One Little, Two Little, Three Little Indians
By Dave McEntarfer

Without exception anyone familiar with the early consists of Ives trains will recognize those little 4-wheel Native American's that inhabited the tracks of the IVES Miniature Railway Lines during the first decade of the 20th Century. There were several tribes that have their roots in the old brick factory in Bridgeport. You remember their names - there were the Mohawks, Iroquois and Hiawatha's.

If there were prototypes for these early Indian cars I have not been able to locate any reference to them. Lionel made a household word out of Hiawatha to a later generation of Toy Trains enthusiasts and the Mohawk & Hudson was one of the very first railroads in the United States, chartered in 1826. But let's remember that this was a time when Toy Trains were just that - toys to be played with and any resemblance to prototypes was in the mind of the young owner.

Without hesitation everything written about these early Ives passenger cars has been consistent in their chronology. The first 50 series passenger cars from 1901 and 1902 were hand painted. The first lithographed cars appeared in 1903 and were the Mohawk style cars. The Mohawk car was replaced by the Iroquois car in 1905 and the Hiawatha was added soon after that. In 1908 the Iroquois and Hiawatha cars were replaced by the Brooklyn and Buffalo cars, which were sold in sets until 1910.

The above progression seems credible based on catalog depictions, descriptions and the inherent belief by collectors today that all changes occurred in an orderly fashion. Train collectors have this pension to want to compartmentalize everything into years. There is a tendency to attach everything new to the beginning of a specific year. With a new catalog came new changes and everything old was just thrown away, never to be seen again. Neat and orderly - maybe, but practical - not likely.

I don't think anything Ives did was that black and white. It is my belief that all of these cars overlapped and that attempts to place any of these cars in an exact year is an inexact science at best. That being said I'm now going to disagree with those early historians and relate to you what I've seen from studying as many early original sets of these cars as I've been able to locate.

The hand painted cars are obviously the earliest of the 50 series cars and were probably the only ones available when the “O” gauge track trains were first cataloged in 1901. By the time the 1902 catalog had been printed, Ives had started to lithograph some of their trains. It is my belief that IVES used lithography on all 60 series passenger cars (Princess style) by 1902. I also believe that IVES had started to use lithography on some of their 50 series cars by this same date. I base this theory on a couple facts: the number of hand painted 60 series cars that have survived the last hundred years can be counted on one hand and the 1902 catalog definitely showed the “Elevated Railway” set with two lithographed 50 series cars and a lithographed tender. This indicates to me that the actual lithography process was started in 1901 or prior to the printing of the 1902 catalog, which likely occurred in the spring/summer of 1902.

1902 yellow/orange hand painted No. 50	1901 red hand painted No. 50
1901 red hand painted No. 51	Elevated Railway from 1902 Catalog

We can be relatively certain that the dates assigned to those early catalogs by the founding father of toy train collecting, Lou Hertz, are correct. That's because Lou was able to obtain the original catalog file from Harry Ives himself, some years after his passing and all of those catalogs were marked by H. C. Ives with the dates.

It is important to note that just because they had started lithographing by 1902, didn't mean they stopped painting some of their trains. I've found original sets that would appear to have been from the 1903 to 1904 period that contained hand painted 50 series cars. Evidence of this conclusion can be seen looking at original hand painted cars with tin wheels. Original lithographed cars with cast iron wheels and cars that were originally lithographed and then painted over the lithograph by the factory.

As would be expected when looking at the variations in the hard painted cars they are numerous. Since they were painted by hand there really are no two alike. None of them have any lettering and they were painted in a primary color, with a secondary color used to add stripes above and/or below the windows, plus ventilator detail to the roof. Sometimes the stripes below the window were colored in to make a solid band while others used just the stripping. Primary color variations that have survived on these cars include dark green, red, and a yellow or orange. The paint was originally applied over the bare tin and flakes very easily. Many of these cars were lacquered years ago to preserve whatever paint was left on the car and some of these cars as they age have darkened considerably.

