Stationary Steam in the Americas

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Argentina 

Sugar Mills in Tucuman, Argentina (31st March 2002) (courtesy of Sylvia Kaufman)

Bermuda

Mark Whittaker writes (22nd April 2008) "I have found an Ormerod Grierson & Co static steam engine, in a building in Bermuda where I presently live, the building is due for demolition, and I'm uncertain of the steam engine's fate? It would be a shame to see this engine destroyed, can you give me any advice? Or put me in touch with anyone who might be able to offer advice or help. The plate on the engine's details are:

C, T, PORTERS PATENT, SIZE D NUMBER 73, MAKERS, ORMEROD GRIERSON & CO, MANCHESTER, 1865.

I don't put email addresses on the site these days, but if you can help, please email me and I will forward. Pictures are available - click here.

I have since heard (November 14th 2008) that the Bermuda Maritime museum plans to remove this engine and display it thus ensuring its survival.

See also http://www.practicalmachinist.com/vb/showthread.php?t=146469&page=13 for a discussion.

Brazil

Companhia Engenho Central de Quissaman (courtesy of Sergio Martire)

The  museum for the funicular railway at Paranapiacaba (see http://www.abpfsp.com.br/museu_ferroviario_paranapiacaba.htm) has two large stationary engines: (added 17th May 2007). For more images of the museum see these sites - http://br.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/resagi02/album?.dir=540e&.src=p and http://br.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/resagi02/album?.dir=66b5&.src=ph (added 7th July 2007)  

Costa Rica

Richard Carr, my tame expert on Davey Paxman engines has received information about an active survivor in a sugar mill here (13th March 2010), more details on

http://www.paxmanhistory.org.uk/SSEsurvrs.htm#classK-CostaR

Cuba (courtesy of Ray Gardiner, Chris Hart and Alan Murray Rust)

Luis Arcos Bergnes, Marecelo Salado, Sergio Gozalez, Rafael Freyre and Patria O Muerte Mills (updated 5th May 2002)

Merryweather fire engine (1894) in Havana (updated 23rd December 2003)

Steam winch at Australia Mill (22nd April 2002)

Does anyone have some more pictures of the insides of any mills with such equipment? Chris Hart has sent me this image of a steam winch at Central Obdulio Morales.

French Guyana (Guyene)

Chris Hodrien has sent this link which shows some classic machinery in less than perfectly preserved condition:

http://www.revue.inventaire.culture.gouv.fr/insitu/insitu/article.xsp?numero=8&id_article=goergen-1575

Guadeloupe

Paul Stephens (Chairman of ISSES) keeps sending me titbits. It seems that the sugar mill/rum distillery (Damoiseau) at Le Moule on Guadeloupe had at least one working steam engine in May 2005. See http://www.flickr.com/photos/88687951@N00/44075755/in/photostream/. There must be quite a lot of kit lying around this part of the world, a quick internet search found pictures of preserved steam at the Poisson Distillery on Marie Galante. See http://www.guadeloupe-fr.com/phototheque/kw_lieu=97160&Moule-/ and http://www.guadeloupe-fr.com/phototheque/kw_lieusujet=distillerie-/. Too expensive and too far away for me to investigate... (See also Martinique.)

As the picture says it is copyright of the distillery, http://www.damoiseau.net/ but as they encourage visitors, I do hope they don't mind me too much using it here! Another picture I found suggests this is probably a Corliss type engine. I would be delighted to add a proper gallery if anyone reading this can oblige..... 

Guatemala

During my visit to Fegua, I found this serviceable duplex pump next to the locomotive depot in Guatemala City. Steam supply would be courtesy of one of the operational steam locomotives and it would pump water to a water tower. A similar pump (for fuel oil) is mounted in the tender of Baldwin 2-8-2 #204 which bears the name Fairbanks, Morse & Co. Of course it is very similar to such pumps made by Worthington and seen all over Java. 

Later investigation showed a wide variety of additional items, but none active.

Guyana

At least one rice mill here uses a stationary steam engine. See http://www.saams.com/Guyana/Industry_in_Guyana.htm but there is only a tantalising glimpse....

Jamaica

There is some preserved kit at a sugar mill at Worthy Park.

Martinique

(This section updated 20th May 2009). 

There appears to be a working steam powered sugar mill/rum distillery here at Depaz - see http://travelphotobase.com/s/MTQN.HTM and http://www.rum.cz/galery/cam/mq/depaz/pic/pic08.htm.  The distillery's own website http://www.depazrhum.com/ has a video (Rhum Agricole) which confirms that they indeed still have a steam engine which 'once powered the fountains at Versailles' but shows only snatches of parts of it in operation and allow no identification. 

A 2004 visitor made a sweep of the distilleries - http://www.rumpages.eu/ABC/Brand%20%26%20Trade/M/Martinique/Martinique%202004/Martinique%202004.htm. These other mills have steam engines:

• JM Distillery at Fonds-Preville - http://www.rumpages.eu/ABC/Brand%20&%20Trade/M/Martinique/Martinique%202004/Day%202.htm. This same page has a picture of a steam engine in the landscape of what used to be the Bally Distillery.
• Simon - http://www.rumpages.eu/ABC/Brand%20&%20Trade/M/Martinique/Martinique%202004/Day%206.htm
• Dillon - http://www.rumpages.eu/ABC/Brand%20&%20Trade/D/Dillon/Dillon%20txt.htm, this is a Corliss engine see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corliss_valve also http://voyages.famillejoly.net/Martinique2003/pages/Distillerie%20Dillon-Machine%20a%20vapeur-1.html and http://www.schmitz.homeunix.net/albums/album02/K1760DistillerieDillon.sized.jpg.  
• La Mauny (not certain) - http://www.rumpages.eu/ABC/Brand%20%26%20Trade/M/Martinique/Martinique%202004/Day%203.htm 

Finally the Distillery at La Favorite has a steam engine too - http://www.ministryofrum.com/producerdetails.php?t=1. 

Any enthusiast visiting should investigate, Martinique's distilleries have a well developed tourist programme and access should be quite easy. One web site suggests that the season starts in February and much cane is hand cut. (See also Guadeloupe.)

Paraguay

Darrien Welsby was at the railway workshops in early 2007 and reports - "At Sapucay, the locomotive workshop is still manned by 10 permanent staff who are employed to carry out maintenance on the remaining fleet (at Asuncion and Encarnacion) and take care of the complex. The workshop boilers, stationary steam engines and foundry are all operational, however were not running on the day of my visit." This is the main gem he found, for more pictures, click here (extra pictures 27th January 2007):

Puerto Rico

Ray Gardener pointed out to me (31st August 2006) that there is a very interesting web page http://files.asme.org/ASMEORG/Communities/History/Landmarks/5563.pdf which covers the preservation of an 1861 West Point Foundry beam engine from a sugar mill.

South Georgia

A short article in Locomotives International included the statement that there was probably at least one surviving stationary steam engine at the former whaling station of Ocean Harbour. An internet search found pictures of a single cylinder horizontal engine and a steam winch taken in the 1990s - http://www.railwaysofthefarsouth.co.uk/11bwhalingstatio.html. Robert Burton of the South Georgia Association has provided a succinct summary of the situation with a picture (14th October 2007).

Virgin Islands (US)

Chris Allen has found this page (16th January 2010) on a surviving steam engine at Reef Bay on St. John's, US Virgin Islands - http://www.stjohnbeachguide.com/trails/reef_bay%20_trail.html. It was built by W.A. McOnie Co of Glasgow, Scotland in 1861. It looks similar to several over-cylinder valve engines we have seen in Burma.