An aerial view drawing of the Rogers Locomotive Works plant on March 28, 1906.

Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works was a 19th century manufacturer of railroad steam locomotives based in Paterson, in Passaic County, New Jersey in the United States. They built more than six thousand steam locomotives for railroads around the world. Most railroads in 19th century United States rostered at least one Rogers-built locomotive. The company's most famous product was a locomotive named The General, built in December 1855, which was one of the principals of the Great Locomotive Chase of the American Civil War. Rogers was the second-most popular American locomotive manufacturer of the 19th century behind the Baldwin Locomotive Works amongst almost a hundred manufacturers. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (877x655, 129 KB)Drawing of the Rogers Locomotive Works plant in Paterson, New Jersey, dated March 28, 1906. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (877x655, 129 KB)Drawing of the Rogers Locomotive Works plant in Paterson, New Jersey, dated March 28, 1906. ... March 28 is the 87th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (88th in Leap years). ... 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... This is the top-level page of WikiProject trains Rail tracks Rail transport refers to the land transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. ... Great Western Railway No. ... The skyline of Paterson, New Jersey, showing the canyon of the Passaic River in the foreground. ... Passaic County is a county located in the state of New Jersey. ... Official language(s) None defined, English de facto Capital Trenton Largest city Newark Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 47th 22,608 km² 110 km 240 km 14. ... Built in 1855 in Paterson, New Jersey, the General provided frieght and passenger service between Atlanta, Georgia and Chattanooga, Tennessee before the Civil War. ... The Great Locomotive Chase occurred during the American Civil War. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Abraham Lincoln† Ulysses S. Grant Jefferson Davis Robert E. Lee Strength 2,213,363 1,064,200 Casualties KIA: 110,100 Total dead: 359,500 Wounded: 275,200 KIA: 74,500 Total dead: 198,500 Wounded: 137,000+  The American... Baldwin Locomotive Works builders plate, 1922 The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. ...

The company was founded by Thomas Rogers in an 1832 partnership with Morris Ketchum and Jasper Grosvenor as Rogers, Ketchum and Grosvenor. Rogers remained president until his death in 1856 when his son, Jacob S. Rogers, took the position and reorganized the company as Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works. The younger Rogers led the company until he retired in 1893. Robert S. Hughes then became president and reorganized the company as Rogers Locomotive Company, which he led until his death in 1900. Thomas Rogers (1792 – 1856) was an American mechanical engineer and founder of Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works of Paterson, New Jersey. ... Morris Ketchum (February 1796 – January 1, 1880) was an American banker and financier of the 19th century. ... Jasper Grosvenor (1794 – 1857) was an American financier of the early to mid 19th century. ... Jacob S. Rogers (died 1901) was the son of Thomas Rogers, the founder of Rogers, Ketchum & Grosvenor. ... Robert S. Hughes (died 1900) was the third president of Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works. ...

Rogers avoided the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) merger in 1901 through closing and reopening as Rogers Locomotive Works. The company remained independent until 1905 when ALCO purchased it; ALCO continued building new steam locomotives at the Rogers plant until 1913. ALCO used the Rogers facilities through the 1920s as a parts storage facility and warehouse, but eventually sold the property to private investors. Today, several Rogers-built locomotives exist in railroad museums around the world, and the plant's erecting shop is preserved as the Thomas Rogers Building; it is the current location of the Paterson Museum whose mission is to preserve and display Paterson's industrial history. The American Locomotive Company, shortened to ALCo was a builder of railroad locomotives in the United States. ...

1831 to 1856: Thomas Rogers era

The firm that was to become Rogers Locomotive Works began in 1831. Thomas Rogers had been designing and building machinery for textile manufacturing for nearly 20 years when he sold his interest in Godwin, Rogers & Company (of which he was the Rogers part of the name) in June of that year. Rogers set out on his own with a new company called Jefferson Works in Paterson, New Jersey. The Jefferson Works built textile and agricultural machinery for a year before Rogers met the two men who would help transform the company into a major locomotive manufacturer. Thomas Rogers (1792 – 1856) was an American mechanical engineer and founder of Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works of Paterson, New Jersey. ... It has been suggested that Textile manufacturing be merged into this article or section. ... Look up June in Wiktionary, the free dictionary June is the sixth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with a length of 30 days The month is named after the Roman goddess Juno, wife of Jupiter and equivalent to the Greek goddess Hera. ... The skyline of Paterson, New Jersey, showing the canyon of the Passaic River in the foreground. ...

