Railroaders' Nostalgia > Where's that Road Foreman!?

That's the question always asked by the Chief Dispatcher or Assistant Division Superintendent when things start to go 'south'. "MDO's" post
regarding SP Road Foremen of Engines and specifically Dean Broadbent got me to scrambling through my negatives taken while I worked
at Espee's Engine Service Training Center, aka "the simulator" located first in Downey and then later at Cerritos, CA.
I was certain that I had a photo of Dean at the center when he had been appointed RFE in 1971 but so far haven't located it....yet. 

What I did find is a photo of another group of newly appointed RFE's, all of which were promoted engineers, along with two of SP's senior staff
of District and System General RFE's while at the center in Downey, again in 1971. Espee would send newly appointed engine service officers
through there spending a week re-freshing themselves on rules, air-brake and mechanical procedures, hopefully before being thrown into the
crucible of day to day division operations. The senior staff were there to answer any questions the 'newbies' might have keeping in mind that
on their new jobs the RFE's would not be working for them but for their respective Assistant Division Superintendents. However the District and
General's were always available to handle issues the ADS's couldn't. At least that's the way it's supposed to work. 

Here we see L-R, a face I can't put a name to. I know that he came from Phoenix and where he was assigned don't recall. Next is Charlie Day.
I believe he was from Hearne TX and was headed to San Antonio. Jim Bruce--headed to Eugene. Jim Plank---Klamath Falls?.
Next is C.B. Jordan who apparently also served at San Antonio (Thanks to James Koch and Bill Fowler for that info).
Next is T.B."Brick" Wagner---System General RFE; then F.A. Heuschkell (pronounced Haskell)--District RFE Texas & Louisiana Lines.

If I've got the names or locations wrong feel free to chime in. 

Charlie



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/03/19 23:09 by cewherry.

---

This reminds me that EHH eliminated RFE on CSX as well as having TMs haul crews in their PERSONAL vehicles.
Have these asinine practices been rescinded since he is no longer around?

... back when company officers actual had some whiskers...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/18/19 18:22 by Highspeed.

And when company officers dressed the part.

Englewood Wrote:
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> And when company officers dressed the part.

The morning that SP's entire board of directors flew down from San Francisco on a charter to visit the 
simulator I walked into the office and saw 8 dress hats sitting on a shelf over the coat rack. Since I didn't
own a dress hat I asked Dale Grissom, one of my fellow supervisor/instructor's and veteran operating officer
about them. He remarked that 'back in the day' the superintendent would count hats upon entering a building
to see how many of his staff were in attendance. At the end of that day Grissom gathered his collection, 
put them in a paper bag and took them back home. The directors were pleased.

Charlie



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/21/19 12:07 by cewherry.

Charlie, after I was transferred from the WP to the MP after the merger with UP, many of the MP managers still wore hats when around senior management. I never did buy a hat but did have too buy a dark blue suit, wingtip shoes, I already had a white dress shirt and a tie,The WP was much more laid back than the MP. I once had to borrow a hat from an olds time great guy of a trainmaster on the MP at Taylor Texas Roy Walker, he always kept 2 or three hats in his company car and a few extra in his office for when they were needed. This brings back memories of different time in railroading.

have a great and safe weekend 

Charlie Day began his SP career in December, 1949 and held various positions within the Car Dept.  January, 1969 he was appointed Master Car Repairer, Sacramento.

All of them are in coat and tie, all but two are in "proper" suits........was there a penalty for sport coats, or did they qualify as "suits"?

It was mentioned they all had whiskers.......yes, but well shaved.  The only facial hair I recall from those days...at least among officers.....was sideburns.  There must have been a policy regards facial hair.

AA

Stanford White
Carmel Valley, CA

goldcoast Wrote:
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> Charlie Day began his SP career in December, 1949
> and held various positions within the Car Dept. 
> January, 1969 he was appointed Master Car
> Repairer, Sacramento.

I have to believe the Charlie Day you are referring to is not the one in this 1971 photo. The man who began in 1949
would have to have been born no later than 1931 if he had hired on at age 18 which would make the one in the 
photo 40 years old and comparing his photo peers he appears to me to be about 33-35 here. And, given your man
was holding a position at Sacramento in 1969 in the car department it is highly unlikely that he would offered a RFE job.

Looking at an Eastern Region timetable for 1987 I find a C.E. Day assigned as the Houston Division Mechanical Officer
with headquarters at Houston. That man may be the one you have in mind. Thanks for your thoughts on this.

Charlie
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/21/19 12:08 by cewherry.

That is definately the San Antonio Division Charlie Day, a contemporary when I was at San Antonio and Houston 1980-87.  I made trips and worked derailments with him.
Great thinking to keep the box full of hats to impress people from 65 Market Street.
The dress code is still a unsettled issue in some quarters.
While working part time in the Los Angeles office of a big New York consulting firm (on various RR projects) in about 2009 I was out of the office when the word came down that the California "Business Casual" no longer applied, all professionals had to wear coats and ties.
So I wandered in one morning in a clean open collar shirt and saw the glass-walled conference room full of New York officers and started to go toward them to say hello.  Almost instantly my good friend, the receptionist, escorted me the back way to my workspace, explaining the new dress code situation.
I told her that if any of them said anything to tell them I was the copy machine repair guy.
I resigned shortly afterward.

raytc1944 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This reminds me that EHH eliminated RFE on CSX as
> well as having TMs haul crews in their PERSONAL
> vehicles.
> Have these asinine practices been rescinded since
> he is no longer around?

We have a few RFE's but now they handle large swathes of territory no personal service at all. Taxis have returned but officers may still occasionally carry a crew to expedite their move but then they always have.