Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Preliminary Guide to the McIntosh, Seymour and Company Records

Summary

Collection ID:
NMAH.AC.0985
Creators:
McIntosh, Seymour and Company
Dates:
circa 1886-1939
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
93.6 Cubic feet
174 boxes
Repository:
The records document the design, manufacture, and operation of steam and diesel engines by McIntosh, Seymour and Company of Auburn, New York.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
These records relate to the design, manufacture, and operation of diesel engines by McIntosh, Seymour and Company of Auburn, New York. Included are letter books, instruction manuals; price and data sheets; notebooks; design notes, blueprints and drawings; calculations and specifications, sketches; and photographs.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The collection is arranged into ten series.
Series 1: Background Materials, 1889-1980
Series 2: Letter Books, 1895-1901
Series 3: Sketches, 1900-1941
Series 4: Shop Books, 1897-1924
Series 5: Calculation Books and Sheets, 1903-1915
Series 6: Drawings, 1899-1922
Series 7: Instructions, 1899-1941
Series 8: Technical Data, 1901-1923
Series 9: Photographs, 1915

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
John E. McIntosh (1858-1916) and James A. Seymour invented the centrifugal governor (US 346,302) in 1886 made possible the beginning of McIntosh and Seymour Company which was founded in 1886 in Auburn, New York. The centrifugal governor is a specific type that controls the speed of an engine, regulating the amount of fuel and maintaining a constant speed. The company manufactured and sold large steam engines for stationary generators and marine use. By 1910, the company introduced diesel engines for railroads.

Administration

Author
Alison Oswald
Custodial History
Transferred to the Archives Center from the Division of Work and Industry, 2006.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Originally collected for the division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering (now the Division of Work and Industry). Exact date and source of acquisition unknown.
Accruals
Frank M. Smith, Jr. of American Industrial Sales Company donated a book in 1977 and Carson McCall donated photographs and one audio cassette in 1988-1989.
Processing Information
Collection processed by John Smith; supervised by Jane Jones, archivist, January 2004.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Preferred Citation
McIntosh, Seymour and Company Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Notebooks Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Manuals Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Auburn (N.Y.) Geographic Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Blueprints Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drawings Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Diesel engines Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Steam-engines Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Engine design Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Manufacturing Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of History of Technology Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

Archives Center, National Museum of American History
P.O. Box 37012
Suite 1100, MRC 601
Washington, D.C. 20013-7012
archivescenter@si.edu