The Atlantic & Southern Saturday Report

Started by Judge, January 05, 2019, 03:59:09 PM

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PaulS

Thanks Bill another great Saturday Report from the A&S ...   And a toast this evening to Daddy Joe ...
All the best,
--Paul
Modeling the Atlantic & White Mtn Railway

MAP

Thanks for weaving the tale of the Pullman Porters Bill.  Always a treat reading your reports. 
Mark

GPdemayo

A good day was had by all.....Bill, I wasn't speeding, the dispatcher said that the reefers had a lot of valuable product that had to get to market without delay.....I did not dawdle.  ;D
Gregory P. DeMayo
General Construction Superintendent Emeritus
St. Louis & Denver Railroad
Longwood, FL

Judge

Followers of the Atlantic & Southern Saturday Report -
I am pleased to announce the photos for this week's report have been posted.  Once again it was my fault.  Whatever happened to "copy and paste?"  Sorrry for the inconvenience.

BTW, "Daddy Joe" was as much of a mythological character in the world of Pullman Porters as Paul Bunyon was to the loggers of the Northwest. 

Judge

SATURDAY REPORT DELAYED DUE TO LIGHTNING STORM.  TRY SUNDAY AFTER NOON.  SORRY ABOUT THAT! 

Oldguy

Another round of great stories.
In downtown Kansas City, MO, the waiters at the Savoy Grill were ex-pullman porters.  There service was always perfect.
The old Kansas Model Railroad Club was in the Union Station on the 6th or 7th floor (been awhile ago) and used to be a pullman porter dormitory.  The bathroom walls and showers were all marble.
Bob Dye
Livin large on a pond

Judge

#201
Atlantic & Southern Saturday Report May 4, 2019.

Yesterday, your Reporter was preparing this report when one of those Florida summer thunder storms suddenly came upon this location. (Central Florida is the lightning capital of the nation.) A lightning strike was so close it sounded like a howitzer going off.  Loss of internet and the burglar alarm system was the only noticeable damage.  Unfortunately, by the time internet was restored it was time to attend to my wife and her sister, who is visiting for an entire week.  This morning I was able to get my router back in service and am now submitting the Saturday Report.
 
   The Saturday morning meeting of the Board of Directors of the A&S Railroad began on time, but was interrupted by visitors related to the CEO.  After they cleared out, your Reporter marveled at the hand-made 30ยบ crossover manufactured this week.  It is to be installed, hopefully this week, and that will go a long way towards completing the track plan for the Summit. 
   The ACL Champion received major maintenance this past week.  The trucks on each of the cars were disassembled and cleaned and a few inferior couplers were replaced.  Performance was noticeably improved.  However, even with the broad curves provided by the A&S civil engineers, backing 85' passenger cars is still a problem.  The solution may be to switch our couplers for a slightly longer shank.  That will be tried this week.
   An electrical problem occurred when the locomotives exited the reversing loop at the Summit.  This problem was 99% solved by connecting feeder wires and will be completely solved when additional feeders are dropped.
   Lunch was at Smokey Bones and we got to split a free desert because it is the week of your Reporter's birthday.  Many, many calories!  Good thing we wear overalls.
   After lunch, we tried running steam engines.  Overland Models made a brass ACL 4-8-4 back in the 70's and we are unlucky enough to own two of them.  They originally cost $190.00.  They weren't worth that then and they aren't worth that now.  They will probably be assigned to the display case, at least for now.

                                                                                                          THIS WEEK'S STORY

   The story this week is a little different.  It is a history lesson involving the A&S and the war of 1861-1865. 

   I had an old military school buddy from Vicksburg, Mississippi who died recently from complications with diabetes.  Lamar McMillan was a family doctor in Vicksburg, and a Civil War Historian.  He knew more about the 1861-1865 War than anyone I've ever known.  He also had a great sense of humor and knew how to put a spin on historical facts. Lamar would call them "alternative facts," but he didn't invent that term.  Anyway, here is Lamar's version of that war as retold by Tahope Citizens, whose ancestors worked for the A&S in the 1860's. 