The hand painted cars were available only in a baggage car (No. 50) and passenger or Pullman car (No. 51). These cars were cataloged with either a No. 0 clockwork locomotive in the one and two car sets. They were also cataloged with a No. 11 cast iron locomotive in 2 and 3 car sets and a tin No. 3 in 3 car sets. The baggage car was probably only available in the 2 or 3 car sets. Some of the No. 51 hand painted cars can be found without any vestibules. These cars are correct. IVES sold 2 different one car sets from 1901-1904. Outfit No. 1 contained a tin locomotive with a single tin car. Outfit No. 0, which was slightly cheaper, was exactly the same except the passenger car had no vestibules.

Whatever the actual date of origin, we can be relatively certain that the 2nd series 50 series passenger cars were the Mohawk “Indian” cars. This included the No. 50 baggage car and the No. 51 Mohawk car. The catalog number (51) for the Mohawk car never actually appeared on the car. It was always lettered “No. 1”. The Mohawk series cars are characterized by their early pedestal frame with red lithographed springs. The cars had thin tin stamped loop couplers attached to the bottom of the frame, which coupled with a rivet that extended above the frame.

Mohawk Car without vestibules

The baggage car was lithographed in three colors and is found in red with black and white detail. The Mohawk car has only two colors in its lithograph and has survived in either a red or yellow primary color with black detail. The Mohawk car can also be found with vestibules and occasionally without when it was used in some early No. 0 sets.

Mohawk Car in red	Mohawk Car in yellow

Dating these cars is very difficult as except for the drawing in the elevated railroad set, the catalog always depicted the 50 series cars as hand painted right through 1905. In 1906 when IVES printed their first color catalog, the 50 series cars were depicted as the Iroquois variation or 3rd series cars.

The 3rd series of the small passenger cars is probably the most interesting and at the same time the most confusing. Just about everyone would recognize the small Iroquois and Hiawatha passenger cars as early IVES, but there's more to these cars than just a couple road names and color variations.

Baggage Car in red	Baggage Car in red with yellow vestibules

The No. 50 baggage car in this series is identical to the 2nd series baggage that came with the Mohawk cars except for the frame. Besides the obvious difference in the lithograph the No. 51 cars the frame is what makes this series unique from its’ predecessors. The new frame has what we assume to be simulated truss rods added and a much more “connected” look. The frame is important on complete sets as even though I've seen IVES mix cars from one series to the next in a set, the cars always had identical frames and couplers.

Historically the Iroquois/Hiawatha series cars have been attributed to the 1905 to 1907 time period. I believe these cars were originally manufactured earlier, at least in 1904. I use this date based on three original boxed sets that I've observed that were found in the earliest IVES box usually associated only with the 1901-1903 era, but probably used into 1904.

Iroquois Car in beige with red springs	Iroquois Car in blue with red springs
Iroquois Car in yellow with white springs	Iroquois Car in plum with white springs

To add a little more confusion to this series they come in a definite early and late variation. The early variation has a three-color lithograph and is known to come in at least 7 different color variations.
All of the early 3 color cars are found with the Iroquois name on them. The later and more commonly seen variation to these cars has a two-color lithograph. It is known to come in only 2 different color variations, but can be found named either Hiawatha or Iroquois in either color.

Iroquois Car in spring green with red springs	Iroquois Car in chocolate brown with white springs

The 3 color lithographed Iroquois cars are probably the rarest of the entire “Indian” series. They were probably only made for one or two years (circa 1904-1905) and may have come only with the higher priced sets. The only verifiable original boxed sets I've ever observed with these cars were all 2 or 3 car sets that came with one of the 2nd or 3rd series cast iron clockwork locomotives - either a No. 11 or a No. 17.

Although impossible to prove at this late date, it is possible that these cars were sold in the more expensive sets, using the small 50 series passenger cars, while the Mohawk series cars were used in the smaller one and two car sets that came with the cheaper tin clockworks.

As rare as they are the early 3-color lithographed Iroquois cars can also be found in two variations: Those with white springs on the frame (early) and those with red springs on the frame (late).

