At US National Archives, College Park Maryland, there are 16 folders of prints for the Artillerie St-Chamond Tracteur Cuirasse De 90HP. I have attached the cover of one of them. I did not have time to go through them, but I have attached the loose St.-Chamond drawings that I found in the file box.
Found these on my last day of my week visit in late March 2020. I have just enough time to go through and document the British tank prints (passed on to David Fletcher) and the Fiat 2000 tank prints (passed onto the replica builders in Italy), well as some of the files that I was looking for.
At US National Archives, College Park Maryland, there are 16 folders of prints for the Artillerie St-Chamond Tracteur Cuirasse De 90HP. I have attached the cover of one of them. I did not have time to go through them, but I have attached the loose St.-Chamond drawings that I found in the file box.
Found these on my last day of my week visit in late March 2020. I have just enough time to go through and document the British tank prints (passed on to David Fletcher) and the Fiat 2000 tank prints (passed onto the replica builders in Italy), well as some of the files that I was looking for.
Hello,
I know this is an old post but do remember what British prints you located in the records at NARA? Do you have a file group or NAID # for them?
Attached is the photograph of one of seven box fronts that contained the WWI tank and SPG prints that I discussed in my original post. The boxes are in in the military history collection at the US National Archives at College Park Maryland. The important piece of information are the box numbers 385-391. Since record groups can contain a large number of boxes.
A word of warning. They do re-box, to consolidate collections, so the box numbers can change. But they are supposed to have a record tying the old box number to the new one.
This was such a great find, since the T. T. & T. History Files are supposed to include documents on almost all WWI and early post war military tanks, tractors and trucks. I didn't find documents on all those listed in the index to the file. But they could be in other related boxes. I'm still planning on returning to go through this record group, when I return to the NA and hopefully will have time set aside to do it justice.
Here is a list, in the order of discovery, of the British prints (simple general dimension drawings to detailed 3 view cross sections) that I found: Mark VIII Tank (Anglo-American), Lt. Col. Philip Johnson's Medium D (prototype, D. M. Female, cannon, MG armed with different driver's positions), PJ's Rope Spring Suspension, PJ's 8-20-20 Machine or Tropical Tank, Gun Carrier Salvage Machine, Medium Mark B, Medium Mark C, Mark VII, Mark I, Mark IV, Mark V, Mark V X, Mark V XX, Supply Tank, Medium Mark A and Tank Mechanical Maintenance Mark V manual.
The existence of drawings and (presumably) other data on post-WW1 tank designs suggests a continuing formal collaboration between the British and American tank designers
for at least a few years after WW1. The US M1922 prototype with Johnson's snake track and cable suspension was built at the Rock Island Arsenal and shipped to Aberdeen in 1923.
I wonder if there are any remaining documents about the collaboration from the British side?
Attached is the photograph of one of seven box fronts that contained the WWI tank and SPG prints that I discussed in my original post. The boxes are in in the military history collection at the US National Archives at College Park Maryland. The important piece of information are the box numbers 385-391. Since record groups can contain a large number of boxes.
A word of warning. They do re-box, to consolidate collections, so the box numbers can change. But they are supposed to have a record tying the old box number to the new one.
This was such a great find, since the T. T. & T. History Files are supposed to include documents on almost all WWI and early post war military tanks, tractors and trucks. I didn't find documents on all those listed in the index to the file. But they could be in other related boxes. I'm still planning on returning to go through this record group, when I return to the NA and hopefully will have time set aside to do it justice.
Here is a list, in the order of discovery, of the British prints (simple general dimension drawings to detailed 3 view cross sections) that I found: Mark VIII Tank (Anglo-American), Lt. Col. Philip Johnson's Medium D (prototype, D. M. Female, cannon, MG armed with different driver's positions), PJ's Rope Spring Suspension, PJ's 8-20-20 Machine or Tropical Tank, Gun Carrier Salvage Machine, Medium Mark B, Medium Mark C, Mark VII, Mark I, Mark IV, Mark V, Mark V X, Mark V XX, Supply Tank, Medium Mark A and Tank Mechanical Maintenance Mark V manual.
Thank you so much for the reply. I definitely need to plan a trip to College Park. I've been trying research the Mark VIII and the M1922 Medium Tank (which was inspired by the Medium D)... I've always found the "snake-track" tanks to be fascinating.
My wife and I are already planning a trip to Ft. Moore next year during one of the open house weekends. The previous archive material that was stored at Aberdeen is now there (although no word if it is open for research). I've also been researching out to the Bovington Tank Museum, but it is a slow process... and lastly the Rock Island Arsenal Museum... which is glacial compared to Bovington...
The M1922 prototype tank which was at Aberdeen is at Anniston Army Storage Depot, Bynum, Alabama. I asked them about it some years ago, at that
time they were open to researchers accessing the vehicles they had acquired from various collections in the US.
Charlie
If you don't mind me asking, how were you able to contact the correct people to make such a request? I have trouble getting responses from even the Rock Island Arsenal Museum... an actual open to the public museum.
The Armor Collection at Fort Moore is technically only open the public on open house days... and I was actually unaware the M1922 was in storage in another location. The Armor Collection at Fort Moore is also the current location of the entire collection of archive documents that was at APG.
