 Good evening everyone and my name is Tom Elliman. I am the current Board President of Greater Portland Landmarks, and I would like to welcome everyone to the program tonight We'll also like to thank our co-sponsors right at the outset the Portland Public Library Maine Historical Society Monjoy Hill Neighborhood Organization and the Friends of Eastern Prom The top topic for tonight's talk is the history and significance of the Portland company complex Architectural historian Scott Hansen of Sutherland Conservation and Consulting Recently prepared a 97 page report on this topic for the city of Portland to do the research He combed original documents maps and images Including the Portland company archives at Maine Historical Society of approximately 25,000 documents our purpose tonight is to build public awareness of the latest research on the history of the Portland company and Sutherland Report We know that redevelopment of the Portland company complex and site has generated a high degree of public interest However tonight, we will not be discussing any aspect of the proposed redevelopment of the site or any related Advocacy we encourage everyone who was interested in the proposed redevelopment To participate in the public process being conducted by the city of Portland There's a lot of good information on the city of Portland website www.portlandmain.gov Including the schedule of public meetings and workshops and the full text of the Sutherland report You can request to be added to the city's interested parties list by contacting the Portland planning department if you'd like to share your contact information with the organizations sponsoring tonight's talk there is a Sign-up sheet at the back of the room near the door I would like to thank our speaker Scott Hansen by the way the author of a soon-to-be-released book with Earl's Earl shuttle worth called Homes Down East I Paid announcement Scott currently works for Sutherland Consulting and Conservation of Augusta Scott's firm Was the preservation consultant for the rehabilitation of the former Cumberland cold storage warehouse on commercial Street That is now revitalized for office and marine related uses Many of you also remember Scott in his recent role as the preservation compliance officer for the city of Portland's Historic preservation office Scott brings to us his extensive experience with local History research and historic preservation, and we are delighted to hear firsthand about his findings on the Portland company Complex, please join me in welcoming Scott Hansen Okay The lights are under control so well she figures that out Tom mentioned that we did a 97-page report on the historic significance and integrity of the Portland company complex This is that report it actually exists And not only in the digital world And we did that At the behest of the city of Portland as part of their process to understand the Significance and integrity of the complex as they move forward with their planning efforts so That's the background What we're going to do we have a lot of territory to cover We're going to take a quick look at the context for the development of the Portland company just to Provide some basic understanding of why it was created And then we will look Briefly at what is historic significance? How is it defined? What does it mean? And then we will look at how the Portland company is Historically significant and we will also look at the historical and architectural integrity of the buildings And that is separate from structural integrity separate topics And we'll talk a little bit about what the difference is when we get to that section So to get started we're going to look at Portland right at the beginning Four street along the water before it had a name One street running back which is today India Street and Queen Street at the center of the Peninsula, which is today Congress Street at the foot of India the original Portland waterfront You have clay Cove on one side and broad Cove on the other The red star represents where the Portland company complex would be built Jumping ahead a long way to 1840 We see the same area of the city just before the Portland company complex came into being and You see that the street grid has developed the waterfront has developed a good portion of clay Cove has been filled Warbs extend well into the river It is a growing thriving port that Has reached a point in 1840 to 1845 Where it's infrastructure that was perfectly adequate to the 18th century and the early 19th century Suddenly was antiquated and Inadequate as the age of railroads began and The age of railroads came right into the waterfront with the Grand Trunk Railroad coming in from the east and Commercial Street being constructed across the historic Warves and piers to create a new waterfront that worked for the age of steam and this would allow Railroads access to the wharves and ships access to the railroads Over where the star is you see that some land has been created and the first Portland company buildings have been built here At the foot of India facing commercial the Grand Trunk Railroad built this depot and the roundhouse was at the corner for the key to understanding Portland in the 19th century is Understanding what's happening in this map of the Grand Trunk Railroad system The Grand Trunk Railroad which initially connected Portland to Montreal Eventually extended to the Midwest and it made Portland a very convenient port for Midwestern farmers and For Canadians who had no access in the winter months when the