Railroaders' Nostalgia > Boss Hog, Lloyd Nations

Anyone here who worked out of Bakersfield, California knows what ever became of Lloyd Nations? I was his engineer on Lloyd’s last trip.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/29/14 12:27 by HardYellow.

He died a little less than a year ago, it was posted on the SP Survivors board.

Thanks for the info. I retired 10 years ago and lost touch with all but a few rails. It is a small world though. I was hiking in our local southern Arizona desert, ran across a US Border Patrol agent. We started talking, he had just moved out from being stationed in west Texas. I told him I once worked on the railroad out of Bakersfield with a guy from Sanderson, Texas...Jimmy Cash. He couldn't believe it, he knew Cash and his family well, had just talked to Cash’s sister the night before....yep, small world.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/29/14 12:28 by HardYellow.

Where is the SP Surv. Bd. ?

Nudge

ExSPCondr Wrote:
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> He died a little less than a year ago, it was
> posted on the SP Survivors board.


He passed away January 7, 2013.

I would like to no where the SP survivors board is too. I retired in 2000.

CRS

If I ever get around to writing my dissertation entitled "The care and feeding of Division Superintendents", I shall use my association with LHN as Ass't. Trainmaster at Sacramento, Trainmaster at Tracy, Assistant Superintendent Bakersfield, Sacramento, and Tucson and Superintendent at Bakersfield as an example of how to not care for Superintendents.
He was a case study all of his own.

Posted by JLY
He was a case study all of his own.

He didn’t get the name “Boss Hog” for nothing. Remember all the money corruption after the big washouts in the early 80’s?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/27/14 14:37 by HardYellow.

HardYellow Wrote:
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> Posted by JLY
> He was a case study all of his own.
>
> He didn’t get the name “Boss Hog” for
> nothing. Remember all the money corruption after
> the big washouts in the early 80’s?

Please inform me of all the details and your info sources of all the "money corruption after the 1980's"
I am completely ignorant of these details.

Oh Yes! Nations, Gorman, and a bunch of others caught feathering their nests on derailments, etc.

I forgot what they called their outfit. I know LHN went back to his switchmen seniority in LA but don't know for how long. There were some that were fired outright and some spent some time in Stony Lonesome.


Nudge



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/27/14 18:20 by spnudge.

JLY Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> HardYellow Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Posted by JLY
> > He was a case study all of his own.
> >
> > He didn’t get the name “Boss Hog” for
> > nothing. Remember all the money corruption
> after
> > the big washouts in the early 80’s?
>
> Please inform me of all the details and your info
> sources of all the "money corruption after the
> 1980's"
> I am completely ignorant of these details.



Several times his name came up... When the Tehachapis were plagued with derailments Boss Hog was instrumental in hiring a contractor that did the rerailing of the rr equipment. Apparently BH was receiving a kick back from the contractor . For example the contractor would charge the SP for 50 hours when in actuality the work only took 35 hours.. Boss would get the cash from the contractor.. Another example was there was 50.000 dollars in the fund to repave the employee parking lot at Bakersfield and a few other projects.. the money disappeared and also John Schnoeblen (Trainmaster Fresno ) received a nice new office remodel apparently with those funds. BH after these events was told to exercise his seniority and he marked up as a conductor..



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/27/14 18:27 by SanJoaquinEngr.

The story I remember was Dennis Kling, Boss Hog and others all receiving new televisions as gifts from the contractor. One heavy equipment contractor was billing SP for 3 large earth movers and only using two. The word was, Boss Hog and the “Boys” were getting a kick back. Can’t remember if Bob Hitson, Kelly and JD Slade were in the mix. Slade went back to his seniority on the Western Division and soon made a seniority trade with a Los Angeles Division Engineer, Freddie (Headlight) Waldsmith. Last I saw of Slade was in Yuma. He was working the West Colton/Yuma Pool and collecting a very large TPA. Hitson retired and became an “expert”(railroad) witness and investigator for some lawyer up in Oregon.
On another note: I always remember Stewart Gillenwater teasing Stan Lewis .... he gave Stan the nickname “Hard Yellow.” Even Ted Slater started calling him Hard Yellow.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/29/14 12:31 by HardYellow.

Actually it was Boss Hog, Gary Gorman, Dennis Kling, and the Chief Clerk to the Supt. They were billing the SP about double for washout repairs, derailments, and some office furniture, etc.

When they got caught, they were fired for Rule 801. Lloyd did his year off and came back with his trainmens seniority. Gary Gorman could have done the same thing, except he filed a false accident report, which ended his employment. Dennis Kling had been hired as a summer brakeman, but was eventually hired as an officer, so he had no seniority to fall back on. I don't know anything about the steno.
G

I don't know anything about the steno.

Seems as I remember ... the steno spilled the beans on all of them. Also, I think the tunnel fire, out at Searles, might have been part of all the corruption. But the fire was in 1980 and the big wash out was in 1982.

HardYellow Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I don't know anything about the steno.
>
> Seems as I remember ... the steno spilled the
> beans on all of them. Also, I think the tunnel
> fire, out at Searles, might have been part of all
> the corruption. But the fire was in 1980 and the
> big wash out was in 1982.


1983 on the washout

the last that I heard about Dennis Kling he was selling Toyotas in Bakersfield..

Posted by WAF

1983 on the washout

Yep, 1983...seems like it was April. Isn’t that when they day-lighted tunnel 1/2 ?

HardYellow Wrote:
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> Posted by WAF
>
> 1983 on the washout
>
> Yep, 1983...seems like it was April. Isn’t that
> when they day-lighted tunnel 1/2 ?


Believe so... what a disaster. I was on one of the first if not the first trains down the hill when the track opened after being shutdown for ten days.. I was amazed at the destruction and viewing what the force of water can do on the landscape. The little town of Caliente was devastated .. the area around Illmon to Bena was indescribable ..

I think tunnel 1/2 came later.. I was on an eastbound (340) on a Sunday afternoon ( summertime) ..had a one unit helper behind the caboose ( JIm Neal) i think.. tunnel 1/2 had just been demolished and the helper, caboose and several other cars derailed at Caliente.. The headend was stopped on the horseshoe and cars derailed around the Post Office... Boss Hog came out to the scene .. think it was derailment number 15 or so.. All he said was "can't I guy stay home on a Sunday afternoon without you guys going on the ground !? ". The cause was determined as irregular cross level of the track at tunnel 1/2.

HardYellow Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I don't know anything about the steno.
>
> Seems as I remember ... the steno spilled the
> beans on all of them. Also, I think the tunnel
> fire, out at Searles, might have been part of all
> the corruption. But the fire was in 1980 and the
> big wash out was in 1982.

Was it ever determined if the tunnel fire out at Searles was intentionally set and if so by who?

When did all this foolishness start and when did SP finally find out about it? I'm having a hard time remembering when all those derailments occurred.

TIA


Allen

Posted by bradleymckay

Was it ever determined if the tunnel fire out at Searles was intentionally set and if so by who?

As I was told; there was a labor problem with a trucking company out at Trona. The feeling was, some trucker set the tunnel fire. That’s what Bob Hitson or Bill Deskin told us. The really sad result was, the fire spelled the end of the line up to Lone Pine.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/28/14 10:34 by HardYellow.