                                                                                                               DIXIE DAYS

   The Atlantic & Southern was incorporated by the Florida Legislature in 1859.  Originally, the line ran from the St. Johns River in Mosquito County down to Tahope.  The main source of revenue came from cargo transported by the river boats that traveled up and down the river to and from Jacksonville.  Life was tranquil, considering Florida was still mostly frontier. All of that changed on January 10, 1861, when Florida became the third state to secede from the Union to join the Confederate States of America.  Florida, and the other Confederate States wanted the separation to be amicable, but it was not to be. 
   On April 12, 1861, in response to President Lincoln's claim that the Confederate States were in a state of rebellion, which was untrue, and his call for federal forces to put down the supposed rebellion, the Confederate State of South Carolina, launched a successful "first shot strategy" by clearing federal troops from Fort Sumter, which was located in Charleston Harbor. 
   Lincoln's response was to launch an invasion, designed to attack and destroy a peaceful, neighboring nation that only went to war to defend its independence in the "War of Northern Aggression."  The Confederate States lost their independence and the lives of many southern patriots when they resisted the unprovoked invasion and attack on their property. 
   Lincoln and his cronies called it and "The War Between the States" or "The Civil War," which is all untrue.  The "states" had separated into two separate countries before hostilities began so there were no states to have a war between.  Nor was the war "Civil." Lives and property were ruthlessly and unnecessarily lost.  This war was instigated from day one by the desire of President Lincoln to gain power and control over Dixie and her money. The North wanted to control the tax revenue derived from Southern cotton, which in those days amounted to over two thirds of the federal budget.
   Many sons of farmers and ranchers in Tahope County fought valiantly in Florida's 5th Confederate Volunteer Infantry Regiment, commanded by Brig. Gen. Benjamin Beauregard Benton, until the night they drove Old Dixie down."  Fortunately, the 5th Infantry had no casualties because the soldiers had no bullets due to Quartermaster oversight.  No portraits of General Benton exist, but his statue of was erected in front of the Tahope County Courthouse to memorialize the 5th Infantry Regiment's exploits, and no one seeks to remove it.

                                                     
                      This is the only known photograph of General Benton.  Unfortunately, he was standing directly behind General Lee and his likeness is not shown.

   Today, the people of Tahope County remain peaceful and dutifully swear allegiance to the United States.  But there are a few who drive pick-up trucks flying the Confederate Battle Flag, chew tobacco, and long for independence from government intrusion in their lives.  These people are tolerated, even though they don't understand that the reason they are tolerated lies in the same freedom we all enjoy.  Yee-Ha! 

P.S.  The following U. S, Army military installations are named after Confederate generals:

Camp Beauregard, La. - Louisiana National Guard
Ft. Benning, Ga. - Home of the Infantry School, Armor School, and Airborne School
Ft. Bragg, N.C. - !8th Airborne Corps and Ft. Bragg
Ft. Gordon, Ga.- Home of the Signal Corps
Ft. A. P. Hill, Va.  - Army Training Center
Ft. Hood, Tx  - Armor
Ft. Lee, Va. - Quartermaster
Ft. Pickett, Va. - Virginia National Guard
Ft. Polk, La. - Army Readiness Training Center
Ft. Rucker, Ala. - Army Aviation


BandOGuy

Great report judge, as usual.
I attended college in Kentucky. In the history department, there was of courses a class entitled "History of the South". My sophomore year, there was a question on the final exam, "Discuss the largest contribution to the economic recovery of the south during or after the "Civil War". My fraternity brother, Herschel Cave received an A for the semester by answering, that "the greatest contribution to the economic recovery of the South after the war came when General Sherman ran out of matches during his march  to the sea".
Working on my second million. I gave up on the first.

GPdemayo

In Dixie Land where I was born in, early on a frosty mornin',Look away, look away, look away, Dixie Land.....
Gregory P. DeMayo
General Construction Superintendent Emeritus
St. Louis & Denver Railroad
Longwood, FL

PRR Modeler

Curt Webb
The Late Great Pennsylvania Railroad
Freelanced PRR Bellevue Subdivision

Blazeman

Notice in the portrait, all are the same height. 

jimmillho

Quote from: GPdemayo on May 05, 2019, 02:50:27 PM
In Dixie Land where I was born in, early on a frosty mornin',Look away, look away, look away, Dixie Land.....

Every body "look away" when Greg is at the Throttle. ;D ;D ;D ;D

Jim

Judge

#207
Saturday Report - May 11, 2019.
The Directors of the A&S Railroad met at 0830 hours and tested the new hand crafted 30 degree crossover that was installed since the last report. "Smooth as glass," said your reporter as the ACL Champion clattered over the diamond.  Unfortunately, backing the Champ was not as easy as proceeding forward.  Derailments plagued the section foreman, who suggested a change of couplers.  The change was made in short order and there was no more difficulty.  We wondered out loud why we hadn't changed the couplers 10 years ago.  Better late than never I suppose.

Greg DeMayo arrived on the property with a New York Central Hudson.  We hitched it up to a freight and gave it a run.  DeMayo was on his best behavior and allowed his freight to follow at a respectful distance behind the Champion around the Summit.

Lunch at Smokey Bones, as usual.

Expect some track to be laid in the Summit yard this week.

This week's story involves a young man, down on his luck, who doesn't know to appreciate a good thing when he has it.

