[RITSlist] Rock Island moonlighting and other old head stuff from the Rock Island

Fri Jun 8 07:51:24 CDT 2007

My first and only experience with the Rock Island Business Car "Lake
Michigan".  I had just hired out in 1973 and it was on the servicing
track at Liberal, KS.
I finally got up enough nerve to climb up the steps and peer inside when
I heard the booming voice of Trainmaster Jim Meek (back when a
trainmaster was really a trainmaster) from several hundred yards away
yell "Wessler, get the hell off that car" which I did in record time.
The "Lake Michigan" is now Montana Rail Link's "Silver Cloud" and has
never looked better.

http://faculty.simpson.edu/RITS/www/equipment/lake_michigan/RI101.html

Rich Wessler 
Director Passenger Train Operations 
BNSF RR 
2600 Lou Menk Dr; NOC/Amtrak 
Ft Worth, TX  76131 
Ph: 817-352-1229 
Cell: 817-946-1603 

	-----Original Message-----
	From: No17Eng654 at aol.com [mailto:No17Eng654 at aol.com] 
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	Subject: Rock Island moonlighting and other old head stuff from
the Rock Island

	Noticed lately the RITS list is just a tad serious.  No fun
discussions lately.  Let's get some discussion going while us old heads
are still alive.

	How about getting some Rock Island old heads talking about the
unusual moonlighting that employees of our railroad would get involved
in?  Here's a few.

	1.    Conductor on Zephyr-Rocket between Cedar Rapids and
Burlington had an interesting job.  Max Demurs (sp?) would leave CR in
the late evening on 190, meet the Northbound 201 at Cols Jct. or
Wapello-Mediapolis area, then spend 24+ hours in Burlington after a 2+
hours trip.  He had an old school bus and worked most of the day around
Burlington as a locksmith.  He was a real character.  On the last run of
the train, Andreeson, Hofsommer, et. al. and I rode the train with a
long lay over at Burlington while the "Q" switched out the equipment for
all CRI&P equipment to go north on the last train and all CB&Q equipment
go south to St. Louis.  Max worked the job that night in a poncho.      

	SIDEBAR We spent most of the trip on the vestibule swapping
stories.  I rode the engine from Manly to Minneapolis with the
penultimate crew Manly to Minneapolis, then the cushions Minneapolis to
Manly, and the engine Manly to Cedar Rapids at the request of retiring
engineer George Kibler.  Ralph Hubler was the last conductor Minneapolis
to Cedar Rapids.  On arrival at CR, he put his uniform cap on my head
and walked away.  We returned to Manly about 0900 or later the next
morning and watched the train roll out of town and gone forever.  

	I truly rode the last train to Clarksville.

	2.    Howard Burress, dispatcher in Des Moines and former
trainmaster ran the Burress Coffee Company in Des Moines during the day
and dispatched the Illinois Division on second trick.

	3.    Harold Rosenburg was an old head from the Des Moines
office, last job working second trick Nebraska-Colorado.  His day job
was mayor of Bondurant and used the water tower for his antenna for his
short wave radio hobbies.

	4.    Emil Hebel, switchman at Manly had a plumbing business.

	5.    Al Moore, mechanical laborer at Manly was an accomplished
electrician.

	Daniel R. Sabin, President
	Iowa Northern Railway Company
	Paramount Theatre Building
	305 Second Street, SE
	Suite 400
	Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401

	(319) 297-6000 Ext 1
	fax: (319) 297-6005
	home: (319) 354-1127
	cell: (319) 325-4119
	Fax (319) 354-3817
	email: dsabin at iowanorthern.com
	No17Eng654 at aol.com

  _____  

	See what's free at AOL.com
<http://www.aol.com?ncid=AOLAOF00020000000503> . 

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