The Morgan Iron Works was a 19th-century manufacturing plant for marine steam engines located in New York City, United States. Founded as T. F. Secor & Co. in 1838, the plant was later taken over and renamed by one of its original investors, Charles Morgan.

Morgan Iron Works
Company typePrivate
IndustryManufacturing
PredecessorT. F. Secor & Co.
Founded1838
Founders
Defunct1907
FateSold
Headquarters
New York
,
United States
Area served
United States
Key people
T. F. Secor, Charles Morgan, George W. Quintard; later John Roach and his sons John Baker and Stephen Roach
ProductsMarine steam engines
ServicesShip repair
Total assets$450,000 (1867)
Owner
  • T. F. Secor, W. K. Caulkin and Charles Morgan (1838-1850)
  • Charles Morgan (1850-1867)
  • John Roach & Sons (1867-1907)
Number of employees
1,000 (1865)

The Morgan Iron Works remained a leading manufacturer of marine engines throughout the 19th century, producing at least 144 in the period between 1838 and 1867, including 23 for U.S. Navy vessels during the American Civil War.

The Morgan Iron Works was sold to shipbuilder John Roach in 1867, who integrated its operations with his shipyard in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Works continued to operate as both an engine plant and a ship repair facility in the hands of Roach and his son John Baker Roach until 1907, when the Roach family finally retired from the shipbuilding business.

Secor & Co., 1838–1850

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The marine engine works of T. F. Secor and Co. was originally established in New York City, at Ninth Street, East River, in 1838. The works was at this time owned by three partners—T. F. Secor, William K. Caulkin[1] and budding transport entrepreneur Charles Morgan, each of whom had one-third ownership of the new firm.[2]

In 1845, the U.S. Congress made a number of legislative changes, including the establishment of subsidies, which were aimed at allowing American shipping lines to compete more effectively with their British counterparts. The new legislation contributed to a growing demand in the United States for steamships, encouraging Morgan to divest himself of the last of his shares in sailing vessels and plough the money instead into the Secor plant,[3] which was expanded to include one and a half blocks between Eight and Tenth Streets. By this time, the plant employed up to 700 men, and was building engines for both coastal and oceangoing steamships.[4]

Morgan/Quintard ownership, 1850–1867

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In 1847, Morgan appointed his son-in-law, George W. Quintard, to the financial department of Secor & Co. Quintard proved a capable manager and rose quickly in the firm. Morgan bought out the other partners in February 1850 and renamed the firm the Morgan Iron Works. Quintard became the plant's new manager, a position he was to retain until the sale of the firm to John Roach in 1867. Morgan, now the plant's sole owner, was the firm's financier, supplying its capital and credit.[5]

The only variation to this arrangement occurred between May 1, 1857 to May 1, 1861, when Morgan's other son-in-law, Charles A. Whitney, joined the firm as co-manager. During this period, Morgan conveyed the Works to the ownership of Quintard and Whitney for the sum of $250,000 (equivalent to $8,175,000 in 2023), giving Whitney a one-third stake in the company and Quintard the remainder. The two manager-owners took out a $67,000 mortgage (equivalent to $2,272,044 in 2023) on the property to raise operating capital. After Whitney left the firm to pursue other business interests, Morgan returned as sole owner, purchasing the business for its sale price of $250,000 as of a few years prior, and settling the mortgage himself.[5]

1850s

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Following the Morgan takeover in 1850, Quintard embarked on an extensive improvement program for the Works, installing steam hammers, a floating steam derrick and other heavy equipment, as well as building a new dockyard on the East River. Quintard also began diversifying the firm's products, manufacturing machinery for Cuban sugar mills and large pumps for a Chicago water company.[6]

By this time, Morgan himself, whose transportation business was steadily expanding, had become the plant's main customer.[7] In 1850, Morgan ordered the 1,875 ton steamer San Francisco and the 1,359 ton Brother Jonathan, both built for operation with Morgan's Empire City Line.[8] In 1852, he decided to replace some of his older ships, and ordered Texas (1,151 tons), Louisiana (1,056 t), Mexico (1,043 t), Perseverance (827 t) and Meteor (542 t) all of which had engines built by the Morgan Iron Works.[9]