St. Lawrence River was frozen Portland became a major Transshipment point for agricultural products out of the American and Canadian Midwest and also became Canada's winter port for passengers as well as merchandise and Of course commercial Street was built To provide access from the railroad to the wharves here. You see a siding breaking off headed on to a wharf Back one and the Grand Trunk was not the only railroad that came into Portland And connected to commercial Street. In fact, there were six and The red line along commercial Street is the connection for all of them And the Grand Trunk of course comes in On the east the lower right and the red star again is indicating where the Portland company would be built So what's the Portland company connection to this rail development? The Portland company was built by the same individuals who created the Grand Trunk Railroad and Commercial Street for the purpose of producing the locomotives and railroad equipment. They would need to run railroad in the 1840s when railroads were brand new and Railroad equipment manufacturers were few and far between This is just a few years from the point where all locomotives were being imported from England and American locomotive building was in its infancy John a poor is the key individual in the Portland company development the Grand Trunk Railroad development and a point of clarity Poor and his associates built the Atlantic and St. Lawrence railroad Which was leased to the Grand Trunk Railroad the minute it was completed So you'll hear both railroads names used it's referring to the same railroad line from Portland to Montreal in 18 and poor was the Man who conceived and pushed through the construction of commercial Street to make these other projects more workable in 1846 poor and a number of associates founded the Portland company they purchased a state charter that had been issued the year before to another group of individuals for an iron foundry and changed the name and Expanded the scope of what they would be able to do They brought in Philadelphia locomotive builder Septimus Norris the Norris brothers were very early Locomotive builders in the United States Septimus Norris helped with the planning of the Portland company He was hired as chief engineer and served on the board of directors for about six and a half weeks and then He failed to come up with the funds that he was supposed to He was fired as chief engineer and sent back to Philadelphia and the Portland men decided they could handle this on their own they did manage to retain the rights to a number of Septimus Norris's patents, however Which greatly facilitated getting their operation going The other prominent Portland individuals involved in the formation of the company included William Pitt Fessenden J.B. Brown who would become president of the company eventually and serve for many years and a long list of other prominent Portland residents who were involved in commerce banking transportation a wide range of areas and interests The land was purchased from Captain George Turner in December of 1846 initially Turner asked for $8,000 for the property After some negotiations the Portland company purchased it for a little over $4,000 and somehow Captain George Turner got a seat on the board of the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad Work immediately began in in late 1846 to build a seawall and fill to create land to build buildings on and Three brick buildings were built in 1847 a foundry a machine shop and a blacksmith shop This was the first self-contained railroad locomotive manufacturing facility in the nation. That's a key point No one had brought all of those functions together in one site There were machine shops building locomotives who were contracting out the castings to a separate foundry and there were foundries building locomotives who were Contracting out the machining to separate machine shops. No one had previously brought it all together in one point and Very quickly additional buildings were built in both wooden brick The company grew very rapidly once it was established The first locomotive built by the Portland company was started in November of 1847 and completed in July of 1846 That's backwards How about completed in July of 1848? A slide I threw together this afternoon And the first ship spoiler was completed the same year The Portland company would go on to produce more than 600 locomotives Hundreds of railroad cars and hundreds of marine boilers and engines among other products primarily for transportation and industry and Here we see the other side of that Portland company float showing a steamship So what is historic significance? We used the criteria that are used by the National Register of Historic Places to determine Areas and levels of significance. This is a nationally recognized standard that is Widely used and is in fact Tied in with the same standards that are the foundation of the Portland Historic Preservation Ordinance They've been in use since 1966 and They are recognized as the national standard the criteria recognize areas of significance in four categories Properties associated with events that have made a significant contribution to broad patterns of history associated with the life of a person significant in our past Significant for design or construction. This would be architecture And significant for their potential to yield important information On prehistory or history. This would be archaeology As I mentioned this this is consistent with the Portland Ordinance