Charles A. "Carl" Purinton, 1898-1999, founded the Brotherhood of Live Steamers in 1932 at the suggestion of LBSC in England. Here, Mr. Purinton runs his famous 3-1/2" gauge "Granny" at the Golden Gate Live Steamers.
The Brotherhood of Live Steamers was started in 1932 by the late Charles A. "Carl" Purinton of Marblehead, Massachusetts (1898-1999), after a suggestion to do so by famous live steam designer "L.B.S.C." (Curly Lawrence) of England. The Brotherhood's goal was to allow all the early live steamers to stay in touch with each other in the "pre-Internet" era.
Each live steamer who wanted to join the Brotherhood would register his name and address with the "Secretary". Once registered, these "lone hands" (early, independent live steam builders) would not be "alone" any longer and could be put in touch with one another through the Secretary. This registry of names was a service that connected these "lone hands" in the live steam hobby with others in their vicinity (and throughout the continent). It allowed for the exchange of information, the answering of questions, and personal visits when one live steamer was going to be traveling in the vicinity of another live steamer. Another goal was to have live steam "meets" each year where all the live steam "brothers" could travel to one location and "meet" for the purpose of running their locomotives and displaying their work.
Mr. Purinton served as the first Brotherhood "Secretary", and the first meeting of the Brotherhood was held at his home in Marblehead Massachusetts in 1932.....a meet at which where several men came to operate their 2-1/2" gauge locomotives on Mr. Purinton's 140-foot long "back and forth track" in his driveway. Several builders attended simply to show off their "works in progress"......parts, boilers, trucks, chasses, etc. that were not completed yet.
Mrs. Purinton always cooked up a huge pot of delicious fish chowder for lunch, and during the rest of the day would host the "live steam widows" whose husbands were outside or in the shop "playing trains" or "talking shop".
Meets became more popular each year, and were held at the Purinton home annually until 1937. So many people were attending by 1937 that the Purinton home could no longer handle the crowds. In 1938, the Brotherhood's annual meets began being held at the brand new New England Live Steamers track at the Friend Box Company at Danvers, Massachusetts. Other early Brotherhood meets were held at Montreal; Toronto; Lomita CA; and Golden Gate in CA.
Beginning in 1938, Brotherhood of Live Steamers meets were held at the New England Live Steamers (NELS) track at the Friend Box Company in Danvers, Massachusetts.
Over the years, the popularity of the Brotherhood became such that Mr. Purinton needed assistance being Secretary. As such Mr. Harry Dixon of California became the "West Coast" Secretary, and Mr. Purinton remained the Secretary back east. In time, a midwest Secretary was added, as was a Canadian Secretary. The early issues of Live Steam Magazine have these Secretaries' names and addresses listed in every issue.
The Brotherhood became the "International Brotherhood" sometime in the 1970s, and as such it changed from being the "BLS" to being the "IBLS". IBLS "meets" were held from the 1970s to the 1990s.....at tracks including Pioneer Valley Live Steamers, Los Angeles Live Steamers, and the final one at Waushakum Live Steamers.
By the 1990s, the Brotherhood had faced a decline in new signups, and a loss of many of its members due to age and death. This, plus the advent of the internet, led some to believe that the Brotherhood was an idea whose time had "come and gone", and as such the regional secretaries in the USA ended the American IBLS in the early 2000s.
Regardless of the reasons for the apparent decline in interest, the dissolution of the Brotherhood in the USA did not sit well with some, including Mr. Ken Shattock of Washington state. Ken is the grandson of Victor Shattock, the 1930s founder of the Golden Gate Live Steamers. Victor's name appears in all of the early magazines of the 1930s, 40s, and 50s, as he was the author of several articles on live steam engine construction. His 1/2" scale "alcohol burner" was a popular alternative to coal firing, especially for 1/2" scale indoor running.
Vic Shattock, founder of the Golden Gate Live Steamers, is alongside his 1/2" scale live steam railroad in his basement.
Ken Shattock believes that the "Brotherhood" is too important to simply have been "dissolved". As such, Ken has reactivated the "Brotherhood" in North America, and his letter of introduction below will explain his position as well as invite you, a new generation of live steamers, to join and be a part of the fine organization that Mr. Purinton began in 1932.
Ken Shattock (right), was raised by his famous "live steam" grandfather, Mr. Victor Shattock (left). Ken has reactivated the Brotherhood of Live Steamers and invites you to join. The location of this photograph is Victor Shattock's basement where his famous 2-1/2" gauge alcohol-fired live steam railroad was located.
The reactivation of the BLS shows that there are others (aside from me) who believe that traditional small-scale live steam's finest era is in the future, not in the past; and that some things from the past were very special and are worth preserving. I was one of the first to join the reactivated "Brotherhood", and I ask that you consider joining, too.
Please read Ken's letter (below), and please contact him you'd like to be a part of the tradition that was started in 1932. Please consider joining the newly activated "Brotherhood of Live Steamers".
If you are not a resident of (or in the vicinity of) the North American Region, Ken can put you in touch with the other "IBLS" Secretaries elsewhere in the world.
A Letter to Live Steamers Everywhere.....
Dear Fellow Live Steamers:
First off, I was saddened to see that the Brotherhood of Live Steamers has
evidently faded from the North American continent primarily because of the
passing of the prior secretaries as well as the false belief that a
"central contact" person in the Live Steam fraternity is no longer
needed. I cannot allow this to happen. The Brotherhood is an historic body of
Live Steam hobbyists that goes back to the year 1932 when it was first founded
by the late Charles Purinton (Carl) in Boxford, Massachusetts in the U.S.A.
"Carl" was a good friend of mine and I owe it to
him to do what I can to keep the body active in the North American Region.
My name is Ken
Shattock, former IBLS secretary of the old "Pacific Coast Region"
(Western Region) when I took over the position from the late Harry Dixon. Please refer to the
February—1974 issue of "Live Steam Magazine" … I was the senior
member of GGLS, having belonged for some forty-six years, before I let my
membership lapse in 2007. I am now active with the Live Steam faction within
the Puget Sound Garden Railway Society in
Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.
On December 1, 1979 I was given the 10th Annual Live Steam Magazine Award for my personal
contributions to the development of the current IBLS Wheel Standards.
My goals with the IBLS
membership will be to continue the original policies of the late
"Carl" Purinton – that is, register
the novice Live Steamer, provide them with a membership card for identification
purposes, and assist them in whatever manner required, to get the information
related to our great hobby that they are in search of.
I have been encouraged by the editor of Live Steam
Magazine to take on this responsibility and carry on the good works of
the late Carl Purinton. Please send me your Name, Address, Phone # and E-mail
address as well as information about the scale/gauge you model in. Your
official "IBLS Membership Card" will be sent by return mail. All
personal information you send in remains confidential and will not be shared without
permission.
I look forward to working with each and every one of you in
the future !
Yours in Live Steam,
Kenneth V. Shattock
("Ken") Secretary, North American Region, IBLS 34312- 31st Avenue, SW Federal Way, Washington 98023—7634 U.S.A.