In 1832, Rogers partnered with two investors from New York City, Morris Ketchum and Jasper Grosvenor. Jefferson Works was renamed Rogers, Ketchum & Grosvenor, and the company began to diversify into the railroad industry. The company soon manufactured springs, axles and other small parts for railroad use. Nickname: The Big Apple Official website: City of New York Government Counties (Boroughs) Bronx (The Bronx) New York (Manhattan) Queens (Queens) Kings (Brooklyn) Richmond (Staten Island) Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R) Geographical characteristics Area Total 468. ... Morris Ketchum (February 1796 – January 1, 1880) was an American banker and financier of the 19th century. ... Jasper Grosvenor (1794 – 1857) was an American financier of the early to mid 19th century. ...

The first locomotive that Rogers' company assembled was actually built by Robert Stephenson and Company of England in 1835. This locomotive was the McNeil for the Paterson and Hudson River Railroad. It took another two years before Rogers received their first order for a complete locomotive. In 1837, the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad ordered two locomotives from Rogers to form the beginning of the railroad's roster. The first of these two locomotives was the Sandusky, which became the first locomotive to cross the Allegheny Mountains (albeit by canal boat and not by rail), and the first locomotive to operate in Ohio. Robert Stephenson and Company was set up in 1823 in Forth Street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne in England by George Stephenson, his son Robert, with Edward Pease and Michael Longridge (the owner of the ironworks at Bedlington ). It was the first company set up specifically to build railway engines, as part... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location (dark green) within the British Isles Languages English (de facto) Capital London de facto Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population – Total (mid-2004) – Total (2001 Census) – Density Ranked 1st... The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad was the first railroad to be built and operated in the U.S. state of Ohio. ... Sandusky was the name of a steam railroad locomotive, a 4-2-0, built in the United States. ... The Allegheny Mountains are a part of the Appalachian mountain range of the eastern United States. ... Official language(s) None Capital Columbus Largest city Columbus (largest metropolitan area is Cleveland) Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 34th 116,096 km² 355 km 355 km 8. ...

Ex-Virginia and Truckee Railroad No. 119, a type 4-4-0 steam locomotive, rides atop a Union Pacific Railroad flatcar as it stops in Ogden, Utah on May 9, 1969 just prior to the 100th anniversary of the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad.

Sandusky included features designed by Thomas Rogers that had not been seen in locomotive construction to date. It was also the first locomotive to use cast iron driving wheels, and the wheels included built-in counterweights to reduce the amount of wear on the track caused by the weight of the driving rod and wheel all coming down at once during the wheels' rotations. Before Sandusky's construction, driving wheels were typically built with wooden spokes, much like wagon wheels. Image File history File links OP-19492. ... Image File history File links OP-19492. ... The Virginia and Truckee Railroad (AAR reporting mark VT) was built to serve the silver mining communities of Nevada. ... Ogden sign over Washington Boulevard at the Ogden River; toward downtown John Moses Browning (January 21, 1855 – November 26, 1926), born in Ogden, Utah, was an American firearms designer who developed many varieties of weapons which were used in the U.S. military for decades in the 20th century. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ... On a steam locomotive, a driving wheel is a powered wheel which is driven by the locomotives pistons (or turbine, in the case of a steam turbine locomotive). ... track Rail tracks are used on railways (or railroads), which, together with railroad switches (or points), guide trains without the need for steering. ... A tree trunk as found at the Veluwe, The Netherlands Wood derives from woody plants, notably trees but also shrubs. ... A wagon (in old British English waggon) is a wheeled vehicle, ordinarily with four wheels, usually pulled by an animal such as a horse, mule or ox, which was used for transport of heavy goods in the past. ...

