the rotary positive blower ; developed the positive displacement principle ; “Patent Force Blast Blower”, (“Western Tornado”), in NYC's first subway system: (http://www.rootsblower.com/general/subway.pdf) ; more info. on Roots' invention and this subway venture: http://www.columbia.edu/~brennan/beach/chapter6.html ; centrifugal compressors ; gas exhausters and boosters ; displacement meters ; vacuum and liquid pumps ; inert gas generators ; smelting blowers ; blast gates ; wind gates ; sewage treatment plant and water works equipment ; history of the Roots Brothers and company development: http://www.rootsblower.com/DocCentral/Document/33120_Dresser_MAC.pdf ; 1876-1940 ;
Includes:
Trade catalog and price lists
Black and white images
Color images
Physical description:
120 pieces; 4 boxes
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
Connersville, Indiana, United States
Date range:
1800s-1900s
Topic (Romaine term):
Waste Management (including water treatment; recycling; refuse collection; industrial waste; etc.) Search this
Water wheels; water motors and waterpower equipment Search this
Chemicals and drugs ; chemical and metallurgical laboratory supplies and assayers' materials ; laboratory furnaces ; calorimeters ; pyrometers ; photoelectric reflection meters ; etc.
Includes:
Trade catalog and price lists
Black and white images
Physical description:
123 pieces; 14 boxes
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
New York, New York, United States
Date range:
1800s-1900s
Topic (Romaine term):
Drugs; pharmaceuticals and patent medicines Search this
Measuring; calculating and testing devices Search this
Laboratories and laboratory supplies and equipment Search this
Gilson International; Gilson Medical Electronics, S.A. (France). Search this
Notes content:
Holochrome variable wavelength detector; fluorometer; fraction collectors; combination drop counter/timer; peristaltic pumps; HPLC systems; liquid chromatography; sample changers ; plethysmoscope ; GME Oxygraph ; Gilson’s product focus has moved from specialized instruments for physiological applications to automation instrumentation and chromatography systems for the drug discovery, proteomic, and genomic markets ; products for the pharmacy and biotechnology industries ; http://www.gilson.com/AboutUs/mission.asp
Includes:
Trade catalog and price lists
Black and white images
Color images
Physical description:
39 pieces; 2 boxes
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
Middleton, Wisconsin, United States
Date:
1900s
Topic (Romaine term):
Biotechnology and biochemical equipment and supplies Search this
Drugs; pharmaceuticals and patent medicines Search this
Laboratories and laboratory supplies and equipment Search this
Measuring; calculating and testing devices Search this
Topic:
"Laboratories -- Furniture, equipment, etc." Search this
Combined weigher, dipper and measurer for housekeepers, grocers, hotel keepers, druggists, etc.; lemon squeezer; scissors sharpener; egg beater; cake mixer; eggnog and lemonade beater; bottle filler; jelly, fruit and wine press; clasp for stuffed fowl; ice breaker; bakery tester; etc.
Includes:
Trade catalog
Black and white images
Physical description:
1 piece; 1 box
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Date:
1800s
Topic (Romaine term):
Measuring; calculating and testing devices Search this
Established in 1921 in Michigan City, IN. In 1923, the company moved to Chicago Heights, IL. The company moves to Elkhart, IN in 1929. In 1964 the "LaBour Company is acquired by American Gage and Machine Company (which subsequently merges in 1970 with Katy Industries, Inc.) and is renamed to LaBour Pump Company. In another expansion move, the highly successful Taber Pump Company of Buffalo, New York, is purchased." Source: "Sterling LaBour/Taber Pump" http://www.kthsales.com/website/vendors/LaBour/History%20-%20Labour.htm See also: "Peerless Pump History" http://www.peerlesspump.com/fire_pumps_history.aspx Search this
LaBour Pump Co., Ltd (UK) ; American Gage and Machine Co. ; Katy Industries, Inc. ; LaBour Pump Co. ; Taber Pump Co. ; Peerless Pump Co. ; Sterling Fluid Systems (USA), Inc. Search this
Notes content:
"LaBour Fluid Flow Calculator" slide calculator ; self-priming centrifugal pumps ; performance and test standards for self-priming centrifugal pumps ; "Hydrobalance" pumps ; non-priming pumps ; horizontal centrifugal pumps ; fire pumps and trailers ; "The Mechanics of Corrosion" by H. E. LaBour ; drawings of the LaBour throttle valve and check valve ; "Elcomet" alloy; chemical valves ; bilge pumps ; swimming pool pumps ; mine water gathering ; irrigation ; Harry E. LaBour establishes LaBour Pump Company in Michigan City, Indiana, with the purpose of developing and marketing an inherently self-priming centrifugal pump line. His intention was to design a rugged, simple-to-operate-and-maintain pump to handle liquids used in the chemical processing industry. The next year, he patents and introduces the first valve-less, self-priming pump. http://www.peerlesspump.com/Peerless%20Pump%20History.htm
Includes:
Trade catalog and manual
Black and white images
Color images
Physical description:
40 pieces; 1 box
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
Elkhart, Indiana, United States
Date:
1900s
Topic (Romaine term):
Mining machinery; equipment and supplies Search this
By-Products Steel Corp. [Div.] ; Lukenweld, Inc. [Div.] ; Lukenweld Construction [Div.] ; Lukens Iron & Steel Co. ; Federal Slitting Mill ; Brandywine Mill ; International Nickel Co., Inc. Search this
Notes content:
