The earliest known records of the West Street Foundry, also known at this time as Howell & Coffee, date to 1839.

[13] By 1850, the company had been acquired by Wilson Small,[14][15] a prominent figure in the New York branch of the Democratic Party,[15] with Coffee remaining as superintendent and agent.

[b] Among the more notable vessels powered by West Street Foundry engines were Santa Claus[18] and Mountaineer—two Hudson River passenger steamboats noted for their speed[19][20][21][c]—and State of Maine and Daniel Webster, both considered on debut to be the finest and fastest steamboats in Maine coastal service.

[7][d] He subsequently joined the civil service,[15] while Coffee established a new steam engineering works in Keyport, New Jersey.

After training as an engineer and serving as a principal of the West Street Foundry until its closure, he established a new business offering similar services in Keyport, New Jersey, near the steamboat landing.

[15] Following the failure of the West Street Foundry, Small joined the civil service, and subsequently obtained a variety of government positions.