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Leo - FYI, Robert W. ("Catfish") Harding was born in February, 1907. At the age of 16 he received his fireman's date of 6/17/1923 and 24 years later, his engineer's date of 8/18/1947. Thirty years later, in June, 1977, he finally "retired" from the RR after 54 years of engine service on the Aurora Division. Bob found a clause in Board Award 282 (1964) that allowed him, due to his birthdate being early in his now mandatory retirement year, to work beyond the last day of his birth month, until such time he had earned enough miles to qualify for his full five week vacation for 1977. During WW II, he worked, briefly, as a Road Foreman of Engines at Aurora. Immediately, upon his RR retirement, he went to work as a security guard at the Nabisco plant in Naperville. Bob would always take his 5-week vacation right before the Christmas holiday, so he could hire-out at the Post Office as an "extra" mail carrier. Bob was one of the few people I knew who actually owned CB&Q common stock, right up to the BN merger in 1970. For each share of "Q" stock he owned, he received 3.5 shares of BN common stock; NP and GN stock holders received only one share of BN stock for each share of their respective company's stock. Without question, Bob was the ultimate "workaholic" and stories about him are plentiful! RC
__._,_.___ Posted by: amtrak347@aol.com __,_._,___ |