The earliest wooden rails attached to the wooden crossties by way of nails or pegs through holes in the rail.īy the 18 th century came the emergence of iron rails, designed with holes in the rail itself to allow them solid connectivity to a support.Īlthough 1832 established the first recorded use of the invention of the rail spike, credited to a man named Robert Livingston Stevens, president of the Camden & Amboy Railroad a man named T. began construction in 1764 for military purposes at the Niagara portage in Lewiston, New York. The first railroad of any form in the U.S. Wherever men made railroads, some form of a rail spike has always held it all together.Ī Little History of the Rail Spike Origins Just like people connect to their chosen locations through creating a home to set a root down in the territory and the nails connect wooden boards together when building a home, the railroads connected cities and industrial hubs together across this sprawling country. The spike is the driving force connecting it all together, the linchpin of transportation, commerce and industry. That means you have no United States as a world superpower.įor a glimpse at the variety of rail cars made to sustain the fabric of our country, check out this short visual explanation provided by our friends at Union Pacific. If you have no railroad, you have no industrial powerhouse urban areas like New York City or Chicago or San Francisco at the size and scope that they are in 2022 and ultimately you have no Industrial Revolution. In the growth process of the United States from sleepy homesteader territory to industrialized global power, the builders of this great nation relied heavily upon the railroads to connect and transport resources and raw materials from their sources to their intended destinations.įor the want of a spike, the rail was lost.įor the want of a rail, the train derailed.įor the want of a train, the raw materials were lost.įor the want of raw materials, the building was not built.įor the want of the train, the vehicles had no gas or oil.įor the want of the train, the soldier did not arrive.įor the want of the train, the food did not get to market.įor the want of the train, the medicine shipment never made it to the hospital.įor the want of the train, the power grid was not built.įor the want of the train, you did not make it to work.įor the want of the train, the industry of the city lost dozens of workers. Or, more simply stated… if you have no spike, you have no railroad. “For the want of a nail the shoe was lost,įor the want of a shoe the horse was lost,įor the want of a horse the rider was lost,įor the want of a rider the battle was lost,įor the want of a battle the kingdom was lost,Īnd all for the want of a horseshoe-nail.” – Benjamin Franklin We build our desks as a means of preserving and honoring where we come from as railroaders to promote impactful products and services for the benefit of our shared community and industry. That means each piece has its own unique character, like how we brought spikes together in more unique, creative fashions for the Scrapyard Coffee Table or the OTM Wall Sculpture.Īt Rail Yard Studios, our unending curiosity about what we can learn from history drives our creative side. We also look to be environmentally responsible, so we incorporate reclaimed materials in our furniture. That means using spikes like our railroad contracting business uses in our coffee tables, desks, pool tables and other items in our furniture collection. We strive to keep every detail of our furniture as close to pure railroad using traditional railroading techniques whenever possible. Sustainability and Environmental Responsibility
0 kommentar(er)