within each of the four categories or the areas of Within the categories the areas of significance are identified Within events they can be areas such as industry transportation planning and development or others Association with a person is pretty clear. You know a great example would be James P. Baxter here in Portland anything associated with Baxter in a significant way Is potentially significant design and construction our Properties or buildings embodying distinctive characteristics of a period type or method of construction that represent the work of a master that possess high artistic value or that contribute to a significant and distinguishable district or the archaeology question at the end which we don't really get into here a level of significance is then Identified for each area of significance and that would be national significance state significance or local significance and finally a period of Significance for each area of significance is also identified and these would be The period during which the property was used for the identified area of significance That's the end of the long wordy slides. I promise Well one more how does the Portland company fall within these areas levels and periods of significance our determination is that under criterion criterion a industry for 1847 to 1865 the Portland company is significant at the national level at the state level we have industry transportation and Association with John a poor for various periods related to those three separate categories and At the local level again, we have industry. We also have community planning and development and Architecture with identified periods of significance So now we're going to look at each of these With lots of interesting photos rather than lots of boring words And we're going to start with significance at the national level for industry 1847 to 1865 Portland company was the first self-contained complex built for the purpose of manufacturing railroad locomotives and equipment in the nation in 1847 the surviving original buildings of the Portland company complex Appeared to be the only extant pre-civil war railroad locomotive production buildings in the nation the pre 16 buildings at the Portland company are the only surviving buildings where locomotives were produced for the US government during the civil war Here we see a New Brunswick and Canadian railroad locomotive built by the Portland company in 1858 This is one of the locomotives built for the United States Army in 1864 This is a drawing in the collection of the main historical society from the Portland company Collection that shows plans for shafts for a new cannon crane in the foundry in 1863 this cannon crane was built because the Portland company was producing cannons for the Union's Army during the Civil War They also produced Boilers and engines for two Steam warships for the US Navy during the Civil War Now we're going to jump to the state level industry 1847 to 1982 That is the period during which the Portland company operated as a going concern The Portland company built equipment and machinery for many of Maine's most important industries Including the paper industry the textile industry the canning industry and commercial fishing They also manufactured products for many Maine municipalities including fire engines standpipes manhole covers and street light fixtures Additionally, they fabricated building components used across the state of Maine Including cast iron building facades elevators and decorative cresting and fencing Here we see a soda digester for the SD Warren paper company around 1900 a Tank for SD Warren 1920 the latest in delivery methods Here we see log debarking drums for a paper company and A driving gear for the Oxford paper company a steam chamber for the Sanford mill textile mills The Portland company had a remarkable electrical engineer named Chapman who Invented a number of products including an electrical neutralizer Which became extremely important for removing Electricity from textiles and paper during the manufacturing product process Once electric motors took over from steam and water static electricity became An issue in the mills and the Chapman electric neutralizer machine removed the static electricity This became a really important product for the company steam retorts for the canning industry The kettle tipper and bean snipper for the canning industry The kettle tipper I believe was for B&M baked beans Elevator motors and elevators The Falmouth number two steam fire engine for the city of Portland and An internal combustion steam No, not steep an internal combustion fire engine from around 1920 a Gate host hoist for water power control Water power was again extremely important to the industrial development of Maine it was captured by building dams which would impound water and Then that water would pass through the dams in a controlled manner to turn turbines or water wheels and Machinery like this was essential for controlling that water flow that created the power as were valves and This radial gate for a hydroelectric dam from around 1920 During World War one the Portland Company produced armaments here. We see how it's their shells being produced And here we have a magazine advertisement from 1964 showing the company still very involved and active More than a century after it was founded Near the end of production we see a nuclear reactor shell that is fabricated at the Portland Company in 1970 Now looking at the state level for transportation 1847 to 1945 as I mentioned the