In the same period, Morgan lost to accidents four of his existing ships: Palmetto, Globe, Galveston and the newly built Meteor, with a total value of $250,000. As all four ships had been self-insured in line with Morgan's usual practice, none of the losses were recoverable. Morgan was by this time wealthy enough to be able to absorb the losses however, and in the following two years he had another four vessels built, including Charles Morgan (1,215 tons), Nautilus (898 t), Orizaba (734 t) and Tennessee (1,149 t), all but the last of which also had their engines supplied by the Morgan Works.[9]

The Morgan Iron Works secured its first naval contract on October 28, 1858, for a steam sloop-of-war, the USS Seminole. The contract was met with charges of favoritism from Republicans, and in a subsequent Congressional enquiry, Quintard pointed out that the Works had bid for a number of navy contracts previously but never been successful. The inquiry ultimately rejected the charges.[10]

By the end of the decade, the Morgan Works was one of America's leading manufacturers of marine steam engines, specializing in medium-sized machinery for coastal and river service. From 1850 through 1860, the Works built engines for a total of 49 vessels, and its engines were in use with American steamship companies from the United States to as far afield as China.[11]

American Civil War, 1861–65

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Steam sloop-of-war USS Wachusett

The American Civil War began disastrously for Charles Morgan when the Confederacy seized his entire Gulf of Mexico fleet. In spite of this blow however, Morgan was to recover and profit handsomely from the war, mainly through the agency of the Morgan Iron Works.[11]

The war created great demand for new shipping, and shipyards and engine manufacturers alike experienced an unprecedented boom. Like many other builders of marine engines, the Morgan Iron Works was to take full advantage of this demand, building engines for 38 vessels during the war, including 23 merchantmen and 13 warships for the U.S. Navy. The plant even found time to turn out an engine for an Italian Navy warship in this period,[11] the Re Don Luige de Portogallo.[12] U.S. Navy warships fitted with Morgan Iron Works engines included USS Ticonderoga, USS Ascutney, USS Wachusett and the experimental high-speed warship USS Ammonoosuc. The Works also contracted for the complete construction of the monitor USS Onondaga, although the hull was subcontracted out to another firm.[12]

By the end of the war, the Morgan Works had grossed $2,275,991.10 (equivalent to $45,302,119 in 2023) from its naval contracts alone.[12] Morgan himself made further profits during the war by ordering ships from Harlan & Hollingsworth, which he then sold or chartered to the U.S. Navy.[11]

Sale to John Roach, 1867

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After the war, the U.S. government auctioned off at firesale prices the hundreds of ships it had requisitioned during the conflict, depressing the market and leaving U.S. shipyards and marine engine builders with little or no work. As a consequence, most of the marine engine manufacturing companies of New York went out of business in the years immediately following the war.[13] Two notable exceptions were the Morgan Iron Works, and the Etna Iron Works of John Roach.

Unlike his competitors, John Roach had been able to maintain his profits in the postwar period by diversifying his plant into the manufacture of machine tools and selling them to the U.S. Navy, which was in the process of upgrading its shipyards. By contrast, the Morgan Iron Works, like most other New York engine builders, had struggled in the postwar period, building only two engines in the two years following the war.[6] It remained in business only because Morgan could afford to weather the losses, but in 1866 he suffered an additional financial setback when his newly established shipping lines to Mexico were aborted due to the overthrow of Maximilian I of Mexico.[13]

John Roach meanwhile was planning to add shipbuilding to his engine building business, and he saw the Morgan Iron Works with its dockyard on the East River as a stepping stone toward this goal.[14] When in 1867 he offered to purchase the Morgan Works, Morgan was ready to sell, and the two agreed upon a price of $450,000 (equivalent to $9,810,000 in 2023), divided into a cash payment of $100,000 and two mortgages of $100,000 and $250,000.[13][15] Roach would soon run into cash flow problems of his own and consequently defaulted on both mortgages; Morgan however chose not to foreclose and Roach settled the debts shortly before Morgan's death in 1878.[13]

Roach ownership, 1867–1907

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USS Dolphin, focus of a bitter political battle between John Roach and the U.S. Navy

By securing the premises of the Morgan Iron Works and buying out his remaining competitors, Roach had established a near ship and engine building monopoly in New York.[13] He subsequently closed his Etna Iron Works, transferring the best personnel and equipment from Etna and his former competitors' premises to his newly acquired East River property, and thus turned the Morgan Works into America's premier manufacturer of marine steam engines.[16]

