N&W Pass Ex 503 West, October

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Too bad the station (except part of the concourse) is obscured by the train in the photo.  What colors did the N&W use on its station signs for "Roanoke," etc., during this period and later?

J. Kelling, Greenbelt, MD


>>> <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> 03/25/06 10:29AM >>>

The November 1934 N&W Magazine carried a feature article on the railroad's operation of passenger extras to get FDR from Monroe to Salem, and then back to Petersburg, on the preceding October 19.

My only interest in this affair is that my grandfather was called off the Brakeman's Extra List (which was making about two days a week in 1934) to work the train over its Radford Division lap (Roanoke to Salem and return.)

Attached is a scan of the 3 1/4" x 5 1/2" photo carried in the Magazine depicting Pass Extra 503 West arriving at Roanoke from the Norfolk Division.  The train was probably still in motion as the shutter snapped, as the front of the engine is a bit blurred, but you can definitely make out the white classification signals (flags) in the smokebox brackets.

Note that the train is a double-header.  Probably two E-Class Pacifics.

Is there any surviving record of the number of the second engine ?

The train was received at Monroe from the Southern.  Roosevelt went "by motorcade" from Roanoke to the Veteran's Hospital at Salem for a dedication of that facility, and the train was moved empty from Roanoke to Salem.  FDR re-boarded the train at Salem and was taken to Petersburg, where it was handed off to the Atlantic Coast Line.

Writers for railroad publications in 1934, unlike those of today (ahem !,) undersood enough of the operation of the industry to make an intelligent record of some of the interesting details:  "... the locomotives were uncoupled and taken to the Roanoke Shops yard, where they were turned on the turntable there, watered and coaled.  At the same time a yard engine had pulled the remainder of the train up to the Campbell Avenue Wye and turned it so that it would be handled in the opposite direction.  The six cars were then pulled back to the passenger station where they were inspected, iced, watered, etc....  The train was now ready to be moved to Salem, where the presidential party would board it.  One of the engines was coupled to the front of the train and the other to the rear.  In this way the special was moved, deadhead, to Salem where the locomotive on the rear was run around the train and coupled as the lead engine.  The entire operation of handling the engine and train a
 t Roanoke was done efficiently and swiftly; hardly more than an hour was required for it all.  Promptly at five o'clock, the time specified for the train to be in readiness at Salem, the special was there, ready to move at once if necessary.  The special train left Salem promptly at six o'clock and after a short stop at Roanoke where the Radford Division engine crews gave way to engineers and fireman from the Norfolk Division, the journey eastward was resumed...."

The Magazine does list some of the crew members:  Conductor R. P. Phenix and Brakeman J.E. Chrisman "made the entire trip," says the magazine.  Between Monroe and Roanoke, the engine crews were Enginemen J.H. Richardson and R.T. Leonard and Firemen C.W. Davis and B.D. Mann.  From Roanoke to Salem and return, it was Enginemen J.F. Taylor and A.W. Clement and Firemen R.A. Cole and J.B. Austin.  From Roanoke to Petersburg, Enginemen J.H. Amos and F.P. Stiff with Firemen M.G. Raikes and A. Carter.  The Pullman Conductor was J.J. Fitzgibbon of Washington.  The Magazine does not record the names of the Radford Division train crew, one of whom was my grandfather.

Wonder how much money the railroad lost hauling this Stalin-loving, Socialist lout around for a day...?

-- abram burnett