                                                                                                      Working on the Champ

   The Atlantic & Southern does not run any passenger trains.  It's sole piece of passenger equipment is an ancient Pullman solarium car, which is spotted on a stub track south of Tahope and reserved for the use of politicians, who sometimes gather there for a game of chance and some backroom deals involving the lives and property of local citizens.  Occasionally, the car is attached to a passenger train, so it can be used to transport the same politicians to Jacksonville to watch the annual Florida-Georgia football game in the Gator Bowl. 
   The citizens of Tahope catch the local mixed train to Sanlando if they wish to embark on a journey on one of the many passenger trains that frequent the area at different times of the year, including ACL's Champion, which has luxury accomodations, including fine dining, and is staffed by only the most skilled and seasoned conductors, porters, and dining room personnel.
It is 1950 and "The Champ" is powered by EMD E units, usually in an A-B-A configuration.  The train has a dining car owned by Pullman named Orlando, which seats 36 comfortably.  The car is nearly new, having been purchased after the war.  The staff includes the head steward, Mr. Butler, the head chef, an assistant chef, four waiters and a dishwasher. 
   One day in May, The Champ pulled into Sanlando loaded with passengers headed for Miami and St. Petersburg (The Champ splits in half south of Orlando at Auburndale, with half the train heading to Miami and the other half heading to St. Petersburg). Turns out, Mr. Butler had to put the dishwasher off the train due to illness.  A replacement was needed because it was time for lunch to be served. 
   Mr. Butler checked with the station agent to see if he could recommend a local replacement to wash dishes, but the station agent did not know of anyone who would fit the exacting standards required to work on The Champ.  That is when Mr. Butler noticed a short, unkept soul reclining on a bench near the station entrance, who appeared to be sleeping.
   Mr. Butler tapped him on the foot.  The young man appeared to be quite startled but was together enough to inquire for the reason his sleep was disturbed by a stranger.  "I am Mr. Butler, the head steward of The Champion" the stranger said, "and I need a temporary dishwasher to help with my train.  I can pay $ 20.00 a day plus meals and the use of a berth in a section."  "You got your man," said the benchwarmer. "My name is Donny, but my friends call me Short Stack."   
   With that, Mr. Butler herded Short Stack into the diner and instructed one of the waiters to get him cleaned up and dressed for business.  Now, Short Stack's looks and his general demeanor did not improve with the starched white uniform the waiter provided him, but his self esteem was positively affected. This was the most prestigious job he ever had.
   The Assistant Chef showed Short Stack the side sink and instructed him on his dishwashing duties.  Fortunately, the china selected by Pullman for use on The Champion was heavy duty so no matter how many times Short Stack let a dish or cup slip through his soapy fingers, minimal breakage occurred.
   Short Stack soon learned that he had an hour or two between meals that he could call his own.  He used them to explore the train, especially the cabinet beneath the bar in the club car where the liquor was stored.  The trip to Miami was mostly uneventful and Short Stack enjoyed the soft clean, upper berth he slept in through the night in Miami while awaiting the morning departure back to Sanlando.
   On the way back to Sanlando the next day, Short Stack learned that the compartments in the sleepers did not have locks on the doors.  The car porter was supposed to keep watch but he would sometimes take a smoke break standing in the vestibule between cars. 
   Short Stack saw his chance and entered Compartment C.  He removed a valuable pearl necklace from its hiding place and was about to put it in his pocket when a large hand belonging to the porter grabbed him by the nape of the neck. 
   About that time the train pulled into the station at Sanlando and the porter escorted Short Stack to the doorway.  He disembarked into the custody of Officer Poovey of the Tahope Police Department who charged him with grand theft.
   Short Stack's ma and pa hired Lawyer Marvin Bello to represent him and it was decided that, since he was caught red handed, a guilty plea would be the best strategy.  So, Short Stack entered a plea before Circuit Judge Elvin Thomas.  The prosecutor recommended two to three years in prison as a sentence because Short Stack "is a bum who lives in the Bottoms where he trespasses on railroad property and is constantly misdemeanin." 
   Judge Thomas asked Short Stack if he was entering his plea voluntarily and Short Stack said, "Judge, I didn't steal a damn thing.  I was caught while I was just lookin' at the necklace."  The Judge informed Short Stack that in Florida trying to steal something is the same as stealing it.  Short Stack said, "That don't seem right to me."  The Judge said, "It don't seem right to me neither.  Thirty days."   


Short Stack's Parents,Virgil and Daisey



Florida Chain Gang.  That's Short Stack in the striped outfit





MAP

Another great Report Bill.  Always entertaining!
Mark

GPdemayo

Gregory P. DeMayo
General Construction Superintendent Emeritus
St. Louis & Denver Railroad
Longwood, FL

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