The white spring frames found on these early cars (1904 or 1905) are truly unique with red and white lithographed steps. There is really nothing comparable in any of the larger cars. The white spring cars are so unique that they always came with a special tender. It was an LVE No. 11 tender that came with a special white hatching on the frame. The top of the tender base had very unusual cross-hatching consisting of a white base coat that had black cross-hatching and red diamonds in the center of each square. Even the tender top had a different lithograph - the red litho that framed the lettering "LVE No. 11" was larger than the standard No. 11 tender used with other locomotives that date from the same time period.

Hiawatha Car in yellow with red springs

This special tender has been found with either a 2nd or 3rd series No. 11 or No. 17, another reason to believe that these beautiful tri-colored cars came only in the larger sets.

L.V.E.No. 11

The tri-colored Iroquois cars have been found in numerous color variations, but as a group they're so rare that I've never seen all of them in one place. The color variations that we know of are: brown with white boards; light brown with dark brown boards; yellow with white boards; plum (purple) with white boards, blue; green; red and a beige or tan. The beige car has only two colors in the lithograph, but has been found with the early white spring frame so I believe it is also from that time period.

The red car looks just like a later 2 color red Iroquois except that the end doors inside the vestibules are white. I have observed all of these cars with either white spring frames or red spring frames, except the red variation. There is also a rare 3-color baggage (No. 50) that goes with these cars. It can be easily identified by its’ white door handle and while stripes along the sides. This early baggage can be found on either the white or red spring frame and should match the other cars in the set.

The later or 2 color lithographed Iroquois cars are probably the most common variation of the Indian cars. These are the cars that are pictured in the 1906 color catalog. The yellow 2 color Iroquois car appears to be somewhat harder to find than the red car or either of the Hiawatha cars. Based on original sets that we've found and believe to be correct, it would appear that two car sets always came with the same color cars. Three car sets may have come with a baggage one color and the other two cars the other color, but this appears to be sporadic and I'm not really sure that any 'rule' applies here.

The general consensus has always been that the Indian cars were replaced in 1908 by the new shiny Brooklyn/Buffalo cars. The Brooklyn cars were not pictured in the 1908 catalog and nothing in the catalog made any mention of the cars being upgraded. IVES did make a big deal of the fact that the small clockwork locomotives that went with these cars were now made out of cast iron, instead of tin. Most of the early collectors have always placed the 1908 date with the Brooklyn cars, as when they are found in original sets, the locomotive is the cast iron variety. Also Lou Hertz makes mention of these cars being rushed to production in 1908 to compete with the similar cars that a competitor, American Miniature Railroad, had recently been making.

1908 Catalog cut of new small clockworks

Close observation of the 1908 IVES catalog will show that not only are the Brooklyn/Buffalo cars not shown, but the two pictures of the “new” small cast iron clockwork locomotives are artist conceptions that are not even similar to the actual production models. It would appear that neither was available when the sketches were drawn for the catalog. It is my belief that the late Indian cars were sold in 1908 and maybe later in some sets. I believe much like the earlier sets IVES sold both the Indians and Brooklyn cars at the same time and even mixed these cars in some sets. It is not unusual to find a three car Brooklyn/Buffalo set that has a red “Indian” style baggage car.

Buffalo Car No. 50 in white with red springs

Buffalo Car No. 52 in white with red springs	Brooklyn Car No. 51 in dark green with red springs
Brooklyn Car No. 51 in metallic green with red springs	Brooklyn Car No. 51 in silver with red springs

There are also examples of red “Indian” style baggage cars used in floor train models as late as 1910-11. In 1910 the 50 series cars were completely overhauled, new litho, new body, new frame, but that doesn't mean that IVES stopped selling or even manufacturing the Brooklyn style cars, which may have been made as late as 1913. Variations of the Brooklyn/Buffalo cars are extensive and beyond the scope of this article. Remember the only rules for early IVES are that there are no rules and everything is possible - keep an open mind.