company built hundreds of locomotives and railroad cars for Maine railroads including If I could stop getting it the Atlantic and St. Lawrence the Grand Trunk the Portland and Ogdensburg the Portland and Rochester the Portland and Kennebec Portland Sacco and Portsmouth Eastern Maine Central Boston and Maine and the Rungford Falls and Buckfield They also built locomotives and cars for Maine's iconic two-foot gauge railroads Including the Phillips and Range Lee Sandy River Kennebec Central Bridgestone and Sacco River and Wisconsin Quebec Here we have a locomotive from 1867 for the Grand Trunk posed along the Eastern promenade a Boston and Maine parlor car from 1880 Maine Central box car a Geared locomotive for the logging industry Logging railroads were built fast cheap and temporary a typical Rod driven steam locomotive could not handle the rough Trackage well, but a geared locomotive could so these were widely used by the logging industry Here we see castings of car and locomotive wheels and other railroad items on the left and A log bunk for a logging railroad on the right. These were used to haul logs out of the forest One of the two-foot gauge locomotives for the whisk asset in Quebec And at the state level for transportation the company built boilers and marine engines for hundreds of vessels built in Maine and elsewhere Including coastal passenger steamers ferries fishing trawlers porgy boats freighters tow and tugboats yachts US Navy gun ships in addition to the ships and boats they built navigation aids including Castings for Portland headlight All a plug light is a Portland company product The Rockland breakwater light the Kennebec River fog stations and two lights among many others Here we see the coastal steamer Bay State at the Portland company's wharf being outfitted around 1915 a Marine boiler being dropped into the hull of a ship at the wharf a Wonderful drawing from around 1870 in the company collection at Maine Historical Society for propeller engines a Passenger ferry Ilesborough from 1910 A ferry boat engine for the Knox and Lincoln County Railroad 1871 The ferries for this railroad ran between Bath and Woolwich before the construction of the Carlton Bridge in the 1920s all Passenger and freight rail traffic up the coast used these ferries to get beyond bath And here we have a tow boat Orion Fraders and Engine for the Cumberland and an advertisement for propellers And note the size of the individuals standing there a fog whistle engine 1868 and the Portland breakwater light better known as bug light This is a marker buoy They also produce snow plows for both railroads and highway equipment They built this snow loader, which we see on India Street in 1927 that's the Grand Trunk Office building and Significant at the state level For association with John a poor I've told you a little bit about mr. Poor He lived from 1808 to 1871 and he was the individual most responsible for establishing the winter port for eastern Canada at Portland and Creating the first international railroad in North America Through the related projects to build the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad the Portland Company and Commercial Street he transformed the economic landscape of Maine for a century He was president of the Portland Company during its formative years and a director of the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Railroad The Portland Company buildings are the most significant surviving buildings associated with the career of John a poor Now we're going to look at the local level. We'll start with industry again 1847 to 1982 by the way, this is an aerial view of the complex from the early 20th century The Portland Company was Portland's largest industrial complex in the 19th century It is the only surviving 19th and early 20th century industrial complex in the city of Portland in 1876 Portland had more than 30 industrial buildings and or complexes Only two single buildings from other complexes and the Portland Company remained from that period in 1924 Portland had more than 60 sizable companies engaged in manufacturing Occupying more than 85 buildings Including six large complexes Fewer than a dozen Individual buildings survive outside the Portland Company complex. No other complex survives except in fragments This is an 1876 bird's-eye view of the city of Portland and circled our manufacturing buildings and complexes within the city of Portland of these This is what survives today The Portland Company provided employment for More than 130 years it was a major employer and At one point it was the largest employer in the city At the local level for industry it produced many of the manhole covers and street grains That you see every day It produced Portland's first electric street lights in 1910 It built the elevators that served Almost every major building in the city of Portland in the early 20th century This list includes more than 60 buildings with Portland Company elevators This Wonderful drawing from the collection is for a Portland Company hydraulic elevator it from 1876 and the note in red that's written on it says Figures in red as ordered by J.B. Brown December 8th 1876 and Significant at the local level for architecture here. We see the original machine shop behind the locomotive and the car shop to the right The Portland Company buildings include representative examples of typical industrial buildings of the period from 1847 until 1918 which retain a high level of integrity the Portland Company buildings include a variety of wood