Great image. Nice to see this added and how cool that you have a personal connection.
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Nice shot, really love those old group photos around the locomotives.
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| Posted by Dana M. on December 16, 2014 | |
Great photograph Steven - I like the brief history and explanation that you provided too. I think it's a wonderful gift to have a photo like this in your personal collection as it includes family ties. I hope your great-grandfather was one of the best machinists the SP&S ever had. I wish I had a relative that I could say worked for the railroad - ANY railroad for that matter. You must be proud to have the opportunity to share this photo. By the way - where exactly is your great-grandfather standing on the running board?
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One thing I find interesting is age -- just by appearances, there are no really young people in the photo and quite a few older ones. I would take that to mean that this was an elite crew of the most experienced locomotive maintenance personnel, the ones with the experience to rebuild such a complex piece of machinery and keep the engines running. Not too much dirt and grime, either -- they got cleaned up for the photo and are obviously proud of their skills and the result. A photo to treasure since he is in your family -- thanks for sharing.
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Thank you to everyone for all the kind comments. To answer Dana's question, my great-grandfather is the one standing furthest to the left on the running board. I have several family members who worked in some capacity in the railroad industry. My grandfather was a switching engineer in the Portland yards; my grandmother was a waitress at Union Station; my father was an office clerk for Southern Pacific; and my brother manufactured Gunderson Twin-Stack rail cars. I have some vintage photos of my grandfather in the rail yards which I'll upload. Thanks again!
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Great photo ! This reminds me and should reminds us all what the railroad and railroading once was. This photo represents that to me ! One of the best photos on this site and i've seen them all. Thank you for sharing this stevenjay !
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Thanks to a friendly tip, I've discovered this photo was previously published in the Summer 1969 edition of the SP&S magazine "The Dope Bucket". Here is the link to a scan: https://www.flickr.com/photos/73151725@N05/8666063855/in/photostream
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