Re: I.C.L.Co. = International Combustion Loco Company

Bruce,

Thanks for providing that information. It clarifies the role of the I.C.L. Co., and their locomotive named “MacPherson.” The last paragraph seems to indicate that the MacPherson was a gas-electric locomotive.

In the photo of the unfinished locomotive, there are auxiliary units mounted at each end of the prime mover. The one at the front appears to be a generator. Perhaps the one at the rear is also a generator, or maybe an electric starter. Both strike me as being too small for the traction generator. It would be interesting to see what the electric portion of the drive system looks like. I would guess that there is one traction motor mounted on that jack shaft with the smaller drivers connected to the main drivers.

The Dan Patch Railroad pioneering of the gas-electric locomotive is said to be the forerunner of the modern diesel-electric locomotive. Often when a big, new idea comes along, it emerges in more than one place. I wonder where the I.C.L. Co. fits into the breakthrough typically attributed to the Dan Patch.