and metal cross-systems that represent important advances in building Technology over a 70-year period the remaining original 1847 buildings of the Portland Company complex are the oldest industrial buildings remaining in the city Each of the surviving buildings was used for a different part of the production process With all stages of production Represented in the buildings that remain We'll just look at a few of the buildings. This is the erecting shop from 1918 One of the drawings for it in the collection. It made historical society at the left is The original machine shop at the right is the original blacksmith shop with a second story added and a rooftop addition on the machine shop this drawing for that rooftop addition is by Portland architect Frederick A. Thompson and He created these remarkable projecting shed dormers To create new offices and a drafting department for the company on top of the machine shop some other views of the complex The car shop again and the drawing for the car shop The first car shop was wood. It was destroyed in 1871 In a fire that took out a number of the original wood buildings most of which were then replaced in brick This in the early 20th century became the elevator factory this alleyway along Forestry Contains a number of interesting spaces and buildings The Portland company is also significant at the local level for community planning and development between 1847 and 1853 in the View you see a dotted yellow line showing the original shoreline Of the city of Portland before commercial Street was built The Portland company is associated with Portland's largest public works project of the 19th century Which was the filling of broad Cove clay Cove and the waterfront to create a modern rail and marine infrastructure the Portland company site the Atlantic and St. Lawrence Rail yard in dwarves and commercial Street were three components of the plan the opening of the Portland company plant in 1847 spurred the residential development of Atlantic St. Lawrence and Waterville streets where many Portland company employees and their families lived in 1866 Warren Street now Kellogg Street was laid out for temporary housing for Portland company employees Displaced by the Great Fire Here we have a historic view and Current view and we're going to talk about integrity as I mentioned we were asked to assess the historic integrity of the individual buildings and the complex of the complex as a whole and Historic integrity is based on the retention of sufficient essential physical features from the historic period Including location design setting materials workmanship feeling and or association To convey the significance of the property a Shorthand way to think of this is would it be recognizable to a person who knew it during the period of significance? the buildings of the Portland company exhibit a high level of integrity to the time of their construction or Significant alterations during the period of significance a number of buildings are essentially unchanged Since construction including the foundry pattern store houses an erection shop Changes to the earliest buildings occurred more than a century ago The site retains its historic character of private streets or alleys lined on both sides with Related industrial buildings connected by overhead pedestrian bridges This is a character that is unique in Portland. Here. We see the foundry in 1900 and in 2014 This is William H. Chapman's electrical laboratory on the top floor of the machine shop 1910 and 2014 Yes, I think some of the same items are on The erecting shop 1900 and 2014 The car and paint shop. I couldn't get quite the same angle the boats were in the way These are the pattern storage buildings and the entrance yard with the drive coming in from 4th Street around 1880 and in 2014 the car shop 1900 and 2014 and if you look at the historic image You see a row of those log bunk cars for the logging railroads lined up down the center of the building Here we have the car shop and the elevator shop pattern storage buildings The pattern shop, which is the second floor of the original blacksmith shop now we're going to look at how the complex developed over time and As you look at the images that follow Anything that has a plaid pattern is still standing So you'll be able to follow through what you see In each image as it relates to what is there today You'll also see by the color coding whether a building is brick wood metal And I think that is essentially in the Little key on the right the name of each building is identified We're going to go through these fairly quickly because I just want to give you a sense of how it developed Without getting into enormous detail This is all in the report if anyone's interested in seeing it in more detail. So this is 1847 You see by 1858 the company was growing rapidly Both wood and brick buildings being built to expand more wood buildings by 71 the Civil War period was very very busy and it was The board of directors Minutes all exist at the main historical society and what becomes clear in reading them is When business was really good, they didn't have time to build in brick. So they would build in wood and When that building burned down they'd replace it in brick 1880 we were now past the fire that took out some of the early wooden buildings And we see that wooden additions are being built to the original buildings in the center as well 1890 They have pretty well filled the site by this point 1896 By this point the foundry has been replaced by a lot larger