April 11, 2016
Richard - Some years ago, I posted a thread about a saw mill wood burning
Baldwin 2-6-2 that I had owned during my years in the scrap industry. Whereas
the Q locomotives that Phil talks about were superheated coal burners with
piston valves, the 2-6-2 I had was non-superheated (saturated steam) and had
slide valves. When at rest, steam would cool into water and accumulate in
the steam chest. When the throttle was opened, this accumulated hot water mixed
with soot and wood ash from the smoke box and flues would erupt (some
would say "puke") from the cabbage head stack and give anyone nearby a good
HOT dirty soaking. Such locomotives were called "Old Slobberface" and other less
than endearing terms by their crews and saw mill workers. It was a rail fan
badge of honor back in the late 1950s and early 1960s to get sooted by
5632 and cinder/sooted by 4960. Only sissified daisy pickers stayed in the
coaches "safe" from the black rain..... When my Dad was a brakeman
during World War Two on the C&I, my Mom when irritated would call him a
"dirty neck" brakeman from the black spots you mention being all over his neck
and work clothes. Today, in this politically and environmentally correct
era, black rain would never be tolerated. At least us old timers can remember
how much FUN it was years ago to get dirty on the railroad. Best
Regards - Louis
In a message dated 4/11/2016 11:24:24 A.M. Central Daylight Time,
CBQ@yahoogroups.com writes:
In this
thread, post 2C by “Phil”, he mentioned that a coal-burner would get pretty
dirty inside when parked for awhile. Then the first move would produce
black rain out of the stack. I can vouch for this - at age 9 or 10 in
1941 or so, I biked down to a spur somewhere in Quincy to watch a
switcher. I was watching from the fireman’s side, and the loco was not
moving. Then it did move. When I happened to look down to start
out on my bike, I was very surprised to see my shirt and pants speckled all
over with black spots. I don’t remember what my Mom said when I got
home, but I figured that fireman somehow gave a watching kid a “dose” of black
rain for a joke. Now, after 75 years of thinking about that experience
every now and then, I find out the truth. He was innocent.
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Posted by: Richard Wolter
<rawolter@verizon.net>
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