In a 9/05 note, Gerald Edgar wrote:
> As for Louis Menk - apart from the demise of 4960/5632 which created the
> Menk is a Fink pins plus the eventual "Chairman Mao" booklet, was he a
> good
> mgr? Business historians have yet to write a definitive critique of
> his yrs
> but here's my observations for what they are worth. He was an imposing
> figure (6'5" or 6'6"), great wordsmith and always ready for a soundbite,
> photo, etc - that's meant as a compli- ment because a CEO in a
> competitive
> industry, fighting trucks, regula- tors, etc must be out front.
While I was not a particular fan of Lou Menk after the curtailment of Q
steam, I also was not well versed in RR politics at the age of 23 when
Lou Menk came to the C. B. & Q. Later, in my travels for EMD, I had and
opportunity to meet and hear Mr. Menk. He, indeed, was an imposing
gentleman. He was tall with a rugged appearance and a deep voice which
commanded an audience's attention. He was also very articulate.
I do take except to a comment that several have made, suggesting that he
was an "outsider" non railroader. The following is a copy of his
obituary from the Billings Gazette of Monday, December 6, 1999. As can
be noted, he started his career as a telegrapher on the UP and later,
the Frisco.
CAREFREE, Ariz. - Louis Wilson Menk, retired Chairman and CEO of
Burlington Northern, Inc., died Nov. 23, 1999, at his home in Carefree,
Ariz., following a short illness associated with cancer. Mr. Menk
enjoyed many years of his life living and vacationing in Montana. He was
born April 8, 1918, in Englewood, Colo., the oldest child of Louis A.
and Daisy D. (Frantz) Menk. Following in his father's footsteps, he
worked for the Union Pacific Railroad as a messenger and telegrapher
from 1937 to 1940. He joined the St. Louis-San Francisco Railways in
1940 as a telegrapher and rose through the ranks to become President of
the Frisco in 1962, the then-youngest president in American railroading
history. He was subsequently named Chairman and CEO.
In 1965, Mr. Menk accepted an invitation to lead the Chicago,
Burlington & Quincy Railroad Co. He then became President of the
Northern Pacific Railway Co., a parent of the Burlington. For the next
four years, he not only ran the Northern Pacific but also participated
in the executive group working on a merger of the Northern Pacific and
Great Northern and their affiliated railways. In 1970 the merger took
place, resulting in creation of Burlington Northern, Inc. with Lou Menk
as President and Chief Operating Officer. He was Chairman and CEO of
Burlington Northern from 1971 to 1978 and then Chairman until his
retirement in 1981.
Another point that should be kept in mind is that if the UP had taken
over the ROCK in the early '60s as they had wanted to, the entire
midwestern rail picture would have been different today and leading up
to the BN merger. Instead, ICC spent years reviewing the subject so that
when they finally approved UP's request almost 10 years later, the ROCK
had deteriorated so badly that it was no longer an economical
proposition for the UP.
The BN merger may have been more likely to succeed than PC, but it
occurred in an era of a very poor climate for both RRs and RR mergers.
There were many people in the '60s that questioned whether the rail
industry would even survive. The BN merger might have failed were it not
for the sudden demand for low sulphur coal from the PRB. That changed
BN's fortunes almost overnight. At that time, C&NW was more involved in
the PRB than UP. Remember, they were supposed to be the partner in the
construction of the new Orin cutoff coal line. By the time that they
finally bought in, almost 10 years after it was built (with UP money, I
suspect), the C&NW and UP were closely aligned. The "Cowboy " line
across northern Nebraska, was supposed to be C&NW's route east, but they
never had the funds to upgrade it. Their first coal trains then went via
No. Platte and that never changed. There is no question in my mind that
Lou Menk had a strong hand in guiding and developing the BN in that
first decade. The merger was not a "given". Ironically, now there are
rumors that the BNSF would like to "spin off" the northern tier lines
including possible the coal business. Their plan would be to concentrate
on intermodal business between Chicago and the west coast.
One other comment, Q stock was closely held, but 97% of it was owned by
GN/NP for many years prior to the merger. I am sure that the St. Paul
office building had some influence about what went on at 547 W. Jackson.
Bill Barber
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