Vulcan Iron Works (Wilkes-Barre)

Vulcan Iron Works

Founded	1849 (1849) in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Defunct	1954 (1954)
Fate	Acquired
Successor	General Industrial Locomotive Corp
Headquarters	Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania

The Vulcan Iron Works, established in 1849 by Richard Jones in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, specialized in locomotive manufacturing. Its portfolio included various models, notably the preserved Berlin Mills Railway 7 built in 1911. By the year 1944, the company was engaged in producing both steam and diesel-powered locomotives. Operations concluded in 1954 when General Industrial Locomotive Corp acquired its assets.

War-time service

In February 1944, ahead of the 'D-Day' Normandy landings, Vulcan declared:

Currently, hundreds of Vulcan locomotives are performing crucial wartime duties domestically and abroad, while our facilities operate at full capacity fulfilling urgent orders for the Army, Navy, and defense industries. In the near future, an increased number of larger Vulcan locomotives will be ready to assist in reconstructing a world devastated by war. Our manufacturing plants are undergoing expansion and modernization ....

Locomotives

Vulcan manufactured an extensive array of steam locomotives, mostly smaller models but including some with up to eight driving wheels. With progress in internal combustion engines, the firm diversified into small locomotives powered by gasoline, benzine, alcohol, kerosene, and naptha.

Diesel locomotive production commenced during the 1920s; from 1938 until 1954, Vulcan constructed 54 diesel-electric switcher units weighing at least 25 tons. Its most substantial model was a 70-ton B-B unit delivered to Carnegie Steel Company in 1944. Additionally, the company supplied Turkish State Railways with TCDD 56301 Class locomotives in 1947.

Moreover, Vulcan produced numerous gasoline-driven locomotives featuring mechanical transmissions, including the Maumelle Ordnance Works Locomotive No.1 from 1942.