I would like to see a forum that invites railroaders to share their real life stories about situations they have been involved with in the performance of their duties. From listening to my railroader friends all manner of things occur that only a railroader or a ralfan could appreciate.
Does such a forum exist?
Note elsewhere on the forum the thread(s) about railroaders posting stuff about their railroads. Granted, most of the flack is about negative opinions expressed, but most railroaders are going to be pretty tight with information that might reflect negatively on them or their railroad. The web is a wonderful place, with information everywhere, but the wrong information in the right hands might get someone 30 days of unplanned (and unpaid) vacation.
As was mentioned - real time stories could have consequences. On the other hand there are hundreds of first person accounts of working on the railroad (I have around 150 in my library). Most of them are privately published but they are an interesting read. You can find well written books dating from the 1860’s up to the present. I think there has been more than one thread on this subject in the past so you might want to search the forum for book recommendations. If you can’t find anything I’ve listed, in no particular order, some of my favorites:
Brownie the Boomer time period 1890’s - 1914
Call the Big Hook - first person wrecking crew - 1950’s and 60’s
I remember - Canadian RR engineer - 30’s and 40’s
Little Engines and Big Men - Colorado Narrow Gauge
Unauthorized Train Stories - Amtrak Conductor
Working for the Western Maryland - collection of individual stories from the WM
Woman Operator on the Milwaukee Railroad - WWII
Thirty Years Over Donner - RR signal maintainer
No Royal Road - PRR worker 1800’s
If you are interested in this venue I’m sure there are others who would be happy to tell you their favorites.
I will have to check out others on your list, but have read the first two many times. Call the Big Hook describes fascinating situations and wreck scenarios that one would never dream of. When I first read Brownie the Boomer, I was kind of put off by what seemed to be a primitive writing style. He has some awfully long sentences. But when I got used to it, I realized that he was an excellent writer in terms of his narrative. Railroading was a wild adventure in the days of Brownie (Charles Brown).
He tells a story about how an engineer would not let the head brakeman ride his<
Check out also a book by Harry Bedwell called the Boomer. Just re released and I found my copy at Borders. Not first hand accounts but good nonetheless.
Not much exciting goes on on a train. And when it does its usually not re printable lol.Its not like the old days where when you were behind time you could make it up. Or you could run from station to station on orders and say" Well 510 isnt going to be here I can make the next sidetrack in time"
Bedwell’s book is fiction but it is still a good read. If you are going to look in the direction of fiction then you really should read Frank Spearman’s two short story collections - Held for Orders and The Nerve of Foley. Frank Packard’s collections The Night Operator and Running Special are also good.
You’ll get a few real-life railroad experiences from some of us who work for, or have worked for, a railroad. There are some among us who can relate certain things (and do it well!) without getting themselves into difficulty with their employer.
The “Railroad Reading” column that has appeared regularly in Trains is probably the best source for first-person accounts. And, it’s been edited, which usually makes the read go a lot more smoothly.
As for The Boomer, I also bought it at Border’s. To me, it seemed like a contrived stringing together of some of the stories I’d become familiar with in Railroad Magazine. I’d love to see a more-or-less complete collection of those! It is pretty good railroad writing. However, be sure and read the stories that appeared before about the mid-1960s. I think poor old Freeman Hubbard was suffering from some sort of dementia when he edited things toward the end of the magazine’s life.