Harry P. Edwards began building passenger railway equipment in 1917 and formed the Edwards Railway Motor Car Company in 1921. Edwards turned out over 130 cars over a two-decade span and made a name for itself among major South and Central American railways, as well as on U.S. Class 1 and short line railroads.
Formative yearsEdit
In 1915 the Atlantic and Western Railway, a short line running from Sanford to Lillington, N.C., was running an uneconomical steam passenger train which A&W General Manager Harry P. Edwards came to regard with mounting frustration. Searching for a way to stem the flow of red ink, Edwards built his first car for use on that railroad. Other cars were built in the shops of the A&W and marketed by Edwards and the Atlantic & Western Railway.
As the word spread throughout the South about the economical rail cars built by Edwards, the demand for cars was such that in 1921 the manufacturing firm Edwards Railway Motor Car Co. was organized and in 1922 occupied its new plant along the tracks of the A&W. The short line was not only an Edwards customer, but its tracks served as a test, demonstration and development track for over twenty years of Edwards car production.
1920–1942Edit
During the early 1920s, mainstays of this output was the Model-10 which had the engine mounted up in the baggage compartment, as was the fashion of most all other manufacturers. In 1926 the company started delivery of the new Model-20. What set the Model-20 apart from the Model-10 and competitor's models was the ingenious, patented, power truck design, with the motor set into the front truck frame instead of being up in the car body.
In 1929 Edwards exported two Model 20 units to Argentina, for Ferrocarriles del Estado meter gauge lines. Both, named CM 1 and CM 2 went to Córdoba hills between Alta Córdoba and Capilla del Monte. Service last till 1937 when they were replaced by new streamlined trains built by Ganz of Hungary.
Both units were transferred to Santa Fe province, joining Maciel station with Puerto Gaboto a port on Parana River, that were first spanish colonial setting in Argentina as Fort Santi Spiritu. Service was ended in 1966 and units were cut for scrap several years later. There are many pictures of these units in service, I do not know how to share them.
Edwards output during the 1930s was mainly export cars including the "modern" streamlined Model-21 and the streamlined version of the Model-10, with their distinctive shovel-nose, first developed by Edwards in 1935. By the late 1930s sales of railcars in the United States was at an all-time low, and with the war in Europe, Edwards sold the plant and new owners re-tooled for defense production in 1940.
In 1942 the Edwards Company lost its corporate identity and ceased to exist, rail motor cars and trailers were the only Edwards products manufactured under that name. As of 1933 the company claimed rail car sales to forty-four railroads; final tally of original purchasers was close to fifty. With sales, in a 22-year period to nineteen different countries in the Western Hemisphere. Only a handful of Edwards cars have survived today.
edwards, rail, company, this, article, about, 1921, 1942, more, recent, company, 1997, 2008, this, article, does, cite, sources, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources. This article is about Edwards Rail Car Company 1921 1942 For the more recent company see Edwards Rail Car Company 1997 2008 This article does not cite any sources Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Edwards Rail Car Company news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2008 Learn how and when to remove this template message Edwards Rail Car Company was located in the small town of Sanford North Carolina specializing in the manufacture of self propelled rail cars Edwards Rail Car CompanyTypeSubsidiaryIndustryRail transportFounded1897 126 years ago 1897 Defunct2008HeadquartersSanford North Carolina USAArea servedWorldwideProductsLocomotivesHigh speed trainsIntercity and commuter trainsTramsPeople moversSignalling systems Edwards Model 20 railcarContents 1 History 1 1 Formative years 1 2 1920 1942 2 See alsoHistory EditHarry P Edwards began building passenger railway equipment in 1917 and formed the Edwards Railway Motor Car Company in 1921 Edwards turned out over 130 cars over a two decade span and made a name for itself among major South and Central American railways as well as on U S Class 1 and short line railroads Formative years Edit In 1915 the Atlantic and Western Railway a short line running from Sanford to Lillington N C was running an uneconomical steam passenger train which A amp W General Manager Harry P Edwards came to regard with mounting frustration Searching for a way to stem the flow of red ink Edwards built his first car for use on that railroad Other cars were built in the shops of the A amp W and marketed by Edwards and the Atlantic amp Western Railway As the word spread throughout the South about the economical rail cars built by Edwards the demand for cars was such that in 1921 the manufacturing firm Edwards Railway Motor Car Co was organized and in 1922 occupied its new plant along the tracks of the A amp W The short line was not only an Edwards customer but its tracks served as a test demonstration and development track for over twenty years of Edwards car production 1920 1942 Edit During the early 1920s mainstays of this output was the Model 10 which had the engine mounted up in the baggage compartment as was the fashion of most all other manufacturers In 1926 the company started delivery of the new Model 20 What set the Model 20 apart from the Model 10 and competitor s models was the ingenious patented power truck design with the motor set into the front truck frame instead of being up in the car body In 1929 Edwards exported two Model 20 units to Argentina for Ferrocarriles del Estado meter gauge lines Both named CM 1 and CM 2 went to Cordoba hills between Alta Cordoba and Capilla del Monte Service last till 1937 when they were replaced by new streamlined trains built by Ganz of Hungary Both units were transferred to Santa Fe province joining Maciel station with Puerto Gaboto a port on Parana River that were first spanish colonial setting in Argentina as Fort Santi Spiritu Service was ended in 1966 and units were cut for scrap several years later There are many pictures of these units in service I do not know how to share them Edwards output during the 1930s was mainly export cars including the modern streamlined Model 21 and the streamlined version of the Model 10 with their distinctive shovel nose first developed by Edwards in 1935 By the late 1930s sales of railcars in the United States was at an all time low and with the war in Europe Edwards sold the plant and new owners re tooled for defense production in 1940 In 1942 the Edwards Company lost its corporate identity and ceased to exist rail motor cars and trailers were the only Edwards products manufactured under that name As of 1933 the company claimed rail car sales to forty four railroads final tally of original purchasers was close to fifty With sales in a 22 year period to nineteen different countries in the Western Hemisphere Only a handful of Edwards cars have survived today See also EditDoodlebug Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Edwards Rail Car Company amp oldid 1066888507, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
