We lost Guy Clark, long time Texas song writer today… More than a few of his songs spoke to me… I was lucky enough to see him several times over a period of year…

This is not specifically railroad preservation, but a statement about the culture of railroads which we are preserving… For this forum, on son in particular speaks to me and I hope to us collectively… “Texas, 1947” a story about seeing a diesel powered red and silver streamliner… a 6 year old’s impression of his first modern (aka not steam) train… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bmvyyx2uvx8

I wonder how we might use this song in interpretation of the transition of steam to diesel… and how it was interpreted by the communities so served…

Randy

I think there are still enough people alive who remember that transition and their stories should be captured. for future generations.

I was fortunate to spend some time talking to Guy on several occasions when he was in California. We shared numerous stories about our youth and growing up around a cast of characters, many of them related somehow or another to trains. He enjoyed my story about me when i was about 4 yrs old.

My grandfather was an engineer for the Southern Pacific and his run at that time was between Roseville, CA and Sparks,NV. My family lived next to the tracks in Auburn,CA. On Fridays on his return run to Roseville ,he would stop the train in front of our house. My mother would bring me out to the tracks and my grandfather would take me up into the cab. I would ride with him and his fireman from Auburn to Roseville. I did this for the remainder of the time we lived in that house. During that time my grandfather taught me how to operate a diesel locomotive. the best part though was when we arrived in Roseville. He would take me into the train shed where they still had a couple steam locomotives. It was quit something to stand next to one of those wheel that was almost twice as tall as I was and look at that locomotive. From those days forward I was hooked on trains and those memories will stay with me for the rest of my life.

I am sure there are others who have similar stories that they could share. Maybe someone could put together an Oral History Archive or these stories. Guy was one hell of a great story teller and will greatly missed.

The really telling part of these stories is that they can't happen in today's world. Stopping a train and letting your son get in the cab? Fire-able offense today. Walking your son around the Company's shops? AAAUGH!! I wish I could tell a similar story, but I have no memory of this: My Godfather was the yardmaster (or so I was told, maybe he was just an engineer?) at Dunsmuir and took me into the cab when I was about 4 for some of a day switching the yards. Probably a diesel, considering that would have been 1957ish, and Dunsmuir was dieselized early on. I suspect this is what caused my life-long fascination with trains (much to my parent's dismay!).
Such things were not uncommon back then; an older friend of mine told me of his time riding from Black Butte to Dunsmuir in the cab of a PA. I did ride on the tender & cab of MCRRR 25 more than once when I was older (shortlines were a bit more lenient about things than the big guys.)--of course those tracks aren't even there now. Bummer. . .