One envelope OVERSIZE ; Unique ; "The Fine Art of Fabrication , a series of prints illustrating various phases of the fabricating process..." Also promotes Lukens M-Series improved-property carbon steels . Black and white fine art prints . "A Visit to Lukens" ; "Economic Design of Modern Pressure Vessels" by E. F. Brummerstedt ; "jacketed steel drier rolls" ; clad steels ; "Stainless-Clad" steel ; "Design of an Arc Welded Penstock of Nickel-Clad Steel" by Alfred Ernest Bratfisch ; boiler heads ; flue holes ; manhole covers for boilers ; "Huston Patent Boiler Brace" ; boiler specifications ; boiler rivets ; welded cylinders ; steel plate rings ; "Fabrication Costs of Boilers, Tanks and Pressure Vessels as affected by Plate Widths" by Dr. W. G. Theisinger ; "Lukens Steam Platens" ; "weldments" ; "Lukenweld Special Rolled Shapes" ; steel plates ; "Steel Plates and Their Fabrication: A Reference Book on Plates and Plate Products for Engineers, Draftsmen, and Fabricators" ; "A Report of Performance of Johns-Manville Insulations for Open Hearth Furnace Regenerators as used by Lukens Steel Company" ; heads for boilers , tanks , and other equipment ; handbooks ; program for "Plant Visitation and Dinner Thursday, August 4, 1949" ; "Fabrication of Lukens Clad Steels" ; heat treatment and other services ; "Benefits of Design and Clad Steel Construction in Coal Handling Equipment" ; "Suggested Maximum Heat Inputs for Welding Lukens "T-1" [Trademark] Steel" ; "Equipment Progress" on Luken steel in the petroleum industry ; slaughterhouse and meatpacking equipment for the Cincinnati Butchers' Supply Co. ; "Hydrocarbon Processing & Petroleum Refiner: Use Upgraded Cr-Mo Steel for Hydrocrackers" by E. L. Fogleman and R. H. Sterne, Jr. ; "Clad News" company publication ; "Lukens Nickel-Clad Steel in the Textile Industry" ; "Lukens "Cromansil Steel" ; "World's Largest Press Brake" ; machinery bases ; gear blanks ; "Welded Steel Truck Frames" for railroads ; "Proposed Tanker Bulkhead System for Fluid Storage" ; "A Century and a Quarter in Iron and Steel" ; "Lukens Steel Plate Weight Calculator" sliding calculator ; "Cleaning and Maintenance of Clad Steel Equipment" ; "Punching Heavy Plates Damages Steel: Prohibited by 1924 A.S.M.E. Code" ; gear cases ; "Edgebends and Kneebends...for Lighter, Stronger One-Story Buildings" ; "Welded Structures vs. Meehanite Castings" by Edward J. Charlton ; "Design Considerations for Welded Machinery Parts" by George L. Snyder ; "Lukenwelds Labyrinth Steam Platens" ; railroad specialties ; "Lukens T-1 Steel" ; World War II wartime publication ; "World's Largest Plate Mill and Its Products" ; "Tentative Code for Fusion Welding and Flame Cutting in Machinery Construction" ; "Properties and Uses of Inconel" ; "Trends in the Use of Welded Machinery Parts" by Edward J. Charlton ; other steel products . "First to Roll Boiler Plate in America" [Source: in record.] see history at: http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Lukens-Inc-Company-History.html
Includes:
Trade catalog, price lists, manual, photographs and histories
Black and white images
Color images
Physical description:
213 pieces; 5 boxes
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
Coatesville, Pennsylvania, United States
Date range:
1800s-1900s
Topic (Romaine term):
Business services (advertising; marketing; organizational management; etc.) Search this
V. Mueller ; Scientific Products ; American Scientific Products ; American Convertors ; American Edwards Laboratories ; American Medical Optics ; American Hamilton ; American McGaw ; Midwest American Search this
Notes content:
Equipment and supplies for clinical, industrial, and educational laboratories : microscopes, anatomical models, burners, chemicals, chromotographic equipment, colorimeters, combustion and drying apparatus, flasks, laboratory furniture. Oto-Rhino-Laryngology instruments ; drawer spacers for metal laboratory furniture ; trip balances ; laboratory timers. American Convertors: Sterile Micro-Clean clothing ; sterile surgical drapes ; Micro-Clean mats ; hospital protective products (aprons, beard cover, caps, coveralls, frocks, gowns, hoods, lab coats, shoe covers, sleeves, smocks, sterilization wrap, table covers, towels, work suits, masks). American Edwards Laboratories: Mini-Flex angioscope ; pressure monitoring system. American Medical Optics: intraocular lenses. American Hamilton: clinical laboratory furniture (steel desks, steel counters, sinks and accessories, fume hoods and accessories, cold cabinets and refrigerators, working surfaces, cabinets, stools, chairs, radioisotope facilities) ; pharmacy furniture (step shelves, wall shelf supports, storage cabinets, narcotics lockers, inspection stations, laminar flow units) ; hospital furniture (steel drawers, desks, counters, wall cases, tall cases, fillers and scribes, utility tables) ; nurses stations ; medical charting equipment ; floor pantry ; doctors dictating equipment ; medical and surgical supplies transport ; patient room equipment (sink cabinets, wardrobes) ; surgical instrument cases. American McGaw: HepatAmine amino acid injection ; Midwest American: dental unit (includes Henry P. Boos Dental Laboratories, Inc. and Novocol Chemical Mfg. Co., Inc. trade literature) Scientific Products Division catalog featuring laboratory apparatus, instruments, reagent chemicals, human blood serums, parental therapy and blood bank equip (1953)...this comprises the uncataloged portion.
Includes:
Trade catalog and price lists
Black and white images
Color images
Physical description:
35 pieces; 4 boxes
Language:
English
Type of material:
Trade catalogs
Trade literature
Place:
Evanston, Illinois, United States
Date:
1900s
Topic (Romaine term):
Clothing (including hats; shoes; accessories; etc) Search this
