CBRHS officers for 1997 were elected at the September membership meeting held at the Arkansas Railroad Museum as follows:

President — Peter Smykla, Jr.

Vice President of Operations — Robert R. McClanahan

Vice President of Maintenance — Jack Stone

Secretary — Elizabeth Gaines

Treasurer — Joe McCullough

NRHS National Director — Darrel Cason

Board of Directors — Bennie Price (Chairman), Bill Bailey, Alvin Branch, Joey Narbutowitch, Monty Pride

President — Winston Green

Vice President/Business — Pete Martinez

Vice President/819 Excursion Support — Roy E. Cooper

Secretary — Chris Martinez

Treasurer — Charlene Work

Board of Directors — Gerald E. Cooper (Chairman), Bill Pyle, Joe Locke, Mary Jones, Joey Narbutowitch,
Robert R. McClanahan

The EMD SW-8 locomotive was donated by the Environmental Protection and Improvement Corporation (EPIC), and according to Cooper, is in good condition but needs some generator work to be fully operational.

Southern Pacific Transportation Company (SP) donated the Cotton Belt bay window caboose. The caboose, also in good condition, came with many fixtures intact.

Expect the unexpected! In December 1938 I protected third trick at Clarendon, Arkansas. The first night I went outside to deliver orders to a southbound freight. I returned to the office to discover I’d locked myself out. The Dispatcher was ringing so I hurriedly jerked the screen out of the ticket window and climbed inside the office. It was done so easily I realized that I hadn’t been the only person who had locked himself out. It had happened before.

Several inches of ice and snow covered the station platform as No. 1, the Lone Star passenger, made its station stop. Riding between the engine tender and the first baggage car was a transient, who detrained.

I had a red-hot fire in the potbellied stoves in both waiting rooms. The young transient, 18 and from Texas, approached the ticket window and asked permission to warm, which was given.

He also asked: "Can I catch a freight here?"

I answered in the negative, explaining that freights did not stop.

A very cold wind was blowing across the Grand Prairie, when later I was outside delivering train orders to a southbound freight. After handing-up to the engine, I saw this youth, in very heavy clothing and a knapsack on his back, come charging down the platform, attempting to hop the freight.

I was inspecting the train as it passed, and waiting to deliver orders to the caboose, when he fell, almost at my feet, and suffered a crushed foot. I helped drag him to the foot of the train order signal, but couldn’t do more until I’d delivered orders to the moving train. Then I notified the proper authorities. I was on hand later that day when they loaded him on a stretcher into the baggage car on No. 5, taking him back to Texas.

I got an indefinite leave from the Cotton Belt, and was attending the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville when some time later I received instruction from the Railroad Legal Department to appear in Federal Court at Texarkana, as I had been accused of instructing the youth to hop a freight train. Naturally I was very upset, but I was advised before the trial date that the case had been settled out of court.

About 1940 on first trick McNeil, Arkansas, I cleared No. 43, the Blue Streak, expecting him within ten minutes. Forty-five minutes passed and still No. 43 had not shown. With no radio communication back then you would ponder what might have happened. The 800 engine pulling No. 43 came slowly down the hill, nothing but the engine. They stopped in front of the depot, and I could see the form of a man just back of the cowcatcher. He was gently lifted by the engine crew to a baggage truck, and an ambulance was called. Both arms and legs were broken, and we were told later that he didn’t make it. He had been driving a loaded gravel truck down a hill on a country road and had struck the third car behind the engine.

About 1942 an extra freight was called north out of Texarkana. No Arkansas crew was available, so a crew from Texas was called, with Trainmaster Ware, a promoted Conductor, acting as Pilot. The train took siding at McNeil to meet No. 5. I was listening on the Dispatcher’s phone about ten minutes later when static appeared on the telephone line.

What had happened was that the train with the Texas crew had struck a stopped freight ahead, killing the Texas engineer.

We learned to expect the unexpected.

On July 1, 1894 St. Louis Southwestern Railway (Cotton Belt) freight train No. 15 with Engineer Zacharias "Zackery" Joseph Ferguson at the throttle, was descending what was locally known as Negro Hill, just south of Lewisville, Arkansas at maximum speed. Suddenly, he looked ahead and saw that the tr

estle at the foot of the hill was afire. Perhaps, in that brief moment that he had left to apply the brakes, he momentarily thought back on his older times in Jackson, Tennessee, where he had fired some for the noted Casey Jones, of the Illinois Central Railway. Also, perhaps to think of his wife, Eliza Jane Thoey and his several children, who now lived with him in Pine Bluff.