In 1871, Roach bought the failed shipyard of Reaney, Son & Archbold in Chester, Pennsylvania,[17] thoroughly modernized it, renamed it the Delaware River Iron Ship Building and Engine Works,[18] and turned it into America's largest and most prolific shipyard, a position it maintained until the mid-1880s.[19] In spite of the fact that the Chester shipyard had its own engine building plant, Roach retained ownership of the Morgan Iron Works, using it to build engines both for his own ships and for third party contracts, and also for ship repairs and outfitting of new vessels. Roach in fact expanded the Works for its new role, adding upholsterers for the production of ship's furniture and expanding the plumbing department.[20] Additionally, he was able to use the Morgan Works to keep his business running during industrial action, when he would simply transfer his operations from one yard to the other. He retained the name of the Morgan Iron Works, but made it a subsidiary of a new management company, John Roach & Son (later John Roach & Sons).[21]

After a costly political battle over a naval contract for the USS Dolphin in 1885, Roach, by now a terminally ill old man, retired and placed his business empire into receivership.[22] Following the settlement of all his debts however, his family found themselves still in possession of both the Chester shipyard and the Morgan Iron Works. Roach's oldest surviving son, John Baker Roach, took over running of the business as a whole, while his younger son Stephen became treasurer of the Morgan Works.[23]

The brothers continued to run the business much as their father had done, although it lost the pre-eminent position it had previously enjoyed. With the death of John Baker Roach in 1908, the Roach family decided to end its association with shipbuilding, and both the Morgan Iron Works and the Chester shipyard were closed.[24] The Morgan Works was converted into tenements, and in 1949, the locality where the Works had once stood was redeveloped into a low-rental housing project, the Jacob Riis Houses, which still exists today.[25]

Production tables

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The following tables list marine engines built by T. F. Secor & Co. and the Morgan Iron Works to 1867. Few engines built under Roach management are listed as Roach had a second marine engine facility at Chester, Pennsylvania and available records generally do not distinguish between the output of the two plants.

Where a ship had more than one name, the names are listed chronologically in descending order, with two digits representing the last two digits of the year the rename took place (where known). Ship names in small type preceded or followed by an arrow (← →) indicate that the engine for this vessel was used in another ship.

