360 Fairview Avenue West Essex, Ontario, Canada N8M 1Y6
Like an old workhorse called into service after having been put
out to pasture, a 105 year old 25HP skid engine has been put to
work again after sitting for nearly fifty years on exhibit at the
Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. Acquired in the fall of
1986 by the Essex Region Conservation Authority in Southern
historic John R. Park Homestead Conservation Area.
Originally designed by J.C. Hoadley, whose firm went bankrupt in
1877, the engine (serial #1355) was built in 1882 by the George T.
McLauthlin Co. of Boston, Massachusetts, who continued making the
Hoadley engine until about 1912. Operated by the Buckley &
Dawley Co. from 1882 to 1906, the engine was then sold to the
Independent Ice Co. of Lakeport, New Hampshire. In 1931 its fifty
years of service seemed to come to an end when it was acquired by
the Henry Ford Museum as part of its impressive steam
collection.
However, its working days were not over. The Essex Region
Conservation Authority, looking for an authentic stationary engine
for its nineteenth century sawmill, purchased the engine from the
Ford Museum in September, 1986, and transported it to Canada and
its new home along the North shore of Lake Erie. Once it was safely
lowered into place on a cement platform, the work of inspecting,
restoring and certifying the engine began.
A rather unique machine, unlike any other known in Ontario, the
engine has a number of features which gave it a good reputation in
the nineteenth century for reliability and economy. These include a
Hoadley patented automatic governor located in the flywheel, a
steam-jacketed cylinder and valve chamber, stroke cut-off, a
cross-head driven feed-pump and feed-water heater.
Conservation Authority staff were amazed to see how well
preserved the boiler and engine were. X-ray and ultrasound tests of
the lap seams revealed no corrosion in the rivets, and a stress
test of the metal showed that it was still sound. With a few
gaskets, a new oilier and pressure gauge, the engine was ready for
its hydrostatic test and its first firing in over fifty years.
Over three hundred people attended a special event that featured
the unveiling of the ‘new’ steam engine. Performing
beautifully, the engine impressed every one, including the
‘experts’. Taking a large step back in time, everyone was
pleased to see steam power driving the old sawmill, just as it
would have been done in the nineteenth century.
The John R. Park Homestead Conservation Area is located in
Southwestern Ontario, about thirty miles from Detroit, Michigan.
Anyone interested in seeing the 25HP skid engine can visit the
museum Monday to Friday all year, on Sundays from May to October
and seven days a week in July and August. For dates and time of
public demonstrations, call the museum at (519) 738-2029. For
further information write Essex Region Conservation Authority, 360
Fairview Avenue West, Essex, Ontario, Canada, N8M 1Y6.
