Last weekend member Jim Christen allowed me to borrow his two part tape from
an old radio programs program produced in Chicago in 2000. The tape features
four hours of "Railroad Radio".
Among the "goodies" found on this gem are the "Acceptance Speeches" by Ralph
Budd of the CB&Q and Edward G. Budd, president of the Edward G. Budd
Manufacturing Company who built the Zephyr, along with a short speech by the
controller of the City of Chicago speaking in place of Mayor Ed Kelly who was
unable to be present for the arrival of the Pioneer at Chicago UD in May
1934.
This material was discovered by ....Katz who is a railroad historian and is
gathering material on the CB&Q at the Newberry Library in Chicago. If memory
serves me correctly this gentleman spoke to the BRHS at the Aurora Meet a few
years ago.
The speeches along with the Chicago station (don't remember which one)
announcers were originally recorded on aluminum discs in 6 parts. Katz found
two of the sides originally and then located the other 4.
The sound reproduction is quite good and I love the "flowery" introductions.
Budd's (both of them) speeches are quite short.
The tapes are available and if any of you listers want them they cost about
$25.00 for the full 4 hours of programming. Some of it is a little hokey,
but the Q stuff is worth it. Let me know on or off list and I'll post the
information to order the tapes.
My question now is??????During the speeches I could hear a continuous
rumbling noise. At first I attributed said noise to just the reproduction
quality. However occasionally you could hear a steam locomotive bell ring.
It suddenly dawned on me was that the "rumbling" was indeed the Winton Prime
Mover idling.
Having ridden the PZ a few times and even worked as brakeman on the Lincoln
St. Joe run in 1958 I thought that I was familiar with the sound of the PZ
engine which was a much more rapid "chant" than what I could make out on the
tape.
It seems to me that the original Winton engine was replaced at sometime
during the PZ's life with a more modern engine, more like the 567 engine,
which my memory seems to indicate would produce a sound as I remember from
the 1950's.
I'd like to hear from someone knowledgeable as to the history of the PZ as to
how faulty my memory is. There is the possibility that the background noise
on the tape is indeed just reproduction noise and not the engine, but I
really want to think that it is indeed the Winton.
At the end of the PZ segment on the tape Katz sez..."It almost sounds like an
old train chugging away there in the background".....I don't think that Katz
ever heard the real PZ, but his comment kind of confirmed what began to dawn
on me as the interviews and speeches progressed.
Pete Hedgpeth
f
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