Ferguson’s efforts proved, however, to be in vain, as the engine, 28 cars and caboose all fell through the burning trestle, which gave way when occupied. Engineer Ferguson and Brakeman J. T. Richardson were instantly killed and Fireman O’Neal was dangerously scalded. It was speculated that sparks from the northbound passenger train set the trestle on fire.

Engineer Ferguson was the secretary of the local lodge of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. Funeral services for Ferguson were conducted at the Catholic Church, on the morning of July 3, with the well know Father J. M. Lucey in charge. His remains were interred in St. Joseph’s Catholic Cemetery, Pine Bluff. Ferguson was only 42 at the time of death.

Newspapers — PINE BLUFF DAILY COMMERCIAL, Pine Bluff, AR, July 2 and July 3, 1894; PINE BLUFF DAILY GRAPHIC, Pine Bluff, AR, July 2 and July 3, 1894.

Interviews — Mrs. S. T. Songer (Engineer Ferguson’s Granddaughter); L. N. "Buddy" Gaines Sr., Cotton Belt Agent/Telegrapher

Other — Tombstone of Z. J. Ferguson, St. Joseph’s Cemetery, Pine Bluff.

In Spokane we had an elderly neighbor who had retired from either Great Northern, Northern Pacific or one of the northern lines, as a district superintendent. He had been responsible for handling Roosevelt’s train arrangements when the President visited the northwest before W.W.II. Matt Fredericks had a good sense of humor. When I showed him Olan Mills’ picture of #819, he gave me a running commentary on its capabilities, based on his experiences over many years. Matt saw the Cotton Belt sign on #819 and laughed. "The Cotton Belt boys who wound up out here were a wild bunch!" He said that an engineer named "Cotton Belt Johnson" sailed through a switching yard down south of Seattle at almost triple the speed limit, and never batted an eye," and made it!

Thanks for coming out west again. You put on quite a show, as always. We appreciate all the hard work that you did so that we could enjoy these magnificent engines once again. And we did enjoy their visit, very much.

Unfortunately, all this fun and enjoyment has a darker side. While we fans are normally courteous, law-abiding people, I (and others) often get carried away in our pursuit of fun and steam engines.

We do things that are inconsiderate, pacing the engines even if it means blocking those behind us who are desperate to pass so they can reach their favorite photo spot ahead of the train.

We do things that are unsafe, pushing the limits of the conditions (which are crowded, whenever you and your engines are around). But "Hey, I know what I’m doing!" Do we?

I am no stranger to the adrenaline rush of chasing your engines. The joy of seeing big steam, the thrill of pursuit… but sometimes I get a bit carried away.

On your last trip out here came the incident that made me question my ways. On a two-lane road there was a crossing at a shallow angle. I was pushing to get to the next spot. The crossing gates came down and the two cars in front of me stopped. But I didn’t want to stop, even for the (quite short) train you were pulling, which was the same train I was chasing in the first place. The next spot was better, see, and I had to rush like crazy to get there in time. So, after a quick look to be sure I could make it, I went around the two cars and around the crossing gate. I made it with a good second to spare.

Illegal? Of course. Unsafe? Definitely. Suicidally insane? Absolutely.

Would it have hurt me so much to stop and watch the very train I was trying to chase? Probably not.

Could it have hurt me to do what I did? Definitely. You were doing about 60 miles an hour, 3985 weighs about 500 tons, 844 weighs almost as much, and you had two auxiliary tenders and 21 cars in tow.

Could it have hurt 844? I don’t know, but a collision with a car (even a compact) sure wouldn’t do her any good.

Did I make your job a lot more stressful than it needed to be? The angry whistle and middle-finger salute from 844’s engineer told me that I did. I don’t know if a collision could hurt you (probably not, unless she left the rails), but I guess that you don’t enjoy the thought of watching somebody die just a boiler-length in front of you. What a way to ruin the fun, not just for me, but for you as well.

Will I be less reckless in the future? I like to think so. Chasing steam engines is supposed to be fun, not to prompt a long day of brooding on human folly and mortality. If I can just keep from getting so carried away in the fun of it all.

Thanks for the memories… and the lesson. I’m most grateful that it wasn’t learned the hard way.

With sincere apologies,

Mike Stimpson

Salt Lake City, UT

PBO&T did operate lines connecting Benton, Sheridan and Pine Bluff, and from Millersville south of Sheridan to Clio near Rison. The Millersville site in Grant County was eventually connected to Sheridan by the PBO&T, and I have walked on this tram which is still visible within the Sheridan city limits. This left only a few miles to connect northeast of the city. This connection, if completed, would have linked Kearney to Sheridan and Millersville to Clio, Rison and Fordyce in Dallas County. I still am not sure if this happened.

