For his giant Rouge plant in Dearborn, Henry Ford decided that ordinary diesel-electrics would never do, so he had these car-styled locomotives built.
Historians have noted that in many ways, Henry Ford was more of a production man than he was a product man. He regarded his gigantic, vertically integrated manufacturing facility on the River Rouge in Dearborn as his crowning achievement, and he enthusiastically promoted it as one of the great industrial wonders of the world. Ford had a keen interest in railroading as well (see our feature on his personal railroad here) so in 1937, when it came time to select a new set of diesel-electric engines to work the 100-plus miles of railroad track around his Rouge factory, no ordinary locomotives would do, obviously
Ford arranged with the General Electric plant in Erie, Pennsylvania for the construction of eight of its 132-ton center-cab locomotives, each one powered by a pair of Cooper-Bessemer GN-6 diesels, one engine in front of the cab and one behind, providing a total of 1,000 horsepower. Constructed between 1937 and 1940, these were impressive, state-of-the-art machines, but what set them apart was their distinctive appearance.
The double-ended exterior sheet metal on each one was styled to emulate the front end of a 1937-40 Ford passenger car, complete with stainless steel grille work, and the signature Ford script was emblazoned on each side in bright-metal letters four feet tall. We don’t know if the car-like styling work was performed at General Electric or by Bob Gregorie and crew in the Ford studio, but the resemblance is unmistakable.
The Ford Motor Company operated the distinctively styled GE locomotives at the Rouge plant for decades before they were finally sold off to a salvage company for scrap. However, one of the eight units somehow survived (below) and is now in the collection of the Lake Shore Railway Historical Society in North East, Pennsylvania, painted in the colors of the last rail line for which it operated: the Wellsville, Addison & Galeton Railroad. -Photo below courtesy of the Lake Shore Railway Historical Society.
The mechanicals PERFORM. The COSTUME sends a stylized message of family ties and sets EXPECTATIONS. Style over function diminishes crew efficiency by moving access ladders from ends to mid-side positions. The AG&E livery works better at displaying the detail and shape.
I’d say it was Edsel’s hand in that. Henry hated everything to do with styling
The Wellsville, Addison & and Galeton purchased at least three and maybe a couple more of these from Ford in 1958; they were the only other operator. They were retired by the early 70’s, replaced by used EMD F7s, and the WAG itself was retired after a series of partial abandonments in 1979.