foundry, which is the one that still exists built in 1896 1909 1918 the erecting shop replaces the original wooden erecting shop And that's the last major building built on the site during the period of significance 1951 there are a few losses along the waterfront and by 1986 the Wooden boiler shop has been replaced by a modern metal building And there's a modern addition on to the east end of the foundry there's also a new office building by four street and today Largely unchanged from the previous image So now we're going to look at how Production occurred at the complex And we're just going to walk through some basic illustrations on a typical Production process for many of the products produced by the company It will address the work done in each building and how it related to the work done in other buildings Although buildings were replaced or rebuilt rebuilt in some cases over the hundred and sixty years of operation The basic steps of production Illustrated occurred in essentially the same locations for the majority of the company's existence in the earliest years of production, which is 1847 to 1851 steps that later took place in the boiler shop erecting shop and later blacksmith shops occurred in the original machine and blacksmith shops So we start with power the boiler house provided power for all of the production processes via direct drive Shafting from a stationary steam engine in the 20th century electric motors replace the direct drive Shafting for most machines John a poor bought the original boilers from the boiler company in Bangor in 1847 The production process always starts at the office building with a signed contract from a railroad a ship builder Or another customer all contracting materials ordering and production scheduling took place in the office building Engineering and design work took place in the drafting room and laboratory on the third floor of the machine shop If the design required new casting patterns They were made of wood in the pattern shop on the second floor of the original blacksmith shop The new wooden patterns were then moved down to the foundry to be cast in iron or steel using a sand mold process If the patterns were being reused from a previous job They would be moved from the pattern storehouse to the foundry for casting Once cast and cooled The manufactured parts were moved to the machine shop for finishing on a variety of machines Including lathes, corers, drills, etc. The wooden patterns were returned to the pattern storehouse for safe storage After machining and finishing parts for boilers they went to the boiler shop after machining and finishing parts for railroad cars They went to the car shop Other parts for locomotives went to the erecting shop for assembly prior to construction of the erecting shop assembly took place in the machine shop Completed boilers for locomotives also went to the erecting shop for assembly Completed boilers for ships went to the wharf for installation or transfer to the company's shipyard on spring point Rod iron parts were made in one of the blacksmith shops and then taken to where they were needed Lumber was kept in the lumber storehouse attached to the car shop And then moved to the car shop to be used in the construction of railroad cars, locomotive cabs, and other carpentry work Which was done in this building Paint and varnish were stored in the paint storehouse and taken where they were needed to be used As different steps of the production process were completed Drawings were sent to the vault for safekeeping Which is why we have the amazing collection at Maine Historical Society today So what are our findings after The research and analysis That we undertook our findings are that the Portland Company complex is Historically significant within local state and national historic context Related to industry transportation community planning and architecture The buildings individually and the complex as a whole retain a high degree of Architectural integrity to the period of significance for the company all of the buildings of the complex constructed over 50 years ago Contribute to the historic significance and integrity of the complex Collectively the existing buildings encompass the complete historic Manufacturing process of the Portland Company with the exception of one shop for the construction of boilers Together the historic significance and historic integrity of the Portland Company complex Make it one of the most historically important sites in the city of Portland The removal of any of the historic buildings Existing in the complex will diminish the ability of the complex to demonstrate the historic manufacturing process of the Portland Company The Portland Company was the largest business in the city in the mid 19th century And is the only remaining intact 19th and early 20th century industrial complex in the city of Portland today the Portland Company buildings remaining from the 1840s and 1850s are the only industrial buildings of that period remaining in the city of Portland The outstanding nature of the architectural integrity of the complex and Exceptional historic value of the Portland Company as the first self-contained complex in the nation built specifically for the manufacture of railroad equipment May make it a strong candidate for national historic landmark eligibility consideration The historic Portland Company complex is a compact Manufacturing facility characterized by two distinct areas the entrance yard and the manufacturing corridors the historic functional