Merchant steamship and steamboat engines

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Merchant steamship engines built by T. F. Secor & Co. (1838–1850) and the Morgan Iron Works (Morgan/Quintard management, 1850–1867)[a]
Ship Engine(s) Ship notes/references
Name[b] Yr[c] Builder Ton[d] Owner[e] Tp[f] No[g] Cyl[h] Str[i]
Savannah 1838 305 Troy Line VB [26][27]
Troy 1840 William Capes 724 Troy Line HB 2 44 10 [26][28]
Empire 1843 William H. Brown 936 Troy Line HB 2 48 12 [26][28]
Atlantic 1846 Bishop & Simonson 1112 Norwich & New London SBC VB 1 72 11 [26][29]
John Stevens 1846 Robert L. Stevens 686 Camden & Amboy RRC ST 1 75 8 [26] Early iron-hulled steamboat [30][31]
Perry 1846 Devine Burtis 255 VB 1 36 9 [26]
Thomas Powell 1846 Lawrence & Sneden 585 Thomas Powell et al VB 1 48 11 [26] Broken up, Port Ewen, 1881.[32]
T. F. Secor 1846 Menemon Sanford 210 Menemon Sanford VB [26][33]
Antelope 1847 Bishop & Simonson 425 VB [26] "New York owners"[34]
New Orleans 1847 William H. Brown 869 Charles Morgan VB 1 55 11 [35]
Crescent City 1848 William H. Brown 1289 Charles Morgan SL 1 80 9 [36]
New World 1848 William H. Brown 1312 Isaac Newton VB 1 76 15 [37][38]
Ontario 1848 Merrick 832 American SBC VB 1 50 11 [26][39]
Queen City 1848 Bidwell & Banta 906 Charles M. Reed CH [26][40]
United States 1848 William H. Webb 1875 Charles H. Marshall et al SL 2 80 9 [26] Early American transatlantic steamship [41]
Connecticut 1848 Lawrence & Sneden 1129 Curtis Peck VB 1 72 12 [26][42]
Empire City 1849 William H. Brown 1751 Charles Morgan SL 1 75 9 [26][43]
Georgia 1849 Smith & Dimon 2727 U.S. Mail SSC SL 2 90 8 [26][44]
Goliah 1849 William H. Webb 333 Cornelius Vanderbilt VB 1 50 8 [26] NY tug; later a passenger steamer on the Pacific Coast [45]
Ocean 1849 M. Sanford 658 Menemon Sanford et al VB 1 48 11 [26][j]
Ohio 1849 Bishop & Simonson 2432 U.S. Mail SSC SL 2 90 8 [26][47]
1849 J. A. Westervelt 436 William Skiddy SL 2 [26] Sent to California, later the U.S. Coast Survey ship Active [48]
Boston 1850 William H. Brown 630 Menemon Sanford VB 1 44 11 [26] Last engine built by T. F. Secor & Co. New England passenger steamer, later USN Civil War transport; sunk by enemy fire, 1864 [49]
Louisiana 1850 Westervelt & Mackay 1056 Charles Morgan VB 1 56 10 [26] First engine built by the Morgan Iron Works.[50] Vessel burned and sank Galveston Bay 1857, 30-60 killed [51]
Prometheus 1850 J. Simonson 1207 Cornelius Vanderbilt VB 2 42 10 [26] First oceangoing steamship fitted with walking beam engine [52]
  • Reindeer
  • Perseverance
1850 Thomas Collyer 790 New Brunswick SBC VB 1 56 12 [26] Sunk by boiler explosion and fire, Hudson R., 1852; 36 killed [53]
St. Lawrence 1850 William Collyer 588 VB 1 44 11 [26][54]
Brother Jonathan 1851 Perine, Patterson & Stack 1359 Edward Mills VB 1 72 11 [55] Struck and sank off Crescent City, CA, 1865; 221 killed [56]
1851 William Collyer 1043 Charles Morgan VB 1 56 10 [57] USN gunboat, 1862–65.[58] Sold foreign, 1870.[59]
North American 1851 Lawrence & Sneden 1440 Cornelius Vanderbilt VB 1 60 12 Sunk, 1852.[60]
Roanoke 1851 Westervelt & Mackay 1071 New York & Virginia SSC VB 2 42 10 [55] Seized by Confederacy and burned, 1864.[61]
Winfield Scott 1851 Westervelt & Mackay 1291 Davis, Brooks & Co SL 2 66 8 [55] Struck and sank off Anacapa Island, CA, 1853 [62]
  • City of Hartford
  • Capitol City 82
1852 Samuel Sneden 814 Hartford & New York SBC VB 1 60 12 [55] Run aground and wrecked in Long Island Sound, 1888 [63]
  • Saratoga
  • Cortes 52
1852 Westervelt & Mackay 1117 Davis, Brooks & Co VB 2 42 10 [55] Destroyed by fire, Shanghai, China, 1865 [64]
Northern Indiana 1852 Bidwell & Banta 1475 Michigan Southern RRC VB 1 72 12 [55] Destroyed by fire 1856; 56 killed [65]
  • Reindeer 50
  • Perseverance