Rogers was not working completely alone in locomotive manufacturing. In 1837, in addition to building the company's first locomotive, Rogers also filled orders from fellow locomotive builders Matthias W. Baldwin (founder of Baldwin Locomotive Works) and William Norris (founder of Norris Locomotive Works) for locomotive tires of various sizes. Once Rogers started working on his own locomotives, however, no further orders from either Baldwin or Norris were forthcoming. Within Rogers own shop, William Swinburne worked as the shop foreman until he moved on to form his own locomotive manufacturing company, Swinburne, Smith and Company in 1845. After Swinburne left Rogers, John Cooke also worked at the Rogers plant. Like Swinburne, Cooke later went on to form his own locomotive manufacturing firm, Danforth, Cooke & Company, Matthias William Baldwin References Appletons Encyclopedia (2001), Matthias William Baldwin. ... Baldwin Locomotive Works builders plate, 1922 The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. ... William Norris (July 2, 1802 – January 5, 1867) was an American steam locomotive builder. ... The Norris Locomotive Works was a steam locomotive manufacturing company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that produced about a thousand engines between 1836 and 1860. ... William Swinburne (1805 – 1883) was a pioneering steam locomotive builder of the United States. ... Swinburne, Smith and Company was a railroad locomotive manufacturing company of the mid-19th century. ... John Cooke (1824–1882) was one of the principals of Cooke Locomotive Works, one of the constituent companies that made up American Locomotive Company in the merger of 1901. ... The Cooke Locomotive and Machine Works manufactured steam railroad locomotives from 1852 through 1926. ...

Rogers locomotives were, from very early in the company's history, seen as powerful, capable engines on American railroads. The Uncle Sam, serial number 11, a 4-2-0 built in 1839 for the New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Company, was noted by American Railroad Journal for hauling a 24-car train up a grade of 26 feet per mile (5 meters per kilometer) at 24.5 mph (39 km/h).^[1] In 1846, Rogers built what is referred to as the largest 6-wheel truck engine (4-2-0) in the United States; the Licking, serial number 92, built for the Mansfield and Sandusky Railroad, generated 110 pounds-force per square inch (760 kPa) of steam pressure and could pull a 380-short ton (345 tonne) train up a grade of 16 feet per mile (3 metres per km).^[2] Miles per hour is a unit of speed, expressing the number of international miles covered per hour. ... Kilometre per hour (American spelling: kilometer per hour) is a unit of both speed (scalar) and velocity (vector). ... The Chicago & Northwestern Railways first locomotive, 4-2-0 Pioneer. ... Pounds-force per square inch (lbf/in²) is a non-SI unit of pressure. ... The pascal (symbol Pa) is the SI unit of pressure. ... The short ton is a unit of mass equal to 907. ... A tonne (symbol t), sometimes referred to as a metric tonne, is a measurement of weight. ...

The General on display in Chattanooga, Tennessee, circa 1907.

In November of 1868 Rogers delivered 5 identical coal-burning 4-4-0 steam locomotives (assigned Nos. 116–120) to the Union Pacific Railroad, which were subsequently placed into freight service in western Wyoming and Utah.^[3] Union Pacific No. 119 would gain fame on May 10, 1869 when it took part in the "Golden Spike" ceremony at Promontory, Utah to celebrate the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad. The unit was rebuilt in the early 1880s, and redesignated as road No. 343 in 1885. No. 119 was retired and sent to the scrapyard after nearly 35 years of service in April, 1903. A full-scale, operating replica was completed in 1979, and today sits on display at the Golden Spike National Historic Site. Image File history File links General_locomotive_c_1907. ... Image File history File links General_locomotive_c_1907. ... Built in 1855 in Paterson, New Jersey, the General provided frieght and passenger service between Atlanta, Georgia and Chattanooga, Tennessee before the Civil War. ... Nickname: Scenic City (official), River City, Chatty, Chatt-Town, Chattavegas Motto: Official website: http://www. ... Atlantic, Mississippi and Ohio Railroad #87, delivered 1873-10-27 from the Mason Machine Works of Taunton, Massachusetts. ... The Union Pacific Railroad NYSE: UNP is the largest railroad in the United States. ... Ex-Virginia and Truckee Railroad No. ... Promontory is a location in Box Elder County, Utah, centered approximately at 41°3707N, 112°3251W, with an elevation of 1494 meters (4902 feet) above sea level. ... Poster announcing railroads opening The First Transcontinental Railroad in the United States was built across North America in the 1860s, linking the railway network of the eastern U.S. with California on the Pacific coast. ... Golden Spike National Historic Site is a U.S. National Historic Site located at Promontory Summit, north of the Great Salt Lake in Utah. ...

Arguably, the most famous locomotive to come out of the Rogers shops was built in 1855. Rogers built a 4-4-0 (a locomotive with two unpowered leading axles and two powered driving axles), serial number 631, in December of that year for the Western and Atlantic Railroad. The railroad named the locomotive The General. This locomotive is now on display at the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History (the Big Shanty Museum) in Kennesaw, Georgia. Look up December in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Western & Atlantic Railroad of the State of Georgia (W&A) is a railroad that runs from Atlanta, Georgia, to Chattanooga, Tennessee. ... Built in 1855 in Paterson, New Jersey, the General provided frieght and passenger service between Atlanta, Georgia and Chattanooga, Tennessee before the Civil War. ... Kennesaw is a city located in Cobb County, Georgia. ...

