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Re: [BRHSlist] Re: Early Zephyrs....test question and related items.

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Subject: Re: [BRHSlist] Re: Early Zephyrs....test question and related items.
From: PSHedgpeth@a...
Date: Fri, 17 May 2002 18:19:47 EDT
Ed and list

There is still one unidentified individual in the photo which shows JDF et 
al. It could be Fred Gurley. I don't have my EZ copy here, but there is a 
photo in the early part of the book showing a group of Q executives and 
others sitting in the observation car of the PZ. One of these men is, per 
the caption, Fred Gurley.

I never personally met either Farrington or Gurley, but they were both 
personal acquaintances of my grandfather. I recall my GF saying that "if it 
wasn't for E.P. Bracken, Fred Gurley would still be a clerk in the Trai
nmaster's office at Alliance Nebraska"
Mr. Farrington was at one time in his Q days Superintendent of the St. Joe 
Division. 
There was a problem of disappearing cigarettes from LCL shipments to Rock 
Port and Mr. Farrington and my GF came up with the idea of putting red 
Aniline (sp) dye in the cases of cigarettes so that anyone attempting to 
break into the cases would get the dye on their hands and the culprit would 
be evident. After application of the dye, apparently, someone tipped off 
the thieves and no more cigs were taken. My GF said "we got so close to them, 
that they quit"...kind of like Clinton and Bin Laden. Just one of those 
little memory flashes from the past.

Some of you guys may not know who E.P. (Edward Payson) Bracken was. He was 
the Q's Operating VP in the 20's and early thirties. He was my GF's hero and 
role model. GF thought that he was the finest operating man he even knew. 
It was said that his initials stood for Every Person Busy.

Bracken was a native of Tecumseh, NE. He died in December 1937 shortly after 
his retirement. He is buried in a hilltop cemetery at Tecumseh. His 
gravesite overlooks the Q's Lincoln-St. Joe line.

When Bracken died the Q ran a special train to Lincoln and then on down to 
Tecumseh. Most of the then Q officials were along. The train took the 
mourners from Lincoln to Tecumseh, and while the funeral service was being 
conducted the train was taken to Table Rock to be turned on the wye.

I'll never forget my grandfather relating his experience of standing by the 
grave as the preacher offered prayer and just as the casket was started to be 
lowered into the grave the funeral train was approaching the Tecumseh Station 
Board. My GF related that just as the casket started down the "engineer blew 
the longest and loudest station whistle you ever heard....you couldn't have 
timed it better by radar". 
Still gets me a little teary eyed when I think of it.

I have visited the gravesite and have copies of the Tecumseh paper relating 
the events at the services for EPB, along with his obituary. Of course the 
"station whistle" wasn't mentioned in the newspaper article, but it 
cooborates what GF told me.

Just another of those little memories which don't mean much to anyone but 
me, but I thought since the Farrington and Gurley thread brought it to mind 
I'd relate it here.

BTW there is (was) a town between Auburn and Nemaha named Bracken. I haven't 
made an attempt to find it, but that will be on the list for an upcoming 
"journey to yesterday".

Pete


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