unknown brass part found in a trolley bed

[allyourbase]

Hello,
Went out with a friend today hunting an old trolley bed on his farm in Salem NH, the tracks are long gone but we did find this brass part with what looks to be a broken lever arm and a rusted steel bolt or screw through the center. I can make out A. S. & W. Co. on the part but google does not give me anything definitive that seems related to trains or RR's. I did find a reference in a "pocket companion for Engineers" of A. S & W. Co. Wire gage, and of an alumni of WPI in Worcester MA. who worked for an A. S. & W Co. in Waukegan IL. But nothing about what they made.

The part seems to be made of brass or bronze, it has a turned section that looks like it fit into a receiving socket that might have been part of the trolley? I only got out for about an hour at lunch today and this is all we found, the digging was real tough in the old gravel bed.





Any ideas?
Thanks for looking
ayb

 

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[chipveres]

About what they made: My father worked for American Steel and Wire Company during WW II. His plant was in Trenton, NJ and made wire rope and elevator cables. But I think the company was much bigger than that and made all sorts of metal products.

Chip V.
P. S. I hope it's the right AS&W Co.

 

[DCMatt]

Could be a broken brake lever/handle.

Sorry for the lousy pic. It's all I could find...

DCMatt

 

[allyourbase]

Thanks DCMatt and Chip,

Would not want to be on the trolley when the handle broke!

I will research American Steel and Wire Co. now. The Pocket Companion reference I found last night was for wire gage's used in steel reinforced concrete floors so it sounds like the right company.

My friends family has been farming that land for quite some time, he told me the trolley ran over to a local Amusement park [Canobie Lake Park] that still exists today. He said that they built these parks at the end of the trolley lines so that the trolleys could run 7 days a week. It was not economical to shut them down for the one day, Sunday. All the track is gone now all that is left is a raised track bed and lots of gravel.

Thanks
ayb

 

[riverite]

Sure looks look like part of a handle and looks like bronze , that cone like inside makes me think its also is bushing at the same time ,the bolt going thru it can be tightened to adjust the tension , being bronze and with greasing it will turn smoothly