The Merchants Coal Company mined semi-bituminous coal in the early twentieth century. These are images of early construction at the Merchants Coal Company in Boswell, Pennsylvania.

Richmond Machine Company is an equipment manufacturer located in North Philadelphia. In around 1953, the Richmond Machine Company acquired the American Pulley Co. for the use of its patents. The American Pulley Co. was a power transmission equipment manufacturer which had its start as a pulley provider in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1892. This collection consists of two parts, the American Pulley Co. and Richmond Machine Company, the latter comprising only a small portion of the records. Within the American Pulley Co. series, researchers will find photographic prints of various hand and lift trucks, power transmission equipment, and non-mechanical products produced and distributed by the American Pulley Co. Researchers will also find images of facilities and employees demonstrating equipment for advertisement purposes. This collection transitions to the Richmond Machine Company, which bought the American Pulley Co. around 1953 and incorporated these photographs into their personal inventory. Included within this series are instructions, guides, and videos pertaining to drum and barrel reconditioning. Produced for both outside companies and personal sales, products within this collection demonstrate the role the American Pulley Co. played in early industrial development. Researchers interested in power transmission equipment would find this collection useful.

Vulcan Iron Works was a producer of mine and industrial locomotives, mine hoists, and other colliery machinery. Vulcan's locomotives were designed for mine, logging, plantation and factory work, including steam, electric and battery models for underground haulage. A large number were sold to strip mine and earth moving contractors. The majority of the collection consists of original negatives (glass plate and film) dating from about the 1880s to 1943. These are builder's photographs, recording the construction of locomotives and machinery, although there are some photographs of the plants themselves (interiors and exteriors), employees at work, the town of Wilkes-Barre, and equipment installed and in service, particularly at collieries in the anthracite fields. About half the pictures are of locomotives and the rest are of mining equipment. There are also 1,340 negatives of drawings and plans, chiefly of mining equipment hoists. The collection also contains about 2,400 copy photographs made to preserve the images on original nitrate negatives which had extensively deteriorated. The collection is organized into five series: Railroad; Mining and manufacturing equipment; Factory, mill, and shop views; Drawings; and People.