1852 J. A. Westervelt 827 Charles Morgan VB 1 56 12 Destroyed by fire at Indianola, Texas, 1856 [66][67]
  • Texas
  • Quartz Rock 52
  • Sierra Nevada 52
1852 William Collyer 1246 Empire City Line [55] Grounded and wrecked off San Simeon, CA, 1869 [68]
  • Southern Michigan
  • Thomas Cornell
1852 Bidwell & Banta 1470 Michigan Southern RRC VB 1 72 12 [55] Laid up, 1857; scrapped 1863 [69]
  • Crescent City
  • Morning Star
1853 Vincent Bidwell 1746 Dean Richmond et al VB 1 80 12 [55] Laid up, 1857; scrapped 1863 [70]
1853 William H. Webb 2141 U.S. Mail SSC O 2 65 10 [55] Foundered and sank in hurricane; 420 killed [71]
  • Golden Age
  • Hiroshima Maru 75
1853 William H. Brown 2281 New York & Australia SNC VB 1 83 12 [55] In service until about 1890 [72]
Granite State 1853 Samuel Sneden 887 Chester W. Chapin VB 1 52 12 [55] Destroyed by fire, 1883 [73]
1853 J. A. Westervelt 1300 NY & Virginia SSC VB 2 40 10 [55] Sunk by the Confederacy to make an obstruction in the James River, 1862 [74]
Josephine 1853 552 VB 2 40 14 [55]
San Francisco 1853 William H. Webb 2272 Pacific Mail SSC O 2 65 8 [55] Scuttled after engine failure during storm on maiden voyage, 1854; 195 killed [75]
1854 Westervelt & Son 1215 Charles Morgan VB 1 60 11 [55] Exploded during Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip, 1862 [76]
Nautilus 1854 898 Charles Morgan VB 1 44 11 Wrecked on Last Island, LA in hurricane, 1856; 20 killed [77]
Orizaba 1854 J. A. Westervelt 1335 Charles Morgan VB 1 65 11 [55] Scrapped, 1887 [78]
Sonora 1854 J. A. Westervelt 1616 Pacific Mail SSC VB 2 50 10 [55] Scrapped, 1868 [79]
St. Louis 1854 J. A. Westervelt 1621 Pacific Mail SSC VB 2 50 10 [55] Dismantled at Panama, 1878 [80]
Commonwealth 1855 Lawrence & Foulks 1732 Norwich & New London SBC VB 1 76 12 [55] Destroyed by fire at Groton, CT, 1865 [81] "[T]he great boat of Long Island Sound in the '50s."[81]
Island Home 1855 E. S. Whitlock 481 Nantucket & Cape Cod SBC VB 2 40 11 [55] Converted to barge, 1896–97; sunk in NY Harbor, 1902 [82][83]
Christoval Colon 1856 Sneden & Whitlock 450 VB 1 48 10 [55] Built for Cuban service [84]
1856 Sneden & Whitlock 406 "Capt. Coxatter" O 1 32 8 [55] Built for Florida service[85][86] before conversion to gunboat. Foundered in bad weather, 1863.[87]
Fulton 1856 Smith & Dimon 2307 Havre Line O 2 65 10 [55] Scrapped, 1870 [88]
Eastern Queen 1857 John Englis 695 VB 1 48 11 [55]
Independence 1857 Samuel Sneden 354 Capt. Ezra Nye VB 2 32 8 [55] "[F]or towing in the harbor of Valparaiso, S. A."
Yangtsze 1857 Thomas Collyer 1003 Russell & Co O 2 38 8 [55] Built for Chinese service; employed in the opium trade [89]
  • City of Buffalo
  • Morro Castle 63
1857 Bidwell & Banta 2026 Michigan Southern RRC VB 1 76 12 [55] Laid up, 1857–63; bulk freight carrier, 1864; tow barge, 1866; abandoned 1875 [90]
1858 J. A. Westervelt 817 H. B. Cromwell & Co V 1 56 4 [55] Destroyed by fire, 1877 [91][92]
1858 J. A. Westervelt 787 H. B. Cromwell & Co V 1 56 4 [55] Sunk in collision, 1877; 13 killed [93]
Ocean Queen 1858 J. A. Westervelt 2801 Morgan & Garrison VB 1 90 12 [55] Scrapped, 1875 [94]
Alabama 1859 Samuel Sneden 510 VB 1 50 10 [55][95]
De Soto 1859 Lawrence & Foulks 1600 Livingston, Crocheron & Co VB 1 65 11 [96] USN gunboat, 1861-68. Destroyed by fire S. of New Orleans, 1870
John Brooks 1859 Samuel Sneden 780 Naugatuck TC VB 1 56 12 [96] Broken up about 1897 [97]
Peiho 1859 Thomas Collyer 1113 Russell & Co O 1 52 8 [96] Built for China service [98]
White Cloud 1859 Thomas Collyer 520 VB 1 44 10 [96] Built for China service [98]
1859 William H. Webb 1403 NY & Virginia SSC VB 1 50 10 [96] Burned and scuttled by Confederacy to prevent capture, James River, 1865 [k]
Bienville 1860 Lawrence & Foulks 1558 Livingston, Crocheron & Co VB 1 68 11 [96] USN gunboat, 1861-65. Destroyed by fire at sea off Bahamas, 1872; 41 killed