Not only were Rogers locomotives known in the industry for their power, but they were also known for their endurance. It is estimated that one locomotive, Illinois Central Railroad 4-4-0 number 23, serial number 449, built in December 1853, operated over one million miles (1.6 million km) in its thirty year career on the Illinois Central.^[4] The Illinois Central (AAR reporting mark IC) was a railroad carrier in the central United States, with its primary routes from Chicago to New Orleans and Sioux Falls. ...

1856 to 1905: Reorganization and decline

When Thomas Rogers died in 1856, his son Jacob S. Rogers reorganized RK&G, with Ketchum and Grosvenor remaining as investors, as the Rogers Locomotive & Machine Works. Rogers built their first 2-6-0, which is sometimes referred to as the first 2-6-0 built in the United States, in 1863 for the New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Company.^[5] The company continued manufacturing both locomotives and textile machinery for nearly another 20 years. In the mid-1870s, Rogers ended production of textile machinery and began concentrating solely on locomotive manufacturing. Rogers customers of the mid-19th century continued purchasing their locomotives. The Louisville and Nashville Railroad (L&N) purchased so many locomotives from Rogers that Rogers gave the L&N a free locomotive as a thank-you bonus in 1879. Jacob S. Rogers (died 1901) was the son of Thomas Rogers, the founder of Rogers, Ketchum & Grosvenor. ... SRC 89 working on the daily passenger train in 1993. ... Chartered by the state of Kentucky in 1850, the L&N, as it was generally known, grew into one of the great success stories of American business. ...

Illinois Central Railroad 201, built by Rogers in 1880, preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum.

1887 saw the appointment of Reuben Wells as shop superintendent. Jacob Rogers, now in his late 70s, gradually passed more and more responsibility to Wells until Rogers resigned the presidency in 1893. After just over 60 years, the Rogers company would no longer be run by a member of the Rogers family. The company reorganized under its former treasurer and new president, Robert S. Hughes, as the Rogers Locomotive Company; Jacob Rogers remained the company's principal investor. Hughes led the company until his own death in 1900. A year later, Jacob Rogers closed the Rogers Locomotive Company plant. Image File history File links IC_201_20050716_IL_Union. ... Image File history File links IC_201_20050716_IL_Union. ... The Illinois Central (AAR reporting mark IC) was a railroad carrier in the central United States, with its primary routes from Chicago to New Orleans and Sioux Falls. ... Illinois Central 201 is a steam locomotive originally owned and operated by Illinois Central Railroad. ... The only surviving EMD E5 is used regularly on the museums excursion trains, usually pulling the Nebraska Zephyr. ... Robert S. Hughes (died 1900) was the third president of Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works. ...

In 1901, the year that Jacob Rogers died and the same year that the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) was formed through the merger of eight other locomotive manufacturers, the company reopened as the Rogers Locomotive Works. Reuben Wells was again the shop superintendent. But Rogers was at a competitive disadvantage. Not enough capital investment was made to purchase new equipment or in research and development. ALCO and Baldwin, the two companies that were at the time the largest locomotive manufacturers in North America, held too much of a lead in manufacturing and selling their own locomotives for Rogers to keep up. Compounding Rogers' troubles was the greater city of Paterson that had grown up around the shop. There was not any room for Rogers to expand. The American Locomotive Company, shortened to ALCo was a builder of railroad locomotives in the United States. ... Baldwin Locomotive Works builders plate, 1922 The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. ...

1905 to present: Absorbed into ALCO

Faced with stiff competition and an inability to grow its own capacity, Rogers Locomotive Works was purchased by ALCO in 1905. Rogers' last independently built locomotive was serial number 6271, an 0-6-0T (a locomotive with three powered axles and water tanks and fuel storage mounted on its frame to take the place of a separate tender) built for W. R. Grace & Company in February 1905. ALCO continued building locomotives at the Rogers plant until 1913 when manufacturing at the plant ceased permanently. Locomotives built at the Rogers plant under ALCO are generally referred to as locomotives built by ALCO-Rogers. ALCO used the Rogers plant buildings as warehouses well into the 1920s, but eventually sold off all of the property. The original Rogers erecting shop was converted into office space and was still in use in that manner as late as 1992. 0-6-0 is also the emergency telephone number in Mexico, similar to the United Statess 9-1-1. ...

