You may think this has nothing to do with trains, but it does. Remember, Elijah Mccoy invented those lubricators for steam locomotives. [:)] It is relavent!
The Real McCoy indeed…yep, black Americans made a powerful, if mostly ignored, contribution to American railroad history. They were red, white and blue–red caps carrying bags in stations, usually only for tips, white-jacketed Pullman porters, denied even their own names (Pullman porters were all called “George” originally) and the blue denim of firemen, like the aforementioned Elijah McCoy (who was a trained mechanical engineer, yet couldn’t get a job except as a brakeman, or Sim Webb, Casey Jones’ fireman on that fateful night.)
Black slaves built the first railroads in the American South, and black waiters served food on many a railroad line (side note: George Dunlap, operator of the diner on the Sacramento Northern’s “Ramon” ferry across Suisun Bay, went on to open a popular restaurant in Oak Park, Dunlap’s Dining Room). Those Pullman porters went on to form the first black union when the white unions wouldn’t let them join.
So yep, I’d agree, Black History Month is definitely relevant to the railroads.
I first heard of the story of Elijah McCoy 4 years ago while visiting the Sutherland Steam Mill, which at the time had an operating stationary steam engine. I have to admit I was moved by it. The story is well worth telling your children.
http://www.ncalifblackengineers.org/Elijah%20McCoy.htm
http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blmccoy.htm
http://afroamhistory.about.com/library/weekly/aa111102a.htm
I wish I still had it, but there was book written that highlighted the experiences of Black Pullman porters aboard trains operated by a wide range of railroad companies. It left me with a feeling of pride, though certainly there was much sorrow. I often wonder how many of them are still living, as talking to them one-on-one would undoubtedly prove most intriguing. Most interesting, I think, was the sense of brotherhood they shared; I got the feeling that despite the socials ills they faced, they wouldn’t have traded their jobs for any other–even if it came with the promise of better treatment and greater pay. These were, IMHO, true railroad men.[^]