Flushing 1860 Samuel Sneden 333 VB 1 36 10 [95][96]
1860 J. A. Westervelt 1517 Spofford, Tileston & Co VB 1 71 12 [96] Laid up, 1885; disappears from registers 1891 [100]
Peruano 1860 J. A. Westervelt 570 VB 1 44 11 [96]
  • William G. Hewes
  • Ella and Annie 62
  • USS Malvern 63
  • William G. Hewes 65
1860 Harlan & Hollingsworth 747 Charles Morgan VB 1 50 11 [96] Wrecked on Colorado Reef off coast of Cuba, 1895 [101]
Zouave 1860 John Englis 750 VB 1 50 11 [96]
Continental 1861 Samuel Sneden 686 New Haven SBC VB 1 70 11 [96] Barge, 1902; later broken up [102]
  • Cosmopolitan
  • Havana
  • Paul Koch
  • Edmund Butler
1861 John Englis 774 Sanford's Independent Line VB 1 50 11 [96] Still in service 1903 [103]
Hankow 1861 Thomas Collyer 725 VB 1 48 12 [96] Chinese service [98]
  • Mary Benton
  • Walter Brett 66
1861 G.E. & W.H. Goodspeed 365 Hartford & Long Island SBC VB 1 44 10 [96] Scrapped, 1897 [104]
New Brunswick 1861 John Englis 804 Portland SPC VB 1 48 11 [96][105]
1861 William H. Webb 2150 NY & Savannah SNC VB 1 80 11 [96] Laid up, 1875; presumed scrapped [106]
Chekiang 1862 Henry Steers 1264 VB 1 70 11 [96] China service. Destroyed by fire at Hankow, 1865 [107]
Fohkien 1862 Henry Steers 1947 J. M. Forbes VB 1 81 12 [96] Reconditioned engine originally from St. Lawrence. Fast passage to China, 1863. Struck and sank off Chinese coast, 1865 [108][109]
  • New England
  • City of Portland 72
1862 John Englis 852 International SSC VB 1 52 11 [96] Ran aground and wrecked, 1884 [110]
  • Crescent City 53
  • Morning Star
1863 Roosevelt & Joyce 2022 New York Mail SSC VB 1 80 12 [96] Laid up 1867; broken up 1872 [111]
Western Metropolis 1863 F. D. Tucker 2269 L. Brown VB 1 74 12 [96] Built for transatlantic service. Converted to sail, 1878 [l]
Gen. J. K. Barnes 1864 Lawrence & Foulks 1365 Atlantic Coast Mail SSC VB 1 60 10 [96] Sank in hurricane, 1878 [114]
  • Retribution
  • Golden Rule 63
1863 Henry Steers 2767 Marshall O. Roberts VB 1 81 12 [96] Wrecked on Roncador Reef, Gulf of Mexico, 1865 [115]
Herman Livingston 1864 Lawrence & Foulks 1314 Atlantic Coast Mail SSC VB 1 60 10 [96] Scrapped after 1878 [116]
Oriflamme 1864 Lawrence & Foulks 1204 U.S. Navy VB 1 60 10 [96] Built for Civil War service but sold on completion. Scrapped, 1890 [117]
Albermarle 1865 Lawrence & Foulks 871 Atlantic Coast Mail SSC VB 1 44 11 [96] Barge 82; schooner 83; sunk in squall 85 [118]
Hatteras 1865 Lawrence & Foulks 868 Atlantic Coast Mail SSC VB 1 44 11 [96] Schooner barge 1882 [119]
Manhattan 1865 Lawrence & Foulks 1337 American & Mexican SSC VB 1 66 11 [96] Sunk, 1882 [120]
  • Paon Shun
  • Nevada 66
  • Saikio Maru 75
1865 J. Simonson 1691 T. W. Dearborn VB 1 85 12 [96] Scrapped on or after 1885 [m]
  • New York
  • Tokio Maru 75
1865 J. Simonson 2217 Cornelius Vanderbilt VB 1 78 12 [96] Scrapped, 1880s [122]
Raleigh 1865 Lawrence & Foulks 868 Atlantic Coast Mail SSC VB 1 44 11 [96] Destroyed by fire off Charleston, SC, 1867; 24 killed [123]
Rapidan 1865 Lawrence & Foulks 868 Atlantic Coast Mail SSC VB 1 44 11 [96] Disappeared en route to West Indies, 1886 [124]
Vera Cruz 1865 Lawrence & Foulks 1340 American & Mexican SSC VB 1 66 11 [96] Struck and sank near Oregon Inlet, 1866 [125]
Villa Clara 1866 1095 VB 1 52 4 [96]
Cambridge 1867 John Englis & Son 1337 Sanford Line VB 1 60 11 [96] Wrecked off Georges Island, MA, 1886 [126]
Merchant steamship engines built by the Morgan Iron Works under Roach management (1867–1908)[n]
Ship Engine(s) Ship notes/references
Name[b] Yr[c] Builder Ton[d] Owner[e] Tp[f] No[g] Cyl[h] Str[i]
Pilgrim 1881 Delaware Works Old Colony SBC VB 1 110 14 Largest simple (single-cylinder) walking beam engine ever constructed. Ship laid up 1912, broken up 1920.[127]

