Have you ever wondered where exactly that high lonesome sound you can hear sometimes at night comes from? Obviously it's a train horn - but are you curious about where that horn came from? There is so much lore, including many songs which have been created around the sound of a train horn as they speed down the track. Train horns managed to capture the collective imagination in a way that train whistles never quite succeeded in doing.



Quite a few different companies have manufactured train horns in the past, the most well known of these include:

Gustin Bacon Manufacturing Company - This company was making air horns for trains until World War II.

The American Strombos Company - Strombos' horn was based on a truck horn and was used on early locomotives.

Westinghouse Air Brake Company - Also known as WABCO, they were the first ones to actually make air horns that were designed for use on trains. This dates back to about 1910.

Besides these companies, there are many others who made train horns at one time. The leader in the industry do this day has its origins in the AMCO company.

The man credited with creating the earliest air horns for trains, both the five and six chime types is Robert Swanson. Tese horns started as a hobby while he was employed by the Victoria Lumber Manufacturing company in the 1920s. Working together with Ernie Canon, George Challenger and Bill Piercy, he founded the AMCO (Airchime Manufacturing Company) in 1949. The H5, one of Swanson's invention was the first multiple chime air horn to be used on trains - and it was a big hit with the public!

The horns were licensed to two different companies; Nathan of New York and Hyson of New England. It was this way that the Airchime company really grew. The name Nathan Airchime is seen on U.S. produced horns, including the model K, Swanson's last and finest horn. This horn is still the one most commonly used by rail companies in the U.S. These horns replaced the Prime and Leslie models of horn as they aged.

The founder of the Leslie Corporation, John Leslie, which was formed in the 19th century, was a manufacturer of many steam parts, not only for trains but ships as well. In the 1930s, John Leslie started making air horns for the railroad. Buying the rights of the Tyfon series, from Sweden, the production of the Tyfon A-200 became one of the best sellers This was the horn used by most trains of every type until the Airchime became a hot item about 1950.

Train horns have also found popularity with hobbyists, some of whom even install them on their vehicles! Naturally, these horns are too loud to use in traffic, but are great pieces for show and can be shown off at auto shows and the like.

The next time you hear the train making its way through the night, will you stop and think about the men who devoted their lives to make the horns for the sounds they loved? The lonesome music of the far-off horn heralding the arrival of the train to the next spot on it's journey will never be compared to any other sound in the world.