The Millersville to Sheridan route was in use prior to World War I but not before 1909. I am told that much of this track was removed and reused in France by the military during the war. The route in 1915 was called the Erin, Missouri Pacific and Iron Mountain Railroad, and in 1917, the Pine Bluff Southern and Sheridan Railroad. Erin was another name for Millersville. (Editor’s Note: Elvin L. Goolsby is Grant County Historian and director of the Grant County Museum)

Back in the good old days beginning in late August the Cotton Belt would assemble all the empty boxcars it could find, in preparation for the annual fall rush. Out on the Truman Branch it would fill every siding with empties, in anticipation of the fall harvest of cotton, soybeans, corn, wheat and oats, plus all our regular movements. They also filled the yard tracks at Gideon, Missouri, and I had to classify each car as to its suitability for loading. Many of the cars were "dogs," rough and beat up and in need of conditioning before loading, if not rejected.

At the height of this three month fall rush, Farmers Gin, a half mile from the depot, ordered five cars for bulk soybean loading. Soybean loading required a very tight car. I had very few soybean empties in the yard, but one Union Pacific boxcar checked suitable and I listed it to the local to be spotted at Farmers Gin.

Gideon Anderson Lumber Company had its own switch engine, No. 80, a gasoline engine. In a quandary I decided to break all the rules and regulations. So I approached Fred, the brakeman, and "Shine" the engineer, and gave each a $1 bill.

All this was never known, but had it been — all six members of the local crew would have been entitled to 100 miles pay, and I’m quite sure an Agent would have been severely demerited or even terminated.

That’s the was it was back then, back about 1949. Today all this has disappeared, gone the way of progress.

To prepare for the stunt, two 1870 vintage 35-ton Pittsburg 4-4-0’s and six boxcars for each train were selected. Engineer Charles Cain and fireman S. M. Dickerson were in #1001 which was painted red with green trim. Engineer C. E. Stanton and fireman Frank Barnes were in #999, painted green with red trim. Brakes were disconnected from all the cars so that they could not interfere with the speed the engines would build when their throttles were tied open. The two engines paraded up and down the lines for a week to advertise the stunt. Practice runs were held to test speeds and to predict where the trains would collide. On that fateful day, lengths of tracks were removed behind each train in case one derailed, failing to stop the other, which would have careened on without brakes or engineers.

P. T. Barnum, a friend of Crush’s, raised one of the Ringling Brothers tents to be used as a restaurant. A 2,100-foot platform and a grandstand were built on the site. Workers even built a wooden jail to house pickpockets and drunks as they were arrested.

By late afternoon, the 200 extra constables that were hired and Crush had to fight to keep people from the tracks, even more so as the two trains came into view and touched briefly before backing up one mile for their final run. With the drop of a hat, the two locomotives took off. Steam flying and bells ringing, the two locomotives rumbled toward each other "like the gathering force of a cyclone" a Dallas newspaper reported the next day. The engineers on board jumped to their safety.

The engines collide!! "A crash, the sound of timbers ripping apart, and then the shower of splinters." An eerie silence fell before both of the boilers exploded, filling the air with flying missiles of iron and steel, ranging in size from a postage stamp to half the size of a driving wheel. Two men were killed and a photographer, who was covering the story, lost an eye. People were burned as they rushed towards the twisted pile of metal to gather souvenirs.

Schedule — That part of a timetable which prescribes class, direction, number and movement for a regular train.

Section — One of two or more trains running on the same schedule, displaying signals or for which signals are displayed.

Semaphore Signal — A signal in which the day indications are given by the position of a semaphore arm.

Shock — The effect of a sudden change in speed of a car, locomotive or train, or part of a train.

Side Track — A track auxiliary to the main track.

Siding — A track auxiliary to the main track for meeting or passing trains. The timetable will indicate stations at which sidings are located.

Signal Aspect — The appearance of a fixed signal conveying an indication as viewed from the direction of an approaching train; or the appearance of a cab signal conveying an indication as viewed by an observer in the cab.

Signal Indication — The information conveyed by the signal aspect.

Single Track — A main track upon which trains are operated in both directions.

Slack — The motion, forward or back, that one or more cars, locomotives, or parts of a train has without moving other coupled cars, locomotives, or parts of the train. Loose slack is the free movement or lost motion between parts of a train. Spring slack is the movement beyond the free or lost motion brought about through compressing the draft gear springs. Slack is necessary so as to start one car at a time and so that the train may be operated around curves and over high and low places.