Warship engines

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U.S. Navy warship engines built by the Morgan Iron Works (Morgan management)
Ship Engine(s)
Name Type Class Built Builder Disp Type[o] No[g] Cyl[h] Str[i] IHP
USS Seminole Screw sloop Narragansett 1859 Pensacola Navy Yard 1235 HBA 2 50 2.6 250
USS Chippewa Screw gunboat Unadilla 1861 William H. Webb 691 HBA 2 30 1.6
USS Katahdin Screw gunboat Unadilla 1861 Larrabee & Allen 691 HBA 2 30 1.6
USS Kineo Screw gunboat Unadilla 1861 J. W. Dyer 691 HBA 2 30 1.6
USS Mahaska Double-end gunboat Sebago 1861 Portsmouth Navy Yard 1070 IDA 1 44 7
USS Wachusett Screw sloop Iroquois 1861 Boston Navy Yard 1488 HBA 2 50 2.6 1202
USS Ticonderoga Screw sloop Lackawanna 1862 Brooklyn Navy Yard 2526 HBA 2 42 2.6 1300
USS Tioga Double-end gunboat Genesee 1862 Boston Navy Yard 1120 IDA 1 48 7
USS Ascutney Double-end gunboat Sassacus 1863 George W. Jackman Jr. 1173 IDA 1 58 8.9
USS Chenango Double-end gunboat Sassacus 1863 J. Simonson 1173 IDA 1 58 8.9
USS Onondaga Monitor Unique 1863 Continental Iron Works 2592 HBA 4 642
USS Ammonoosuc Cruiser Ammonoosuc 1864 Boston Navy Yard 3850 HGDA 2 100 4 4480
USS Muscoota Double-end gunboat Mohongo 1864 Continental Iron Works 1370 IDA 1 58 8.9
USS Idaho Cruiser Unique 1864 Henry Steers 3241 GS 2

Footnotes

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  1. ^ Fields left blank in the table indicate that the information is unavailable or unknown.
  2. ^ a b Name = ship name. Where the ship had more than one name in the course of its career, later names are listed chronologically in descending order, with each name followed by a two-digit number (in superscript) representing the last two digits of the year the rename took place, where known.
  3. ^ a b Yr = Year the ship was launched where known, otherwise, year the ship was completed or entered service.
  4. ^ a b Ship tonnage.
  5. ^ a b Abbreviations in this column include: SBC - Steamboat Company; RRC - Railroad Company; SSC - Steamship Company; SNC - Steam Navigation Company; TC - Transportation Company; SPC - Steam Packet Company.
  6. ^ a b Tp = type of engine. Engine types include: VB = vertical beam (ie walking beam); HB = horizontal beam (Lighthall patent); ST = steeple; CH = crosshead; SL = side-lever; O =oscillating; V = vertical (ie vertical inverted direct-acting).
  7. ^ a b c No = number of engines.
  8. ^ a b c Cyl = cylinder size in inches.
  9. ^ a b c Str = stroke of engine in feet.
  10. ^ [46] Heyl erroneously names the builder as "Lawrence & Sandford", apparently confusing the builders with the owner. There was no such shipbuilder as "Lawrence & Sandford"; the builder was Lawrence & Sneden.
  11. ^ [99] Heyl incorrectly lists the launch date of this vessel as 1853; in fact it was 1859.
  12. ^ According to Heyl, the engine for this ship was originally installed in the Lake Erie steamer Empire State, then in the Lake Erie steamer Western Metropolis in 1856, before being installed in the 1863 Western Metropolis.[112] Since Baughman lists neither Empire State nor the Lake Erie Western Metropolis among the vessels powered by Morgan Iron Works engines,[113] presumably the engine listed here was a rebuild by the Morgan Works of another company's engine.
  13. ^ [121] Heyl notes that the spelling of Saikio in the last name recorded for this ship is uncertain.
  14. ^ Few engines built under Roach management are listed as Roach had a second marine engine facility at Chester, Pennsylvania and records generally do not distinguish between the output of the two plants.
  15. ^ Type = engine type.

