Large Scale Central TV, your favorite local PBS channel, sent out a press release announcing a documentary series due to be released Jan 2016. Here is the teaser. (Sorry guys my mind is already in motion and I lost sleep last night)
The Definitive History of the Steam Propulsion Laboratory (SPL)
The Steam Propulsion Laboratory was founded in 1889 as a joint venture between the United States government, Baldwin Locomotive Works, and the Coeur d’Alene Railway and Navigation Company. It was located at a top secret facility near Wallace, ID known by the government simply by the designation Area 49; locally it was known as the “Badger Works.” For years not much officially was known about what went on in the clandestine shops of the “Badger Works.” All work there was veiled in secrecy and rarely was anything officially released. Rumors from locals were that strange alien steam powered space craft where housed there and studied. It was believed that this alien technology was adapted to steam locomotive design and was credited for many of the advancements in steam power.
Thanks to the Freedom of Information Act most all of the projects of the “Badger Works” have been declassified and made available for research. While the SPL has been credited with many of the major advancements in steam locomotive propulsion, it was not thanks to ancient alien technology but primarily at the hands of one man and his team of talented engineers. Barnabas Ford is little known in history due mostly to his projects being kept under tight security; however we all know his famous nephew Henry Ford. Many have speculated that Henry’s success as an auto designer is really the work of his uncle who was unable to promote his automobile designs himself due to his involvement with the SPL.
The stated purpose of the SPL was to design, develop, and deploy new and innovative concepts in steam propulsion. As railroads moved west into the mountainous Western States, a keen interest was taken in narrow gauge railroad development. After the Civil War it became apparent to the Army that railroads were a vital asset to moving troops, supplies, and equipment for rapid deployment to the battlefield. It was viewed by the government that the standard 4’ 8 ½” gauge was not going to be suitable for the tight corners that would be required for moving troops and supplies in the mountainous regions of the west. They set their sights on the 3’ narrow gauge. They partnered with the premier locomotive builder of the day, Baldwin Locomotive Works, to design narrow gauge locomotives that were bigger, faster, and more powerful than was conventionally thought possible on a narrow gauge line. They needed a place to test these designs that would be far from the public eye; Baldwin already had a working relationship with Coeur d’Alene Railway & Navigation Company after building them an innovative narrow gauge locomotive. Their remote location and eagerness to try new technologies made the CR&N a perfect partner in the SPL.
Though primarily set up for development of narrow gauge steam power; the “Badger Works” evolved into designing many different technologies for railroad use as well as non-railroad use. Locomotives, rolling stock, buildings and appurtenances for use within the railroad industry all came into the scope of the “Badger Works.” A great deal of the accomplishments of the steam era can be attributed to the work of the Barnabas Ford and the SPL.
As steam gave way to diesel fuel and narrow gauge was deemed impractical, the direction, as well as the name of the project, changed and location moved. The new Diesel Propulsion Laboratories was moved to a still undisclosed location known as Area 50. Baldwin was no longer involved and instead a budding company, Electro-Motive Diesel, took on the designing. That project was known as the “Wolverine Works.” Eventually rail transportation was to give way to the airplane as a means of transport. Diesel and Kerosene were looked at in greater detail and eventually the Jet Propulsion Laboratory was founded at a new location, Area 51, with a company by the name of Lockheed taking the reins. This has come to be known as the “Skunk Works;” one can only assume that the name reflects the fact that planes stink.
That’s a brief history of the Steam Propulsion Laboratory’s secretive existence. Many great innovations in steam locomotion in general and narrow gauge specifically have come from inside the “Badger Works.” In the upcoming month of January, 2016 Large Scale Central TV will run a series highlighting one such project of the SPL. Just as the “Badger Works” projects were cloaked in secrecy then, the project to be unveiled in January remains a secret. Will it be a locomotive project? Will it be a rolling stock project? Maybe an innovative building design? Only one man knows for sure and he is tight lipped and won’t reveal the nature of the project.
Stay tuned for what is sure to be an interesting project.