Organization and placement of the Portland Company buildings in linear proximity to each other along the manufacturing corridors Creates a visual character for the site that is unique for Portland in the way that the industrial buildings Form private streets or alleys This is similar to the character found in large textile mill complexes in main cities like Lewiston, Bitterford and Sanford, but not found elsewhere in Portland the compact nature visual continuity and Circulation routes of the historic manufacturing process a facility of the Portland company are Significant character defining features of the site the removal of any contributing building would adversely impact the historic Significance and character of the whole complex Currently the only modern intrusion in the visual continuity of the complex is Building five located on the northeast side of the foundry building That would be the large modern metal building a Large city owned parcel vacant parcel to the southwest of the site might provide an Opportunity for a connection from the site to Thames Street Allowing enhanced access without altering the historic entrance to the site or the visual character of the entrance yard and streets between the historic buildings a Large area of vacant land to the east end of the site Abuts the largest building on the property the not historically significant modern building Wrapping around two sides of the foundry Removal of the modern building Could allow access to new development at the east end of the site in a way that maintains the visual character Of the street between the erecting erection shop Machine shop and foundry and the car shop and blacksmith shop Compatible new buildings on the sites of the demolished boiler shop and ten in Smith's shop Could reinforce the historic character of the sites streets And that brings us to the end of the formal presentation Portland Thank You Portland is very fortunate in having a number of neighborhoods and districts that represent specific parts of the city's history The Oldport historic district represents the city's 19th century waterfront and business Center Congress Street represents the city's 20th century business Center the West End has one history of Residential development the East End has a different history of residential development India Street has its own history As the oldest neighborhood in the city During Center is a 19th century village that grew into a streetcar suburb During Highlands is a streetcar suburb Stroud water is an 18th century village Each one of these areas is Unique there's only one and each tells an important part of the city's history the Portland company is the only industrial complex left and the only major rail transportation Facility left to tell that part of Portland's history so within that larger context of The different characters of the different parts of the city This part is important. Thank you Thank you all for coming and thank you especially to Scott Scott We'll be able to take a few questions about his research and the history of the Portland company Just as a reminder tonight We will not be discussing any aspect of the proposed redevelopment of the site or related to advocacy So I will let turn it over back to Scott After mentioning his new book of course Yes The question was was the Portland company Competitive and successful Explaining its longevity and the answer is yes, they were very successful and and Evolved over time For instance as locomotive manufacturing got consolidated into a handful of very large Corporations in the United States the Portland company stopped producing locomotives and increased their production in industrial products for Mains rapidly growing mills and and other industries Yes The question is How did the 1866 fire affect the structures on the site and the answer is it didn't The fire did not reach the Portland company site However, a number of Portland company employees lost their homes and the company built temporary housing Within a matter of weeks to house their displaced employees So they could keep operating The miracle of the great fire is that the waterfront and rail infrastructure was untouched So the money kept flowing in and that's how Portland was able to rebuild remarkably fast after that devastation The question is what portion of the company's revenues were devoted to research and development And the answer is we don't know what we what we do know is That the collection at Maine Historical Society today Contains thousands of drawings for machinery equipment locomotives boats You name it Hand drawn at the Portland company by their own draftsmen and engineers They had a large staff of drafts people and engineers As I mentioned they had an electrical engineer with a laboratory on site in the third floor space for the drafting department and offices and laboratory in the machine shop Up in the eaves the apparatus is still in place that directed sunlight in to develop blueprints for their drawings Yes The other There is only one surviving locomotive built by the Portland company standard gauge locomotive It is in a museum in Canada. It was a Grand Trunk railroad locomotive There are steam fire equipment That were built by the company that still exists And if you go through The mills of Maine as I often do in my work You will see many pieces of equipment and boilers with Portland company and their castings all over the state The question is did the I think I can paraphrase did the city schools Develop curricula to help produce trained and ready employees