Invention and Engineering

Davenport Locomotive Works

The Davenport Locomotive Works, of Davenport, Iowa, USA, was formed as the W W Whitehead Company in 1901. In 1902, the company commenced building light locomotives. The Company was renamed the Davenport Locomotive Works in 1904. In late 1930, Davenport was licensed to assemble and market R G LeTourneau Inc products under the Davenport-LeTourneau brand. The agreement is believed to have ended in 1935 when LeTourneau moved to Peoria, Illinois. Davenport also sold Davenport-Winchell three-wheel roller conversions of industrial wheel tractors, Davenport-Frink snow plows, which were built in license from Frink Sno-Plows Inc, and Reynolds patented Mov-Mor rotary scrapers. In 1933, the company was again restructured and renamed the Davenport-Besler Corporation, which continued in business until 1956. William George Besler was a director at the time of the restructuring. The company acquired the locomotive business of H. K. Porter, Inc. in 1950 and from then on produced Porter designs as well as its own. The Canadian Locomotive Company acquired Davenport-Besler in 1955, closing it the following year. The company had built small steam locomotives early on; its first gasoline-fueled internal combustion engined locomotive was built in 1924 and its first diesel locomotive in 1927, a 30-short-ton (26.8-long-ton; 27.2 t) diesel-electric for the Northern Illinois Coal Company of Boonville, Indiana. An extensive range of diesel locomotives in all industrial sizes followed, utilizing either mechanical torque converter or electric transmission, the former for the smaller locomotives. Most were used by a variety of industrial customers, but some railroads also bought Davenport locomotives, particularly the 44-short-ton (39.3-long-ton; 39.9 t) size: being the largest locomotive then allowed by union rules to be operated by one person. Railroad buyers included the Rock Island, Milwaukee Road, Santa Fe, Frisco, and Missouri Pacific.

Also on this shelf

See also

• ▸GWR 6800 Class
• ▸Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Park
• ▸Electrical telegraphy in the United Kingdom

Uncatalogued shelf

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