Cummins engine model F serial number 8165, rated 12-1/2 HP at 600 r.p.m., single cylinder, 4 cycle, 5-1/2″ bore x 7-1/2″ stroke, water-cooled, flex coupling, hand and air starting, was the 165th engine manufactured by Cummins Engine Company. In 1924 the Cummins Engine Company began serializing their engines with number 8000, except for the earlier models that were built under license.
The purchase of this equipment was by Colonel H.H. Rogers, at the time he was the director for Standard Oil Company, and the owner of the Cow Neck Farm located in South Hampton, New York, the site where the engine and pump would be installed. The purchase by Colonel Rogers was made through Hunerford & McAuliffe, 26 Courtland Street, New York, New York on April 21, 1927. The engine was shipped to Morris Machine Works, Baldwinsville, New York on May 12,1927 for assembly to their pump and base under purchase number 108389.
A closer look at this original drawing indicates great detail in lettering, numerical figures, straight and curved lines of black and red ink upon the difficult surface of linen paper. The drawing shows an engine driven fan and radiator; these were removed at the request of Colonel Rogers, for the engine and pump were being installed below ground and the cooling tower system was used, (a 55 gallon oil drum above ground, filled with water), mounted next to a 55 gallon oil drum for fuel supply.
Upon completion of the assembly at Morris Machine Works, the Cummins engine was shipped on June 28, 1927 via barge on the Erie Canal, down the Hudson River, out the Atlantic Ocean, through Shinnecock Inlet to Westneck Boatyard, Southhampton, Long Island. It was loaded on a horse drawn wagon for delivery to Colonel H.H. Rogers, c/o Cow Neck Farm. The total delivery cost was $30.00
The Cummins engine and pump unit was put into an irrigation application, pumping water from a 600 foot well for the growth of corn and sorghum, the mainstay of the wild turkey, pheasant, and mallard duck. The breeding of these fowls by Cow Neck Farm, for their annual hunts, continues today as it did then.
The entire Cummins unit ran for the last time during the summer of 1938, when it was replaced only for a small portable gas unit. It remained at its existing site until 1972, when it became the property of Mr. John Degen.
Editor’s note: This engine history and original drawings were provided to Mr. Degan by Greg Scanlon, a sales engineer at Cummins Metro power, Inc. in 1981.
