Ln011-14-DeNoiseAI-severe-noise
1965 Coal Railroading-101
The head brakeman on L&N Extra 350 South on December 30, 1965 appears to have some “whiskers” on the seniority roster from the looks of his weathered face. His train is easing down in speed at Loyall, Ky. to allow him to swing off and handle the ground work. Behind the four Alcos up front are 190 empty coal hoppers out of Corbin—a rather long drag even by today’s standards. For the last 68 miles the train has been mostly following the bends and twists of the division’s namesake, the Cumberland River past Barbourville—maintaining a steady pace of 35 to 40 MPH. Despite meets with through freight No. 66 at Pineville, and the Loyall-Varilla mine run at Blackmont, the extra has seen nothing but clear signals.
That piece of paper sticking out of the head brakeman’s jacket pocket is very important. At Corbin, some nameless clerk walked these cars with a several blank switch lists and a few sharp No. 2 L&N “Today is Safety Day” lead pencils. All 190 cars were listed but broken into three groups. The “head” 60 will be set off here for the several mine runs some cars to spot at the many active tipples on the branches radiating off this end of the CV Division. The next 30 are destined for the International Harvester tipple at Benham, Ky., halfway between Cumberland and Lynch, at the end of the Poor Fork Branch. These two groups totaling 90 cars are “commons”—mineral red L&N 50, 60, and 70-ton steel hoppers.
The last 100 cars are fairly new 100-ton L&N hoppers painted bright orange, designating their dedicated use on these trains. Extra 350 South is the “day” Lynch Turn. On the way back home to Corbin that night as Extra 306 North, the crew will meet Extra 355 South, the “night” Lynch at the long siding at Barbourville, Ky., plus “C&M 2,” at Baileys. That’s a mine run for the Cumberland & Manchester branch.
Before two-way radio, the engineer had to be a good judge of how far to go to allow the brakeman to make a cut at, say, the 40, 50, 60, or more car point. Old heads on these runs had their own “landmarks” in mind to have a good idea of where to stop. On this day, though, the brakeman has one of the new-fangled “walkie-talkie” radios, so he’ll talk him down to the point where he should cut off the first 60 cars. He counts the cars and references his switch list looking for the last car in the cut.
After the cut is made, he rides the end of the car to the switch where the crossover between the two mains will allow him to access the old southward main, and then the junction switch into the yard. The operator in the yard office will line the crossover for his move.
The cars are left in one of the clear tracks of 17 in the terminal at Loyall. The power is uncoupled and the brakeman keys the mic on the radio. “Outside, Lynch Man…” Back on the train, the joint is made, the brakes pumped off, and Extra 350 South is ready to depart. The operator has a Clearance Form A with three train orders for the head end crew. He’ll use the bamboo order hoop to deliver the same documents to the conductor when the caboose passes. At the old tower at Baxter, about 4500 feet ahead, the red over green “Clear-Medium” tells the engineer the Poor Fork Branch is now his, except for a mine run working on the Scotia Branch out of Cumberland. That crew has a wait order at Cumberland for Extra 350 South, so the Lynch Man has more than enough time to get to Cumberland and continue to Lynch, out of the way of the mine run.
After the wooden caboose disappears around the curve at the south end of the yard, Loyall is quiet once again---until the next train. Technology and unimaginable changes in virtually every aspect of life will bring changes. Within a decade, the L&N will be facing an epic demand for the movement of coal. That will continue until it abates and traffic dwindles to a comparative trickle. History happens every nanosecond. Photograph it and pay attention to the details.
Ln011-14-DeNoiseAI-severe-noise
1965 Coal Railroading-101
The head brakeman on L&N Extra 350 South on December 30, 1965 appears to have some “whiskers” on the seniority roster from the looks of his weathered face. His train is easing down in speed at Loyall, Ky. to allow him to swing off and handle the ground work. Behind the four Alcos up front are 190 empty coal hoppers out of Corbin—a rather long drag even by today’s standards. For the last 68 miles the train has been mostly following the bends and twists of the division’s namesake, the Cumberland River past Barbourville—maintaining a steady pace of 35 to 40 MPH. Despite meets with through freight No. 66 at Pineville, and the Loyall-Varilla mine run at Blackmont, the extra has seen nothing but clear signals.
That piece of paper sticking out of the head brakeman’s jacket pocket is very important. At Corbin, some nameless clerk walked these cars with a several blank switch lists and a few sharp No. 2 L&N “Today is Safety Day” lead pencils. All 190 cars were listed but broken into three groups. The “head” 60 will be set off here for the several mine runs some cars to spot at the many active tipples on the branches radiating off this end of the CV Division. The next 30 are destined for the International Harvester tipple at Benham, Ky., halfway between Cumberland and Lynch, at the end of the Poor Fork Branch. These two groups totaling 90 cars are “commons”—mineral red L&N 50, 60, and 70-ton steel hoppers.
The last 100 cars are fairly new 100-ton L&N hoppers painted bright orange, designating their dedicated use on these trains. Extra 350 South is the “day” Lynch Turn. On the way back home to Corbin that night as Extra 306 North, the crew will meet Extra 355 South, the “night” Lynch at the long siding at Barbourville, Ky., plus “C&M 2,” at Baileys. That’s a mine run for the Cumberland & Manchester branch.
Before two-way radio, the engineer had to be a good judge of how far to go to allow the brakeman to make a cut at, say, the 40, 50, 60, or more car point. Old heads on these runs had their own “landmarks” in mind to have a good idea of where to stop. On this day, though, the brakeman has one of the new-fangled “walkie-talkie” radios, so he’ll talk him down to the point where he should cut off the first 60 cars. He counts the cars and references his switch list looking for the last car in the cut.
After the cut is made, he rides the end of the car to the switch where the crossover between the two mains will allow him to access the old southward main, and then the junction switch into the yard. The operator in the yard office will line the crossover for his move.
The cars are left in one of the clear tracks of 17 in the terminal at Loyall. The power is uncoupled and the brakeman keys the mic on the radio. “Outside, Lynch Man…” Back on the train, the joint is made, the brakes pumped off, and Extra 350 South is ready to depart. The operator has a Clearance Form A with three train orders for the head end crew. He’ll use the bamboo order hoop to deliver the same documents to the conductor when the caboose passes. At the old tower at Baxter, about 4500 feet ahead, the red over green “Clear-Medium” tells the engineer the Poor Fork Branch is now his, except for a mine run working on the Scotia Branch out of Cumberland. That crew has a wait order at Cumberland for Extra 350 South, so the Lynch Man has more than enough time to get to Cumberland and continue to Lynch, out of the way of the mine run.
After the wooden caboose disappears around the curve at the south end of the yard, Loyall is quiet once again---until the next train. Technology and unimaginable changes in virtually every aspect of life will bring changes. Within a decade, the L&N will be facing an epic demand for the movement of coal. That will continue until it abates and traffic dwindles to a comparative trickle. History happens every nanosecond. Photograph it and pay attention to the details.