These four sixty-five hp motors are for the Narcissus. They
are waiting to be picked up, placed in a truck, and then will
be delivered to A-C Electric in Auburn, ME. That is where they
will each be rebuilt. The armatures will be
vacuum/pressure-impregnated and epoxied, the
bearings sleeved, the cases line-bored and trued, and the
fields rewound and epoxied as well.
The blog posts include updates on the restoration of the
National Register of Historic Places, Narcissus, which is currently taking place at
Seashore Trolley Museum's Donald G. Curry Town House Restoration Shop in Kennebunkport, Maine. Posts also include topics; on the
connections that Theodore Roosevelt has here in Maine, the PLI and its connections to the communities it served (Portland, Falmouth, Cumberland, Gray, New Gloucester, Auburn, and Lewiston), the builder of the PLI,
W. S. Libbey,
other electric railway systems in Maine, and
people of Maine that had an impact on the
electric railway development here in Maine.
Starting in 1965, the Museum has been seeking and acquiring trucks and all the other various mechanical and electrical components that would be needed to make the Narcissus look, operate, and stop appropriately and safely. The body of the Narcissus arrived on the Museum campus on October 31, 1969. The original rare Baldwin trucks, each with two 90-hp motors, were scrapped in the mid-1930s shortly following
the end of operations of the Portland-Lewiston Interurban. Over the ensuing years, the Museum acquired four sets of trucks that each had attributes that were considered strong candidates for use in creating a pair of trucks for the Narcissus. This winter, the task of building the trucks for the Narcissus begins. Various components of the four sets of trucks acquired for the Narcissus will be removed and utilized in building the two trucks for the Narcissus. In addition, other components for the two trucks will need to be fabricated for installation on the trucks. We will be using 65-hp motors (GE 263-A) that will be placed in Baldwin trucks. These Baldwin trucks will be base trucks, as there will be many modifications required to have the truck(s) look correct and fit/operate correctly with the Narcissus.
ID plate on one of the 65-hp motors.
The first Baldwin "base truck" just before entering the shop
where it will start its complicated transition to becoming one
of the two trucks used to propel the Narcissus. Components
from three other sets of trucks will be used in building the
two trucks for the Narcissus using these Baldwin base trucks.
A side view of the first Baldwin base truck that will
be renovated for use by the Narcissus.
In the "box", the first Baldwin base truck will
be sharing the heated workspace with the
Denver, Birney car, during cold winter months.
This is what we will call the second pair of Baldwin trucks.
This set of trucks had four 65-hp motors and four-axle
sets removed for use in building the Narcissus trucks.
Today, the axle sets were removed from the "second set of
trucks" and brought to the doorway of the restoration shop.
We will not be using the wheels or journal boxes from
these axle sets, but the remaining components from these
will be used in building the Narcissus trucks.
This is what we will call the third set of Baldwin trucks
acquired for use in building the Narcissus trucks. The
angled-down "tail" seen here to the left of the wheelset, will
be removed from both of these trucks and used in
building the Narcissus trucks.
This is what we will call the fourth different Baldwin truck
set acquired (this set was acquired in 1965 from Ontario,
Canada) for use in building the Narcissus trucks.
One truck has the correct journal boxes for the Narcissus.
These will be used in building the Narcissus trucks,
but will also be used to cast the remaining boxes needed.
The fourth set of trucks also has some of the correct
brake pieces needed to build the Narcissus trucks.
Another major step forward with the Narcissus restoration has been taken this month as the forty-foot, vintage southern yellow pine timbers have been located, and inspected, then a purchase order was executed to acquire them for use as the side sills for the Narcissus.
The left side of the Narcissus is ready to
receive its new thirty-seven-foot-long vintage
southern yellow pine side sill.
Click Here to see the original sills being removed.
The right side of the Narcissus. You can clearly see the
tenon at the base of several of the vertical wall/window posts.
These tenons fit into the mortise (holes) cut into the top
37-foot-long vintage southern yellow pine side sill.
Click Here for the post on removing the original right sill and steel channel.
Once the two forty-foot timbers are cut, sawn, and milled to the ready-to-go specs of 5" x 8" x 37', they will be delivered to STM (perhaps mid-December?) and the arduous effort of handling the sills to properly prepare them for installation will begin.
Just moving the 37-foot sills to and from the various work "stations" for them to be positioned properly and safely will be a challenging, time-consuming endeavor. Each sill weighs approximately 300-400 pounds and will need to be positioned next to the removed original sill to mark the exact placement for the holes to be drilled. These holes will match the holes in the channel steel that will encase the interior side and a portion of the top and bottom edges of the sills. The flat back of the channel steel with the encased sill will be bolted to the 37-foot-long passenger compartment floor sill/joist.
The two original 37-foot-long side sills
from the Narcissus are stored in the
parts storage trailer that is currently dedicated
to store parts for the Narcissus.
Mortiser (specialized woodworking machine
used for cutting square or rectangular holes
in a piece of lumber). This mortiser will be
used by the shop staff to cut the mortises in the
37-foot-long side sills for the Narcissus.
The mortiser (see above definition) is seen here at the end
of the long woodworking bench in the shop. The safe setup
to handle the 37-foot-long
side sill timber, while the mortise cuts are made, will
be challenging.
Ernie Eaton is the restoration shop project manager for Narcissus. Ernie is interested in technology and on his own, during his spare time, he has been working on a 3-D version of the Narcissus. This hobby has proven handy on several occasions recently, most notably when dealing with the wood vendor for the side sills. The virtual model of the sills shows the accurate placement of bolt holes and mortise locations so that when inspecting prospective salvaged, vintage, 40-foot timbers, it is easier to determine whether a timber's condition will be acceptable.
In this 3-D image, you see the placement of the mortise
locations on the top of the side sill for the vertical
wall/window post tenons.
A still-shot of a portion of the 3-D version of the Narcissus
seen here "virtually" on the mainline tracks at Morrison
Hill Station at Seashore Trolley Museum. 1915
Morrison Hill Station is the original waiting station of
the Portland-Lewiston Interurban line from West Cumberland,
and will be the site where the ribbon-cutting ceremony
for the completed Narcissus will take place.
We continue the
restoration work on the 1912,
Narcissus, the only surviving high-speed, luxury interurban coach of the Portland-Lewiston Interurban.
Being more than a century old, the stately, "Elegant Ride,"
Narcissus, is a gem. This shimmering precious stone of Maine transportation history is brilliantly resplendent as it emanates so many elements of history, including;
time, places, people, and events, that it was coupled to, that when just a smattering of its seemingly innumerable stories are shared, the contents captivates, fascinates, then generates, interest to learn more 🙋. The majestic
Narcissus is listed in the
National Register of Historic Places.
Please consider joining the epic journey to complete the Narcissus Project by making a donation today!
The restoration of this majestic icon of Maine's electric railway history is but one in a series of captivating stories containing an abundance of incredible coalition of narratives.
Click Here: History-Related Posts - Narcissus and Portland-Lewiston Interurban
The Narcissus is featured in the national Gold Award-winning novel, Teddy Roosevelt, Millie, and the Elegant Ride. The "Elegant Ride" is the Narcissus. Theodore Roosevelt was a passenger on the Narcissus on August 18, 1914, between Lewiston and Portland, Maine, while campaigning for the Progressive Party candidates.
Click Here: Bookstores and Businesses promoting the
Narcissus Project
Independent book publisher, Phil Morse, holding
the Gold Book Award Winner plaque for
the Middle Reader category for The Eric
Hoffer Book Award. Congratulations to
award-winning Maine author,
Jean M. Flahive
