Kozzy Posted January 1, 2019 Share Posted January 1, 2019 Appears they were doing refrigerated rail cars (ice boxes back then). I've attached a smaller version but the original is extremely high resolution and clear so you can see lots of interesting details http://www.shorpy.com/node/12320?size=_original#caption Curious horizontal forming press...and it appears that bolt making was a big portion of the grunt work. Anyway, just though the history buffs might like a look. If you spot something else interesting, please add a comment. Addendum...guy on the farthest right must have Popeye-sized forearms to be swinging that sledge the way he is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted January 2, 2019 Share Posted January 2, 2019 Well he probably only works a 12 hour day... A good example of the issue you can have when someone asks if an item was blacksmith or factory made---many times the answer may be "yes". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benona blacksmith Posted January 2, 2019 Share Posted January 2, 2019 I see a big helve hammer in the back to the right of the door. Really cool picture and the picture on the website is incredibly clear!!! Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John McPherson Posted January 3, 2019 Share Posted January 3, 2019 If you will take the time to read the lettering on the pitman arm of that massive horizontal metal bender, you will find that it is "The Bulldozer". Years later, recalling the action of that standard shop tool, someone took to calling the impressive earthmoving capabilities of a push blade on the front of a tracked site preparation tractor by the same sobriquet, and the name stuck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benona blacksmith Posted January 3, 2019 Share Posted January 3, 2019 There is a small french pig style anvil in there too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc1 Posted January 3, 2019 Share Posted January 3, 2019 Fantastic photo. Very clear ... and that makes me think that it is a staged photo ... meaning, they are all waiting for the photo to be taken and not doing any real work at that point in time. That will probably explain the one arm swinging sledge on the far right, even when it is not that big of a hammer. The two dudes on the left seem to be noodling around. The guy in the hat waiting his turn to go to the loo and the big guy in the center is swinging a 20 oz ball peen hammer to a steel brace that is most likely 70 lb Very cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Stephens Posted January 3, 2019 Share Posted January 3, 2019 Bet the guy in the hat is the shop foreman. I've seen that look before. Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted January 3, 2019 Share Posted January 3, 2019 Taken in 1904 using Panorama of two 8x10 glass negatives. You can not beat square inches of negative for capturing details. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benona blacksmith Posted January 3, 2019 Share Posted January 3, 2019 There is 2 forman's....they look like twins. Look at the guy swinging the little ball peen hammer at the giant bracket that was mentioned. Look between his head and the hammer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kozzy Posted January 3, 2019 Author Share Posted January 3, 2019 Now that's interesting...I assume they did the panorama of 2 plates in 2 different shots so he probably moved between. Or he's the resident shop ghost And just because I wondered about the origin of the term and it's use that early on equipment (that was before cats with blades were call bulldozers): " bulldoze (v.) by 1880, "intimidate by violence," from an earlier noun, bulldose "a severe beating or lashing" (1876), said by contemporary sources to be literally "a dose fit for a bull," a slang word referring to the intimidation beating of black voters (by either blacks or whites) in the chaotic 1876 U.S. presidential election. See bull (n.1) + dose (n.). The bull element in it seems to be connected to that in bull-whip and might be directly from that word. Meaning "use a mechanical ground-clearing caterpillar tractor" is from 1942 (see bulldozer); figurative use in this sense is by 1948. Related: Bulldozed; bulldozing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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