I love old buildings and in some parts of town they are disappearing very quickly. This is the old Fallsway Spring and Equipment Co., which is on the corner of Eastern and South Central Avenues here in Baltimore. This is one of the very few old warehouses left in that area and so many were torn down for redevelopment before I could photograph them.

Most of the information I could find on this building just points to the fact that they are going to be redeveloped into condos. I gathered that this company made springs for trucks, as evidenced by many referrals on the web. Apparently the company is now located out of the city as now one web directory lists a Towson address for them, yet the Fallsway company’s own web site is down.

As for springs, they are generally metal wire wound into a cylinder, cone, or coil. They control force by compressing or expanding. In early history springs were items that were simply flexible. The first springs that humans manufactured are considered tweezers that were made during the Bronze Age. Springs were essential in the development of catapults. For this purpose, a Greek inventor named Ctesibius of Alexandria experimented with a combination of metals (tin in copper alloy) and hammering that allowed bronze to be bouncier. (3rd century BC) Later, the Romans pioneered the use of padlocks, some of which depended on leaf springs. (Opening the lock caused the leaves to compress.) Peter Henlein of Germany is said to have pioneered coiled springs in the 15th century. Clock makers wanted a simpler way to replace the weights within clocks that were a complicated way to keep accurate time. This innovation led to portable and more accurate clocks that ship’s captains and others in transportation could use. Spring manufacturing really took off during the Industrial Revolution as makers had the ability to mass produce machined parts.

If you are despondent because the Fallsway Spring company is closed, here is how to make your own springs. This is an extensive site put together by someone who doesn’t give him/herself credit. Mach 5 Motorsports has instructions on how to install them, but both sites caution about the danger of each activity.

Other Resources

Springs from “How Products are Made”

“A Brief History of Clocks”