Nostalgia & History > Striped Engineers Hat/Overalls

Where did the myth (or reality) of hickory striped hats and striped overalls start for train engineers? Every photo I have seen from regular, working railroaders, whether in action or posed for portraits, are in suits or "working man's" clothes. Some are in overalls, but none of those clothes are striped. I know about the polka dotted hats from Kromer, and I see those as more authentic than the striped variety because I have seen many pictures of them in use by railroaders. Often bowlers, fedoras, and flatcaps are used, with some cadet-style hats as well.

I find it weird for such an association of clothing with a profession where I cannot find images of that in use during any time of the steam era. and if there are images of that, they have to be VERY few in comparison with all the other photographic records of the day.

'Oshkosh-By Gosh'...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/01/12 14:05 by Agt-Highland.

Dickeys and Carhart too!

Here's a shot I took in the spring of 1957. The location is Calgary, AB. CPR N-2A 3647 (2-8-0) worked the Robin Hood flour mill in Downtown Calgary (location of today's gulf Tower).The engineer is L. C. Bowman, fireman is Jack McGinnes. LC wore striped bibs and a white Kromer as did a lot of the engineers I met. The second pic shows the conductor wearing solid blue bibs and a Fedora.

I rode this engine during lunch almost everyday. It was retired in 1958 and replaced by a, FM trainmaster. No I didn't take any pics of the stupid diesel.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/01/12 15:02 by px320.

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They wore these and always look like businessmen as they were clean and Mom always starched Dad's Train Hat.
He was a engineer for SP and started back in the 40's.

One other piece of material he used on all the steam was black and had openings at both ends.
He wore these on his arms and I remember Mom washing them and they always had some kind of grime and dirt on them.
If you look closely at a fireman or engineer they always had their arms hanging out the windows especially on SP up the valley or
Mojave Desert.

DT

rev66vette Wrote:
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> Dickeys and Carhart too!


Key Brand overalls, also.

When I first visited Chicago and rode the "L" trains in 1971, I noticed than many of the motormen wore hickory stripe bib overalls, long after they ceased to be common on main line railroad crewmen.

I never saw my dad in his work attire wearing anything other than his blue bibs and his grey fedora. I wish I knew how he dressed in the '30s when he went to work. And I have no idea how my grandfather dressed when he went to work either.

I just wish LEE still made the striped engineer caps. I don't think they make any railroad clothing or caps any more.

JDE



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/01/12 17:54 by Steamjocky.

Notice the fireman is wearing a tie, too.

On the Southern Pacific, I believe that dark blue (indigo) vs. hickory-stripe overalls standards for passenger enginemen varied by division. Veteran Coast Division engineer Neil Vodden kept the tradition alive by always wearing hickory-stripe overalls when running S.P. 2472, whereas I was told that Western Division passenger enginemen often wore dark blue overalls, at least by the 1950s.

The late Errol Ohman (who started as a boilermaker's helper at West Oakland roundhouse, and rose to top senority engineer on the Western Division roster) told me that traditionally passenger enginemen asked for double starch in their shirts so they would stay nicely pressed all week. (Errols's uncle was a Western Division passenger fireman in the 1940s, so his knowledge went way back into the steam era.) White shirts were not at all uncommon for top-line engineers in the 1920s. and probably later. A black bow or string tie, black silk half-sleeves (to protect your shirtsleeves from oil & grease), overalls, and proper engineer's cap completed the outfit.

Roundhouse workers always wore dark blue overalls.

- Doug

When I hired out on the Milwaukee at Alberton in 1969 there were a number of engineers and some conductors who wore stripped bibs. Key was not a brand worn account it was not union made.

I believe there is a Steinheimer photo of Bill Lintz wearing stripes posing in front of the last electric run into Deer Lodge in 1974. The Adam Gratz photo in the boxcab shows a set of stripes under his jacket.

Posted from Windows Phone OS 7

Bibs and traditional style caps were on the way out when I made my date in 1966 as Santa Fe switchman/brakeman at Los Angeles. I'd guesstimate that less than 25 percent of the yardmen and yard engineers were still in "traditional" garb. Only a few of the men were still in full "steam suits" of striped bibs and stripey cap. My recollection is solid blue bibs were more common - without any headwear. Button-front coveralls were also popular - stripes or blues - and impossible to find today. Some engineers wore a striped or solid blue traditional cap. White chore caps could be ordered from CR Anthony store in Oklahoma. They looked great when starched. Officially such caps were sold as "chore work" or "mechanics" caps and every JC Penney stocked them. Kromer Kaps were still seen and could be purchased along with everything a railroad man might need at the H.B. Payne store on North Broadway. One engineer made his own caps out of black cloth and shirt cardboard for the bill. Rails are an eclectic lot and many adopted a persona centered around what they wore to work. Some dressed as farmers with bibs and a straw hat or as cowboys with boots and ten gallon hats complementing their overalls. One character dressed as a German submarine captain every day. In train and yard service the bibs made sense for staying clean although most of the men wore jeans or twill-type work clothes. I remember one old hoghead complaining to me about a group of younger switchmen... "Jist lookit them! Sweaters. Dress shirts. Slacks. Penney loafers. Buncha fashion plates!" Most rails I worked around, and particularly enginemen, gave up overalls and traditional wear by 1960 - the diesel having eliminated the primary source of grime. The new "uniform" was golf-wear, sports caps and casual clothes. I wore bibs all the years I worked freight but after having gone to Amtrak and entering the engine service, it just seemed like time to set the bibs aside.

Agt-Highland Wrote:
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> 'Oshkosh-By Gosh'...

You bet! That was by far the most popular brand on the Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway. My grandfather wore the striped Oshkosh as a carman in Wishram and my father and I wore them in engine service although in the late '70s I changed to the blues pictured here.

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Back when I was a night radio tech for the Santa Fe at San Bernardino, I had an assignment to remove radio racks and other equipment from locomotives that had been retired. I had some blue bib overalls that I wore when I knew that there was salvage work on the menu. One evening I was about to take my wire cutters and hammer & chisel for this task when one of the assistant communication engineers came out from LA to visit. He got on my case for wearing "laborers' attire" when I was suppose to be a technical type worker. He was somewhat of a jerk (and I'd use a stronger term if this weren't a place for civilized discussion) anyway and I went ahead wearing what I thought was appropriate for grunt work like this.

Agt-Highland Wrote:
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> 'Oshkosh-By Gosh'...

I was proud to wear striped Oshkosh bib overalls along with so many others on the SP&S. They were a trademark of workers in many crafts on the railroad. They were very well constructed and lasted a long time. Many people considered them to be the best brand one could buy. Unfortunately Oshkosh quit making men's bib overalls about 15½ years ago.

Tom Moungovan (Nitehostler) took this picture of me wearing striped Oshkosh while working as an SP&S fireman in June 1967.

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roustabout Wrote:
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> rev66vette Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
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> > Dickeys and Carhart too!
>
>
> Key Brand overalls, also.


"Can't Bust 'Em!"

Unfortunately these Oshkosh are from the fading, final years of overseas production. I still have both. The earlier are stronger and lastlonger. You can tell because it says "Classic" and not "Union Made"

TL