Federal Signal Company
Encyclopedia
The Federal Signal Company was an American manufacturer of railway signaling
equipment in the early 20th century. It was located in Albany, New York
.
The company had been founded in 1905 as the Federal Railway Signal Company by former employees of the Standard Signal Company (Arlington, New Jersey). It established a manufacturing works at Green Island, New York
, near Albany. In January 1907 the company suffered a devastating fire at the factory, which had employed between 700 and 800 workers. After the fire it purchased land in Albany to build a new plant.
The company subsequently experienced financial problems and was reorganized as the Federal Signal Co. in 1908. In 1913 Federal Signal acquired the American Railway Signal Company of Cleveland.
In 1923 Federal Signal was purchased by General Railway Signal
(GRS). Following the acquisition, GRS consolidated manufacturing operations at its facilities in Rochester, New York
, and vacated the Albany works. GRS was acquired by Alstom
in 1998.
Railway signalling
Railway signalling is a system used to control railway traffic safely, essentially to prevent trains from colliding. Being guided by fixed rails, trains are uniquely susceptible to collision; furthermore, trains cannot stop quickly, and frequently operate at speeds that do not enable them to stop...
equipment in the early 20th century. It was located in Albany, New York
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
.
The company had been founded in 1905 as the Federal Railway Signal Company by former employees of the Standard Signal Company (Arlington, New Jersey). It established a manufacturing works at Green Island, New York
Green Island, New York
Green Island is a coterminous town and village in Albany County, New York, USA some 8 miles north of Albany, New York. Green Island is one of only five such town-village amalgams in New York. The population was 2,620 at the 2010 census...
, near Albany. In January 1907 the company suffered a devastating fire at the factory, which had employed between 700 and 800 workers. After the fire it purchased land in Albany to build a new plant.
The company subsequently experienced financial problems and was reorganized as the Federal Signal Co. in 1908. In 1913 Federal Signal acquired the American Railway Signal Company of Cleveland.
In 1923 Federal Signal was purchased by General Railway Signal
General Railway Signal
General Railway Signal Company was a supplier of railway signaling equipment, systems and services in the Rochester, New York area. The company was established in 1904 and became part of Alstom Transport in 1998...
(GRS). Following the acquisition, GRS consolidated manufacturing operations at its facilities in Rochester, New York
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, and vacated the Albany works. GRS was acquired by Alstom
Alstom
Alstom is a large multinational conglomerate which holds interests in the power generation and transport markets. According to the company website, in the years 2010-2011 Alstom had annual sales of over €20.9 billion, and employed more than 85,000 people in 70 countries. Alstom's headquarters are...
in 1998.