for the company and We did not research that question what I can tell you is that I'm not going to remember the exact year in the late 19th century at a particular point There were 500 engineers in the state of Maine trained licensed engineers 150 of them worked for the Portland company What The question is What was the ownership of the company through its history? the initial group of investors and Stockholders retained ownership of the company into the Trying to pull the date out of my mind For a number of decades and at a certain point determined That it made sense for the corporation to sell its assets which were purchased by Another group of investors Who retained ownership again for a long period of time? It came under the control of the Sprague family Quite early on they retained it Into the middle of the 20th century Sold it and then bought it back Think about a decade later So it's only gone through a couple of ownership groups in its history well it the Owner who recently sold it was a Sprig. Yeah, I'd stayed with the Sprigs The question is did they have an apprenticeship program I did not find documentation specific to that but I know from research from my recent book That architect Anton I'm going blank on his last name Dordacos Trained as a draftsman at the Portland company before he became an architect So that tells me that they did have a training apprenticeship type of program for training draftsman Yes The question is has an environmental evaluation been made of the company and the answer is I don't know Nancy Yeah, oh so the the comment is that this question has been looked at on a city-wide Basis at one point. So there is probably information available somewhere Yes I The comment is that more primary records of the Portland company are at the Baker Library at Harvard Business School the Baker Library at Harvard Business School The early records are all at the port at main historical society board of directors meeting minutes Stockholders annual meetings right through the period of the original ownership of the company The I don't believe the records for the next ownership group are there So that may be what's that the Harvard Business School? Yes The question is after studying the records of the company Was it profitable? Was it a successful company and the short answer is yes You know the the company Was able to grow very rapidly Build the facilities they needed to expand their production and their research To fill the remainder of their site which started out as broad cove So they could build more buildings. They were hemmed in by the Grand Trunk Railroad which Ran along the waterfront initially on a trestle and then they filled their right of way You now walk on it on the eastern prom walkway It was a very tight site and They were hemmed between the hill to 4th Street and the railroad and over time They built more and more retaining walls against the hill to gain a little bit more space And then they those stone retaining walls had buttresses at right angles to hold them up and Between the buttresses they roofed and walled over to create more usable spaces They really did a remarkable job of Building a large complex on a very tight site which of course had to be tied into the rail Infrastructure which was just to the west in the Grand Trunk Railroad yard that filled the rest of what had been broad cove The the question is what happened to the equipment that was in the building The overhead traveling cranes are still in place still functional some of the post cranes in the machine shop the foundry and That area are in place I don't know where the majority of the lades and drills and that equipment went It the most of it is gone However, a large number of the wooden patterns remain in the complex There's an attic over the third floor offices and drafting room Full it's just this narrow walkway Under the eaves with bins on each side that are just full of these handmade wooden patterns That were used for casting gears and wheels and other items And then in the pattern storehouse There are still a number of much larger patterns, you know patterns this big Those wooden patterns were very important to the operation. They were made by hand based on the drawings developed upstairs and And of course being wooden they Were subject to damage So protecting those patterns Was a priority for the company and it's not coincidental that the pattern storehouses were built at a little distance from the rest of the buildings and In the direction that the prevailing winds would come from So that they were less likely to be burned in a fire because those wooden patterns, you know Were a huge investment by the company and had great value The the question is can I summarize what led to the demise of manufacturing at the company? I'll punt a little bit. It was the same forces that led to the demise of manufacturing throughout America And I it's such a complex question And and a very interesting one But we could stand here for another two hours talking about what led to the demise of manufacturing in America Okay, one more question the the question is Has anybody looked at the structural integrity of the buildings In terms of their potential for rehabilitation for new uses The city is currently having that evaluation done by an engineer architect and and Related professional team. I believe their RFP for that work went out last week and I'm not involved in it, but I believe their hope is to have that done Relatively soon so that question can be answered Okay, Scott. Thanks again