Once A War is Over…

…What Happens to All That Stuff? The military keeps some, but much of it is sold as surplus for construction, mining, or just “scaring other drivers, thrilling children, and getting to work,” one owner confessed.

On May 14, the New York Times published an article called Backyard Battalions (“Where do battle tanks and military trucks go when their service has ended?“) Apparently it is quite easy  (if often costly) to acquire surplus military vehicles.  The government produces them by the thousands, and their use life is often not long – either because of wear-and-tear, or because they are replaced by newer models and are no longer updated, or because the conflict for which they were produced has ended.  Decommissioned (and yes, disarmed) vehicles get sold off to dealers and other outlets for civilian purchase. Some people convert them into work vehicles (haulers, tractors, etc); all-terrain vehicles (ie, for wilderness search operations); rent them out as advertising or photo props; or just drive them around for fun. This last is more iffy, since many are not street-legal, especially if they are very heavy or have metal treads.

The article, as interesting as it was in itself, caught my eye because it reminded me of something that I had on the back burner for a while. A few years ago, Thursday News reader Bob Stefanowicz sent me a note about something he remembered from when he was young – Sherman tanks in Needham.

The US produced nearly 50,000 Sherman tanks for World War II. After the war was over, they kept the best ones in service, mothballed some others for future upgrade and use, and sent many more to allies as a form of military aid.  The rest were stripped of their guns and armor and sold as surplus to private companies and individuals for use in construction, land clearing, etc. Their heavy engines and biting treads made them especially valuable in places where there were few roads, such as Alaska, where they were used to haul construction and mining equipment. Overseas companies such as Vickers-Armstrong (UK) converted them into tractors for agricultural use in Africa. It was not uncommon for companies to keep the treads, powertrain, and engine, and remove the whole top shell and replace it with specialized equipment for digging, hauling, etc.  In Canada, the turret was replaced by winches and cranes for the logging industry.

A few of these tanks even made it to Needham.  In the years after the Second World War, the area of Needham at the northern end of Highland Avenue became increasingly industrial. This was in part because the land was more open than other parts of town; but also because of its proximity to the new Route 128, which was being built around 1951. By 1950-1955, there were several companies in that part of town that specialized in heavy industrial equipment, building equipment, machine and car repairs, and similar. Most were located on Kearney Road and Crawford Street, or across the highway on Fremont, Wexford, Charles, and Franklin Streets. A quick look at the assessor’s file for 1950-1955 (as images available on Digital Commonwealth) shows the Berber-Greene Equipment Co. and the EJ Bleiler Equipment Co. on Crawford Street; and WJ Hamilton Drilling and Blasting, Case Power Equipment, and Marr Brothers Construction on Kearney Road, among others.

Needham’s repurposed Sherman tanks were owned by the Babcock Equipment Company on Highland Avenue. Like some of the companies mentioned above, Babcock sold and/or leased heavy equipment for construction. They started in business sometime after 1938, but before 1948 – they are not in the 1938 phonebook, but they are in the 1948 Sanborn Fire Insurance map (I can’t nail it down any further). Their main building was at 163 Highland Avenue, on the corner of Highland Avenue and Charles Street (the current location of Staples). They also had a repair shop on a nearby block; we have not been able to pinpoint the location of this facility, but Bob thinks that it might have been on Brook Road, at the current Steelco site. He recalls that the repair facility had a large sign on its roof that was visible from Rt. 128, that said ‘Babcock’ and displayed a set of treads which were painted a bright yellow. This sign was apparently later relocated to the Charles Street building.

Bob Stefanowicz was a youngster in the early 1960s. He remembers the tanks, which had been converted with booms and tow lines. He said that large trucks trying to make the narrow turn into Wexford Street would clog up traffic because it was such a tight fit. 

I don’t know when Babcock closed the repair shop (Bob thinks it may have been demolished in the 1960s). The main location on the Charles Street corner, however, lasted for many more years. There is a picture from the mid-1950s in which you can see the large red rooftop sign; and another from late 1980s, showing the old building with the yellow-tread sign out front (the brick building in the background, the familiar former location of AAA, was built in 1986). The company closed in 1990 or 1991 (the last phone book listing is in the 1991 Needham book). The current Staples/Petco storefronts were built in 2000, which is the year that Staples opened at that location.

Try as I might, I was not able to find any pictures of the repair yard and tanks. There is a picture of the side of the main dealership that shows a pile of spare or discarded treads; that’s the closest I was able to get. 

Here’s where you all come in! Does anyone remember more about the Babcock Equipment Company and its Sherman tanks? Or the precise location of the repair yard? Does anyone have pictures?? I would love to learn more about this, so send me a note.

Many thanks to Bob Stefanowicz for telling me about this in the first place, and for providing his recollections. He also sent me the links to other equipment businesses in the neighborhood, and the picture of Babcock in the 1980s.