Howard33
Telegram 1940
I found this in with some old pictures. The story is that we were leaving Lexington to move to Hazard. Daddy went on ahead to take a job at the Major store. Mama and the three kids -- I was 7 --remained in Lexington long enough to sell the furniture and then we went by train to Hazard. I don't remember anything about the train ride except getting off in Hazard and walking across the bridge to the store. it was a very short walk. We got an efficiency apartment near the bottom of Baker Hill and moved in as quickly as we could carry our suit cases up to the apartment. Looking back, it was the easiest move we ever made.
In 1940, the quickest and easiest way to go from anywhere to almost anywhere else, was by train. Local trains traveled at speeds around 40 or 50 mph, but 60 was possible on long runs with few curves. They stopped at most small towns, sometimes called "whistle stops," and sometimes if they didn't stop, the mail car would snag a mailbag with a hook as they passed.
As you can see in the telegram, trains went to Hazard Kentucky, population about 8000 in those days, but still one of the larger towns in Eastern Kentucky. My arithmetic tells me that it took 4 and a half hours. It must have been a local with several stops along the way. The distance by highway was 140 miles, but the rail road route was likely shorter.
This seems like a slow way to travel, but in those days, trains usually made a trip quicker than a car. On long runs, faster trains with fewer stops would get you there much quicker than if you drove your car.
Ask any old timer who remembers before the war and most will tell you that the train stopped in their town, no matter how small. The bus usually stopped there too.
The misspelled name on the telegram is a common error. You can spell out Murrill to people and they will write down an e instead of an i. It still happens all the time. Even the spell checker thinks I spelled my own name wrong.
Telegram 1940
I found this in with some old pictures. The story is that we were leaving Lexington to move to Hazard. Daddy went on ahead to take a job at the Major store. Mama and the three kids -- I was 7 --remained in Lexington long enough to sell the furniture and then we went by train to Hazard. I don't remember anything about the train ride except getting off in Hazard and walking across the bridge to the store. it was a very short walk. We got an efficiency apartment near the bottom of Baker Hill and moved in as quickly as we could carry our suit cases up to the apartment. Looking back, it was the easiest move we ever made.
In 1940, the quickest and easiest way to go from anywhere to almost anywhere else, was by train. Local trains traveled at speeds around 40 or 50 mph, but 60 was possible on long runs with few curves. They stopped at most small towns, sometimes called "whistle stops," and sometimes if they didn't stop, the mail car would snag a mailbag with a hook as they passed.
As you can see in the telegram, trains went to Hazard Kentucky, population about 8000 in those days, but still one of the larger towns in Eastern Kentucky. My arithmetic tells me that it took 4 and a half hours. It must have been a local with several stops along the way. The distance by highway was 140 miles, but the rail road route was likely shorter.
This seems like a slow way to travel, but in those days, trains usually made a trip quicker than a car. On long runs, faster trains with fewer stops would get you there much quicker than if you drove your car.
Ask any old timer who remembers before the war and most will tell you that the train stopped in their town, no matter how small. The bus usually stopped there too.
The misspelled name on the telegram is a common error. You can spell out Murrill to people and they will write down an e instead of an i. It still happens all the time. Even the spell checker thinks I spelled my own name wrong.