I have the blue denum overalls my uncle wore when he was a fireman for the Chicago Belt Route and the Pennsy back in the 1950's. When my aunt sent them to me they still smelled of coal. Unfortunately my wife through the kindness of her heart, washed them for me to use. They just about disolved in the washer so now are full of holes and the wonderful smell is gone... Waaaa

I have been using Roundhouse Brand overalls for years. They are comfortable and last a long time (plus I like that they are made in USA). I bought them at the Workingman's Emporium in San Jose as noted in previous e-mails. I used to be able to get striped shirts there too but the last time I went (3 years ago) he only had them with zippers.

I guess to finally answer the question, it appears that, while denim overalls may have been predominant, there is enough photographic evidence availalbe to prove conclusively that, indeed, some engine crew did in fact wear hickory stripes.

My personal opinion is that some in the rail preservation community have an aversion to stripes because many crews at theme parks--particularly Disney theme parks--wear stripes. And again--my opinion only--some preservationists tend to look down snobbishly on such operations. Wearing hickory stripes, in their mind--while historically accurate--would too closely align them with the theme park crowd.

Steve,

I think you are on to something. Amusement parks use that "uniform" as it is the popular image of an engineer. As John Rimmasch pointed out, those parks use the hickory stripe as a "uniform" where everyone looks the same, without much variation for personal style preferance, as existed in the real world during the steam age.

While I like hickory stripes, I seem to be a dirt and grease magnet when working on a steam locomotive, and the hickory stripes tend to show the dirt and grease more.

What do you wear, Steve?

Nobody has even mentioned the express stripe.

http://www.google.com/patents/USD505772

http://www.vintageworkwear.com/2010/08/blog-post.html

It depends. I'm like you--for some reason, I always seem to be the dirtiest guy on the crew. Stripes would look terrible! So I generally wear blue denim overalls. We have steam crew t-shirts, so that's what I usually wear under the overalls. Hats are NHV Ry issue as well.

For our Halloween trains, or other special occasions--especially ones where I know I may not get as dirty--I will wear stripes, red bandanna, and gauntlet gloves. I have a very rare striped Oshkosh chore coat that I will wear, but I dread getting it dirty, because I know I probably won't find another one.

I always liked the look of the engineer on "Petticoat Junction::

This fact seems to apply to me in other aspects of my life. I put new brake rotors and pads on my car a few weeks ago and it looked like I had been in a coal mine by the end of the day.

I have also sent off to Moore's for a price list. I will post it when I get a response.

Personally, I've never been a fan of wearing short sleeves when on a steam locomotive. The one time I did, I burned myself. I don't know if wearing a long sleeve shirt would have made a difference, but I figured it would add a bit of protection.

Another important aspect to keep in mind, is that tradtional work clothing is made from natural fabrics, cotton and wool. I think we can easily forget that wearing natural fabrics can enhance our personal safety, should something go amiss. I recently read a book on the crash of United Airlines Flight 232 in Sioux City, Iowa in 1989 and that was a common theme from the survivors, those who wore synthetic fabrics receieved severe burns, those who wore natural fabrics, often did not.

In the winter, I'll often wear a chambray long-sleeve shirt. But with our North Carolina summers, a t-shirt is almost a necessity, and if worn in the interest of preventing heat stroke, can be said to be for safety as well (I put a candy thermometer in our cab because a regular thermometer doesn't go high enough. 150 degrees F in summer isn't unusual).

Obvioulsy, your mileage may vary. Also, your tank engine may have a bit less "airy" of a cab than what I've worked on in the past.

Ain't it the truth.

Looking forward to the spacious deck and separate tender on 110....and hopefully a fire that stays behind the firedoor. Even in summer, that should be a long sleeve job.

dave

Back when I was a radio tech for Santa Fe, I had blue denim overalls that I'd wear when confronted with a dirty job, such as removing radio racks from retired locomotives. One day when I was about to salvage racks from some dead RSD-5s, one of the communications engineers from downtown saw me and got on my case about the overalls, telling me that I was a technical worker and should not be dressed like a locomotive mechanic. But HE didn't have to crawl into the nose compartment of an ancient diesel and do the grunt work.

Here is a recent shot of a steam crew of fireman, engineer and fireman at Steamtown, N.P.S. I took this shot 11/24/12 in Moscow PA, on the fireman side of Canadian National No. 3254 2-8-2 Sb Mikado.
Note the variety of stripe, denim, bib and coat. These were the last runs of steam at Steamtown.

Yup, first thing they taught me when learning to weld. Synthetic fibers melt and collapse onto the skin, making things much worse than natural fiber, which simply burns and smolders in the normal way. Natural fibers were the first PPE.

Some of my products arrived today. I tried to find work clothing locally, but had no luck. Though, I did find a local grocery store chain that also sells work clothing and boots(!).

For starters, I ordered a pair of Key Brand hickory stripe overalls. There was some indication that Key had switched from the traditional style hook and stud system, but they were not present on these. They do have a zip fly. Fit was good, will wait later to wash them.

I also ordered one each of the Key brand hickory striped "logger shirt" and a chambray work shirt. The chambray shirt seems to be heavier than the older one I still wear. Though, if I remember correctly, this is the kind of shirt that gets better with wear and washing. The hickory stripe shirt is very well made and very heavy. It's a winter-only shirt, of a different material than the overalls, but should be warm.

I have a chore coat and some hats from various makers on the way. Maybe photos will be in order later.

David

I received a mailer back from Moore's Caps in Maine. I've scanned it as a .pdf. They included a fabric sample of the hickory stripe fabric they are currently using. I have attached a photo of it to this message as well. Prices are comparable to the current, factory made caps that come in generic sizes (S, M, L, XL, etc.), but are sized individually and are hand-made, machine washable and of various styles.

I intend on ordering a few very soon.