References

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  1. ^ Swann 1965. p .24.
  2. ^ Baughman 1968. p. 30.
  3. ^ Baughman 1968. p. 39.
  4. ^ Baughman 1968. p. 55.
  5. ^ a b Baughman 1968. pp. 55–56.
  6. ^ a b Swann 1965. pp. 24–25.
  7. ^ Swann 1965. p. 24.
  8. ^ Baughman 1968. p. 63.
  9. ^ a b Baughman 1968. p. 88.
  10. ^ Baughman 1968. pp. 114–116.
  11. ^ a b c d Baughman 1968. pp. 121–122.
  12. ^ a b c Baughman 1968. p. 255.
  13. ^ a b c d e Baughman 1968. pp. 123–125.
  14. ^ Swann 1965. pp. 25–26
  15. ^ Swann 1965. p. 25.
  16. ^ Swann 1965. p. 26.
  17. ^ Swann 1965. p. 51.
  18. ^ Swann 1965. p. 56.
  19. ^ Swann 1965. p. 242.
  20. ^ Swann 1965. pp. 54–55.
  21. ^ Swann 1965. p. 23.
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  24. ^ Swann 1965. p. 236.
  25. ^ Jacob Riis Houses, New York City Housing Authority.
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Bibliography

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Books

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  • Baughman, James P. (1968). Charles Morgan and the Development of Southern Transportation. Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt University Press. pp. 46, 55, 57, 70–71, 88, 105, 242–244.
  • Bishop, J. Leander (1868). A History of American Manufactures From 1608 to 1860. Vol. III. Philadelphia: Edward Young & Co. p. 131.
  • Bradlee, Francis B. C. (1920). Some Account of Steam Navigation in New England. Salem, MA: The Essex Institute. p. 94.
  • Coman, Edwin Truman Jr; Gibbs, Helen Marilla (1949). Time, Tide and Timber: A Century of Pope and Talbot. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. pp. 107–108.
  • Dayton, Fred Erving (1925). Steamboat Days. New York: Frederick A. Stokes Company. pp. 54, 57, 163, 268, 283–284, 294, 385.
  • Heyl, Erik (1953). Early American Steamers. Vol. I. Buffalo, New York: Erik Heyl. pp. 13, 27, 61, 63–64, 75–76, 111–112, 161, 171–172, 177, 183–184, 189–190, 199, 207, 215–216, 237–238, 239, 265–266, 287–288, 295–296, 309, 311–312, 315–316, 325, 327–328, 357, 359, 367, 375–376, 379–380, 391–392, 395, 397, 437, 443, 457, 465–466.
  • Heyl, Erik (1956). Early American Steamers. Vol. II. Buffalo, New York: Erik Heyl. pp. 63, 173, 241.
  • Heyl, Erik (1964). Early American Steamers. Vol. III. Buffalo, New York: Erik Heyl. pp. 101–102, 167–168, 195–196, 197–199, 219–220.
  • Heyl, Erik (1965). Early American Steamers. Vol. IV. Buffalo, New York: Erik Heyl. pp. 37–40, 65, 121–124, 137–139, 141, 217, 269–271.
  • Heyl, Erik (1967). Early American Steamers. Vol. V. Buffalo, New York: Erik Heyl. pp. 55–57, 87, 233.
  • Morrison, John H. (1903). History of American Steam Navigation. New York: Stephen Daye Press. pp. 110–111, 186, 328, 382–383, 398, 507, 509–511.
  • Ridgely-Nevitt, Cedric (1981). American Steamships on the Atlantic. East Brunswick, NJ: Associated University Presses, Inc. pp. 140–141, 182–185, 299, 301–306. ISBN 0874131405.
  • Silverstone, Paul H. (1989). Warships of the Civil War Navies. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. p. 162. ISBN 0870217836.
  • Stiles, T. J. (2010). The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt. New York: First Vintage Books. pp. 188, 189–190. ISBN 9781400031740.
  • Swann, Leonard Alexander Jr (1965). John Roach, Maritime Entrepreneur: The Years as Naval Contractor 1862–1886. United States Naval Institute (reprinted 1980 by Ayer Publishing). pp. 23–26, 51, 54–56, 242, 227, 235–236. ISBN 9780405130786.

Periodicals

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Websites

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