| Austin Western Company unnumbered plant switcher at Eola, Illinois on January 29, 1966, Kodachrome by Chuck Zeiler. Information on this locomotive was a little hard to come by, here is what I have so far. It appears this locomotive was built by Whitcomb in January 1940 (c/n 60017), model 45DE, at the factory owned by Baldwin Locomotive Works in Rochelle, Illinois. The George D. Whitcomb Company, founded in 1877, came under the control of Baldwin in 1931, reorganized as the Whitcomb Locomotive Company. This locomotive worked at the factory in Aurora, Illinois. Western Wheeled Scraper purchased F.C. Austin Manufacturing Company in 1902, renaming it Austin Manufacturing Company, and manufactured road graders and 30 cubic yard side dump railroad cars, some of which were used in the construction of the Panama Canal. Austin and Western products were manufactured and sold under those names, although the Austin-Western name also appeared on machinery, especially in the early 1930s. Baldwin acquired Austin Western in 1951, and was acquired by Clark Equipment Company in the 1970's, who phased out production at Aurora. It appears this locomotive may have been acquired by Caterpillar (unconfirmed). |