Thanks
Don..back in my Trainman and trainmaster days 5000 tons
and 100 cars was a big train.
Speaking of old timers...When I started braking on
the Q in 1956 there were lots of engine and trainmen
with seniority back to the early 1900's. Some of those
guys just didn't want to quit. And a good share of
them..once they found out that you were not a complete
KLUTZ and were really trying to do good job things
improved and then when they discovered that you knew
something about the railroad, which I did, they would
open up and the STORIES would come out..Some of which
might have been true. I
I loved working the branch line locals which Earl
Currie in his writings referred to as "Retirement jobs"
and they were where lots of the old heads would prefer.
They were, generally all daylight work...no train
orders to worry about and low speed...some paid some
good overtime as well.
My favorite conductor was Merle Caldwell who was age
48 in 1958. He hired out in 1928 right out of high
school and was rules expert and just a genuinely nice
guy. He would ply me with "tales of the rails" as we
rattled along through the weeds in the dark hours of the
night.
Pete
-----Original
Message-----
From: Don Brown
dbrown02@rochester.rr.com [CBQ]
<CBQ@yahoogroups.com>
To: CBQ
<CBQ@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Fri, Aug 25, 2017 10:35 pm
Subject: Re: [CBQ] Steam Helper Service Article
Well, since we have located you....or
you have located us....I'm glad I said
something charitable about you, rather
than the opposite! :-D
BTW, you are not alone in noting the
incredible wealth of information those old
timers contributed to that publication.
Looking at the issues from the 1940's, you
had men who had hired out in the early
1900's or even before the turn of that
century. What WOULD they think of today's
railroading? The chorus of "Harrumph"s
would be deafening! Yet I think on another
level they would have to be impressed by
trains of 14,000 tons or even more.
WELL WELL WELL...Ah do
Declah...I guess I did write this
diatribe...Tell me Don..when did I
do this???? I did offer the caveat
that what I knew I took from the old
RAILROAD MAGAZINE.
I'll read this over and see what
I said. Just as I said in he
original...I'll take questions with
answers either "made up" or taken
from what I recall from RAILROAD
MAGAZINE.
Pete...I guess the real Pete is
ME.
-----Original
Message-----
From: Don Brown
dbrown02@rochester.rr.com
[CBQ]
<CBQ@yahoogroups.com>
To: CBQ
<CBQ@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Fri, Aug 25, 2017 9:26 pm
Subject: Re: [CBQ] Steam Helper
Service Article
Relax, Pat!
You're among friends
here and you have made
it abundantly clear in
several posts you are
not the author.
Nobody's going to
accuse you of swiping
it. I WILL thank you
for posting it, so
much of "how things
were" back then are
lost forever and it's
good to see resources
like this
perpetuated. I'm sure
the author went to the
trouble of writing it
exactly so it COULD be
passed along through
the years. He, and
you, have done us a
service.
Here is the
original
posting I
would like to
hear from the
actual author
as I want to
make sure all
know this is
not my work.
Pat Homan