The erecting shop building has since been renamed the "Thomas Rogers Building" and is now the home of the Paterson Museum. The museum preserves and displays artifacts of Paterson's industrial history.^[6] A 2-6-0 locomotive that was used in the construction of the Panama Canal is on display outside the museum, but it is one that was built by ALCO-Cooke (the former Cooke Locomotive and Machine Works plant, also located in Paterson) and not by Rogers.^[7] SRC 89 working on the daily passenger train in 1993. ... A canal tug, making its way down to the Caribbean end of the canal, waits to be joined by a ship in the uppermost chamber of the Gatun Locks. ... The Cooke Locomotive and Machine Works manufactured steam railroad locomotives from 1852 through 1926. ...

Preserved Rogers locomotives

The following locomotives (in serial number order) built by Rogers, before ALCO's acquisition of the company, have been preserved. Where multiple railroads and road numbers are listed, they are given in chronological order for the locomotives; all locations are in the United States unless noted.^[8]

The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad (AAR reporting mark CBQ) was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. ... 0-6-0 is also the emergency telephone number in Mexico, similar to the United Statess 9-1-1. ... Northern Pacific Railway Categories: Stub | Defunct railroad companies of the United States | Idaho railroads | Minnesota railroads | Montana railroads | North Dakota railroads | Oregon railroads | Washington railroads | Wisconsin railroads ... The Northwest Railway Museum is a railroad museum located in Snoqualmie, Washington. ... The Columbus and Greenville Railway (AAR reporting mark CAGY) was founded in 1975 to operate divested Illinois Central trackage across the state of Mississippi. ... A Chinese-built 2-8-0 on display at the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay, WI, April 26, 2004. ... A Great Northern train pauses for the photographer four miles west of Minot, North Dakota in 1914. ... The Pennsylvania Railroads class K4s, a well known 4-6-2 type. ... Chartered by the state of Kentucky in 1850, the L&N, as it was generally known, grew into one of the great success stories of American business. ... The Kentucky Railway Museum, located in New Haven, Kentucky, is a non-profit heritage railway and museum for the purpose of education of the public regarding the history and heritage of Kentuckys railroads and the people who built them. ... The Atlanta and West Point Railroad (AWP) was originally chartered in 1847 and the section from Newnan to West Point was chartered in December 1849. ... The Western Railway of Alabama (WRA), also known as the Montgomery and West Point Railroad, ran from a junction near Selma, Alabama through Montgomery, Alabama to West Point, Georgia. ...

References

• Appleman, Roy E. (1966). Union Pacific Locomotive #119 and Central Pacific Locomotive #60 at Promontory Summit, Utah, May 10, 1869. National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, DC.
• Moshein, Peter and Rothfus, Robert R. (1992). Rogers locomotives: A brief history and construction list, Railroad History (167) 13-147.
• Passaic County, New Jersey, Paterson Museum. Retrieved October 5, 2005.
• Sunshine Software, Steam Locomotive Information. Retrieved October 4, 2005.
• Thomas, Dorn, (November 20, 1999), Panama Canal Construction Locomotive #299. Retrieved October 5, 2005.
• White, John H., Jr. (1968). A history of the American locomotive; its development: 1830-1880. Dover Publications, New York, NY. ISBN 0-486-23818-0.

October 5 is the 278th day of the year (279th in Leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... October 4 is the 277th day of the year (278th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... November 20 is the 324th day of the year (325th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... October 5 is the 278th day of the year (279th in Leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ...

Notes

1. ^  White, p. 72.
2. ^  White, p. 45.
3. ^  Appleman, p. 17.
4. ^  White, p. 77.
5. ^  White, p. 62.
6. ^  Passaic County, retrieved October 5, 2005.
7. ^  Dorn, retrieved October 5, 2005.
8. ^  Sources: Moshein, Rothfus; and Sunshine Software.

October 5 is the 278th day of the year (279th in Leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... October 5 is the 278th day of the year (279th in Leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• A History of Paterson — The Rogers Locomotive & Machine Works
• New Jersey Historic Trust — preservation efforts on the remaining Rogers erecting shop building.
• Specifications for The General

Locomotive manufacturing predecessors of American Locomotive Company
1901 merger: Brooks · Cooke · Dickson · Manchester · Pittsburgh · Rhode Island · Richmond · Schenectady Later acquisitions: Montreal (1904) · Rogers (1905)