Slack Action — Movement of part of a coupled train at a different speed than another part of the same train.

Slug — A small, ballasted, four or six axle unit, semipermantly coupled to a locomotive that does not have a prime mover, but does have traction motors. Generally used in yard duty where the switcher has enough horsepower, but not enough tractive force to push long strings of cars up a hump.

Spring Switch — A switch equipped with a spring mechanism to restore the switch points to original position after having been trailed through.

Spur Track — As distinguished from the side track, a spur track is of indefinite length, extending out from the main line.

Station — A place designated in the timetable station column by name.

Stub Track — A form of side track connected to a running track at one only and protected at the other end by a bumping post or other obstruction.

Subdivision — A portion of a division designated by timetable.

Superior Train — A train having precedence over another train.

Switch Point Indicator — A light type indicator used in connection with facing point movement over certain switches to indicate switch points fit properly.

Tangent Track — Straight track.

Tare Weight — The weight of an empty car.

Team Track — A track on which rail cars are placed for the use of the public in loading or unloading freight.

Terminating line haul road — The last railroad over which any shipment travels.

Terminating Station — The last station on each subdivision to which a train is authorized to occupy the main track.

Timetable — The authority for the movement of regular trains subject to the rules. It may contain classified schedules and includes special instructions.

TOFC — Trailer on a flat car. Refers to intermodal shipments.

Tons per Operative Brake — Gross trailing tonnage of the train divided by the total number of cars having operative brakes. (not including locomotives)

Track Circuit — An electrical circuit of which the rails of the track form a part. The track circuit is the basis of signaling systems.

Track Gauge — The distance between the inner faces of the track heads. Nominally, 4’ 8.5".

Track Head — The top of the track on which the wheels roll.

Track Web — The thin section of track between the base and the head.

Trackage Rights — An agreement between two railroads according to which, one railroad buys the right to run its trains on the tracks of the other, and usually pays a toll for the privilege. That toll is called a "wheelage" charge.

Track Bulletin — A notice containing information as to track conditions or other conditions, necessary for the safe operation of trains or engines.

Track Permit — A form used to authorize occupancy of main track where designated by special instructions.

Track Side Warning Detector — Wayside detectors which are provided at various locations as shown in the timetable which detect such conditions as overheated journals, dragging equipment, excess dimensions, shifted loads, high water and slides.

Track Warrant Control (TWC) — A method of authorizing movements of trains or engines or protecting men or machines on a main track within specified limits in territory designated by special instructions or general order.

Tractive Force — The amount of force at the driving wheel rims to start and move tonnage up various grades.

Train — An engine or more than one engine coupled, with or without cars, displaying a marker and authorized to operate on a main track.

Train Brake — The combined brakes on locomotive and cars that provides the means of controlling the speed and stopping of the entire train.

Train Line — See Brake Pipe

Train of Superior Right — A train given precedence by train order.

Train of Superior Class — A train given precedence by time table.

Train of Superior Direction — A train given precedence in the direction specified in the time table as between opposing trains of the same class.

Train Order — A message changing the meeting point between two trains.

Train Register — A book or form used at designated stations for registering time of arrival and departure of trains, and such other information as may be prescribed.

Triple Valve — An operating valve for charging the reservoir, applying the brake, and releasing the brake.

Truck Hunting — Rapid oscillation of an empty car truck at high speeds where the flanges tend to ride up on the head of the rail.

Turnout Number — The ratio of the length of the tangent track to an equal unit of space between the tangent track and a point on the branch track.

Variable Switch — A switch, designated by letter "V" or bowl painted yellow, when trailed through the switch points remain lined in the position to which forced.

Wheel Pull — Caused by the friction between the brake shoe and the wheel and transmitted to the rail.

Wheel Rolling — The wheel rotating on its axle theoretically without motion existing between the wheel and the rail at the area of contact.

Wheel Slipping — The wheel rotating on its axle with motion existing between the wheel and rail at the area of contact.

Wheel Sliding — The wheel not rotating on its axle and motion existing between the wheel and rail at the area of contact.

Wye — A track shaped like the letter "Y", but with a connector between the two arms of the "Y".

Yard — A system of tracks, other than main tracks and sidings, used for making up trains, storing of cars and for other purposes.

Yard Limits — A portion of main track designated by yard limit signs and by timetable, train order Form T or track bulletin, which trains and engines may use as prescribed by Rule 93.

Yard Engine — An engine assigned to yard service.

Yellow Eye — A slang term for a yellow signal.

Please be free to publish the following information in regards to my March 96 inquiry in the Star as to the fate of Cotton Belt 7809.

I have not heard to the contrary. Thanks.