Page Six
BADIN bulletin
INTERIOR MACHINE SHOP— LOOKING EAST
well afford to smile—the plant hadn’t
started yet, and they did not have any
real trouble with repairs except on the
water supply system and old Tom Mac-
Miniman'^s steam shovel. There were
repairs to the dinky and the locomotive
crane, but not to amount to anything.
Mac had an idea that the shovel was in
bad shape, and should come to the shop
for a thorough overhauling. It was a
good shovel, and the boys kept it in
good shape, and it clawed up the scenery
right smart for the better part of two
years, and then was sent away without
the thorough overhauling Mac was prom
ising it every week.
It was at this time that the Temporary
Rotary Station had started. Rock was
encountered in the foundation work, and
much blasting ensued. It is not known
who the blaster was, but the machine
shop was the principal blastee. Much
of the time in the shop was spent under
the benches during those nervous weeks!
Eventually the blasting ceased, and the
Temporary Rotary Station was com
pleted. The “Temporary” part of the
name came from the fact that the elec
tricians temporarily acquired tools from
the machine shop during the construction
period of the station, and the tools still
temporarily remain with the electrical
department, even as the building has
temporarily remained where it was put
for the last four years.
The equipment for the pot rooms
started to come in in the summer and fall
of 1916, and the shop did its part in get
ting the stuff in shape. There is no
telling how many thousand holes were
drilled in the copper bus bars during this
period. At any rate, the old radial drill
has never been quite the same since.
Along about now, Farmer Scott took to
infesting the east end of the shop with
flexible forms, copper brushing machines
and some of his temporary electricians
f rom the Temporary Rotary Station-
He kept right on infesting until the
last' pot was in place and the big Rotaries
ready to turn over in buildings 25 and 35.
Potroom 22 and the Temporary R®'
tary Station started off with a bang i’’
August, 1916, and the carbon pla’^^
started off with a couple of bangs, may*
be three or four, in the winter of 191^'
17. One of these bangs was the four-
roll crusher, another the extrusion de*
partment, and the others were sort ^
all-around bangs. The toothless gears
and fragments of machinery started to
come in, and the boys began to go
on repair jobs. Items were learne
about the Raymond Mills that were not
in the directions, and the old saying'
‘■You never m’ss the water till the pack
ing blows,” and then you can’t miss it-
Things did not seem quite as simpl®
as before, and were complicated by th®
State Legislature passing Marshall®
Ebenezer five-mile dry zone statute-
War was declared on Germany at once>
and Hagadone resigned to go to Gary'
Earl Evans had left some time previou®
for the Baltimore job, where he work®
for Steve, when not hiding in barre
whenever Kemmer or anyone
Badin dropped in to start somethi^
about Badin men coming to the .
more job. A. G. Smith came down
June, 1917, to act as master mechani^’
with R. P. Seaford as shop^ forenfi^^
I A COSY CORNER IN THE MACHINE SHOP
Showing a- few useful little things for repair work—and displaying ,two crates left there (by ^
•cal Department. , They weigh heavy, so probably contain a couple of tons o£ feather
Rotary cat.