Steam Engine Repairs

The 1898-1900 Diary of Jesse Lane Tiner

24-27 July, 1900, p. 262 

 

 Mr. Jesse Tiner ran a cotton gin and a grist mill in Sutherland Springs. On July 24, 1900, he and his son Lane left Sutherland Springs with parts of his steam engine to have it worked over by Alamo Iron Works. He also carried the shaft to his main drive wheel to have it turned round at the bearings. It was worn out of a circle and he couldn't babit it. Of course this is all foreign language to me. It turns out that the inner surface of the steel shell is plated with a coating of bronze, which is in turn coated with a thin layer of Babbitt metal as the bearing surface. The process of laying down this layer of metal is know as Babbitting. He was doing all this to get ready for the ginning season that was soon approaching.

[262]

Tuesday July 24, 1900

Lane & myself started to San

Antonio with part of my Steam

Engine to have it worked over

July 24 ready for the Ginning Season

also carried the shaft to my main

drive wheel to have it turned round

at the bearings it [is] worn out of

a circle & I could not [babit] it.

July 23 Wednesday Lane & my self arrived

 Stuckes  yard 10 oclock pm

last night today I went to the

Alamo Iron Works and made the

necessary arrangement to have my

work done on my Steam Engine

drove my wagon around there and

they unloaded and began work

July 24 Thursday Lane & myself in SA

Alamo Iron Works finished my work

by 5 pm we loaded and started

for home the job cost $23⁰⁰

I was curious about several people and places that were mentioned in the diary entry.

Who was Mr. Stucke? 

 In the 1880 Census, Charles C. Stucke, a German employed in the sale of cotton and general merchandise, his wife Anna, son Henry, and several daughters are living at 401 Commerce Street. Charles died in 1898. In 1900 Anna Banner Stucke is living on E. Commerce St. Here is their house on the corner of E. Commerce and Bowie.

In the 1900 Census, their son Henry Stucke, a grocer by trade, is living at 521 Goliad St. in San Antonio. The Sanborn map for 1896 shows his residence on Goliad St., near the upper right corner. 

1896 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map of San Antonio

 What is a campyard?

Campyards were primitive camping areas for rural residents bringing goods to market in San Antonio. Jesse and Lane would have spent the night with their wagon in the campyard. There would have possibly been a place for their animals to be fed and housed. You can see on the map above that there was a campyard just down the street from Henry Stucke's House.  Interestingly, the San Antonio Daily Light, 24 July 1894, reports that these campyards could be dangerous, identifying Mr. Stucke's campyard on East Commerce Street. This event was reported six years before Jesse and Lane's visit to the day.

San Antonio Daily Light, 24 July 24 1894

 On this Sanborn map, you can see the campyard referred to in the article. This campyard belonged to Carl Stucke and his wife Anna. Their house was in the corner of the campyard. This is probably where Jesse and Lane spent the night on 24 July 1900.

1896 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map of San Antonio

 Where was the Alamo Iron Works?

The next morning Jesse and Lane took the Steam Engine just down the street to be repaired at the Alamo Iron Works, at 101 Montana.

from the Alamo Iron Works website

https://www.alamoironworks.com/about-us 

from the Alamo Iron Works website

https://www.alamoironworks.com/about-us 

 

1896 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map of San Antonio

 You can see on this larger map the locations of Henry Stucke's house (34), his father Carl Stucke's house and the campyard (Sheet 19), and the Alamo Iron Works (22). They were all close to E. Commerce Street, which led directly to the Old Sulphur Springs Road and home for Jesse and Lane.

1896 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map of San Antonio

 And the bill for all that work was $23. The cotton gin was all set to be operational in the fall of 1900. Sadly, the more formal diary entries end on 14 August 1900. He had just sent Lane and Joe Brooks to La Vernia to get bagging and ties for 100 Bales of Cotton. He had said work would begin around 15 or 20 of August. We don't know if all his effort on repairing the steam engine paid off.

Sadly, we do know that Jesse Tiner's cotton gin caught fire and burned to the ground on 15 August 1901, at the beginning of ginning season for 1901. He also lost 14 bales of cotton from 1900.

The Daily Express (San Antonio), 6 August 1901