Whatever happened to these "ultra" infamous steam foamers?

Willy Lump-Lump
Superheater (not Rypn poster)
Shoebox
Foamer-guy with the peace medallion hung around his neck

I presume these guys were infamous eastern railfans. Does the midwest and western U.S. have their share of "characters" as well? Any good stories to share? I know they come up often in conversation among tourist railroad crews past and present. They are part of the diverse social fabric that we call "railway preservation."

> Whatever happened to these "ultra"
> infamous steam foamers?

> Willy Lump-Lump
> Superheater (not Rypn poster)
> Shoebox
> Foamer-guy with the peace medallion hung
> around his neck

> I presume these guys were infamous eastern
> railfans. Does the midwest and western U.S.
> have their share of "characters"
> as well? Any good stories to share? I know
> they come up often in conversation among
> tourist railroad crews past and present.
> They are part of the diverse social fabric
> that we call "railway
> preservation."

I knew a "Willie Lump-Lump". He was Willie Rosenberg from Brooklyn and used to show up on trolley fantrips in Pennsylvania in the late 1940s and early 50s. Always had a zillion B&W 8 X 10 trolley photos for sale, all slightly slightly out of focus, and at least two cameras hanging around his neck. He had two buddies I also remember, a Harold Joyce and a character everybody called " The Mole". Don't remember his right name, unfortunately.

aeriola@adelphia.net

> I knew a "Willie Lump-Lump". He
> was Willie Rosenberg from Brooklyn and used
> to show up on trolley fantrips in
> Pennsylvania in the late 1940s and early
> 50s. Always had a zillion B&W 8 X 10
> trolley photos for sale, all slightly
> slightly out of focus, and at least two
> cameras hanging around his neck. He had two
> buddies I also remember, a Harold Joyce and
> a character everybody called " The
> Mole". Don't remember his right name,
> unfortunately.

Willie Lumnp Lump and the Mole also frequented Illini Railroad Club trolley trips, particularly the Pittsburgh trips in the 60's. I never met them but heard quite a bit about them from others who did. The "other" Superheater was a regular on the SR steam trips in the 70's. I believe he had a hat, shirt or button proclaiming "Steam is Clean". There were a number of characters who rode and chased the midwestern steam trips in the 60's and 70's. Good fodder for a "Real TV" segment.

Don C.


http://www.261.com
milw261@sbcglobal.net

> Foamer-guy with the peace medallion hung
> around his neck

Amazingly, I actually saw a glimpse of him many years ago in a network TV news piece on an AIDS march upon Washington, DC. Absolutely, positively him, same peace sign and all. I'm guessing my spotting of him on TV was about 1995 or so.

I never heard much more about him; there were somewhat ugly/gloomy rumors that he had been stricken with AIDS or some related disease, and had died a few years ago. I remember he seemed to have fewer digits/limbs every time I saw him on NS steam excursions out of Alexandria for years.

Now, this guy was in the constant company (in NS steam territory) of some older guy with thick glasses who always introduced himself and asked your name before pulling out a pocketful of badly dog-eared photo prints of his escapades over the years; I'm assuming the character in question may have been one of the other three painfully-memorable characters you mentioned above.

Of course, all of the above probably were cast as characters in the hobby shop of the current movie "The Station Agent"....... <:-)

LNER4472-NOSPAM-@bcpl.net

"Superheater" #1 lived in the Washington, DC area, and frequented eastern steam trips (Sou, HICO, etc.) He was famous for his closely-typed, single-spaced, right-out-to-the-margin letters, rambling on about the next engine that should be fixed up, etc. I think it was a High Iron crewmember who gave him the nickname. Superheater was pretty annoying; he even showed up at Graham Claytor's front door in Alexandria one evening, to talk about the Sou steam program!!

Willie was well-known in the New York City area. One of my colleagues once called him "The Man Who Ate Kodachrome". I think Willie died in the mid-80s.

hpincus@mindspring.com

There were plenty of those guys and I'll bet there's a new batch around today. One from Florida was called "Lurch" or "Sidney Greenteeth" who left a trail of B.O. for a good five minutes after he passed through a coach on a fan trip. He had one suit which he wore to banquets, etc and it was always wrikled and stained. Perhaps he should have also been called "Gravyboat" for all the stains on that suit. I won't mention his real name but, like some of the othersm he has passed on to the great scrapyard in the sky. The "Lurch" nickname came from his massive appearance and difficulty he had walking.

For what it's worth, I have a slide tray full of these characters including Williw Lump Lump and the Mole.



Herron Rail Video
hrvideo@mindspring.com

Let us not forget the kid who used to show up in a conductors uniform at Spencer in the old days and hijack visitors for guided tours of the off limits areas of the site, spouting "facts" nobody had ever heard of before. Rumor had it his wealthy family bought his way out of an institution.....

dave

irondave@bellsouth.net

Why reminisce about past foamers. Go to a big hobby shop, flea market, Winter Rail, East Rail and so on...bring a non fan with and let them point out all of the characters that those of us in the hobby don't see with our blinders on. My girlfriend, later wife was crying with laughter at the foamer who made EMD engine noises during a Winter Rail presentation back in the 80's. Strange thing about it he had the sound down pretty good!

> "Superheater" #1 lived in the
> Washington, DC area, and frequented eastern
> steam trips (Sou, HICO, etc.) He was famous
> for his closely-typed, single-spaced,
> right-out-to-the-margin letters, rambling on
> about the next engine that should be fixed
> up, etc. I think it was a High Iron
> crewmember who gave him the nickname.
> Superheater was pretty annoying; he even
> showed up at Graham Claytor's front door in
> Alexandria one evening, to talk about the
> Sou steam program!!

> Willie was well-known in the New York City
> area. One of my colleagues once called him
> "The Man Who Ate Kodachrome". I
> think Willie died in the mid-80s.

Since Howard decided to mention Willie's other moniker I felt it best that I should explain. I grew up along the electrified zone of the New Haven and when I first began to be interested in trains back in the late 1960's, I naturally developed an interest in the New Haven's electrified operations. One of the earliest organizations I joined was the New York City based Electric Railroaders Association. The ERA organized some intersting fan trips back then but after taking a couple of them I quickly realized that the ERA was a collection of some of the wierdest examples of humanity. It was here that I met good old Willie. About five years later I got a summer job at a photo store in Manhattan(The Camera Barn on Broadway) working in the film department. On the counter we had these clear plastic boxes lining the counter top with various and sundry items on sale. Two of these boxes contained English manufactured Kodachome II and Kodachome X with a processing included. Well one day to my surprise in walks Wille Lump Lump and he makes a bee line to the box of Kodachome II. Wille proceedes to scarf up about 20 rolls and then pays for them. Well my fellow employees just can't believe the sight of this character with lumps and protrusions all over his face. A couple of weeks later in walks Wllie again and repeats the same thing. After that my colleuges can't figure out what Willie is doing with all that Kodachrome but decide to call him "The Man Who Ate Kodachrome II" and that is how he developed all those lumps on his face. I of course knew exactly what Willie was doing with all that film but I had no intention of telling my fellow employees.

Hal Reiser

Hal2415@aol.com

I had many encounters with "Superheater." He even called my house on Christmas Day asking me to come over to look at train slides. I was single during much of that era, and there was nothing worse than meeting a good looking girl, walk her up to the front of the locomotive and talking about it, only to be confronted with Superheater saying, "What do you think we can do to get 759 running again?" He always looked like he shaved with scissors. I know his name, but will not mention it on the board.

I heard about Superheater's visit to Claytor's home in Georgetown. For a while Claytor did not ride many of the trips out of Alexandria so he could avoid Superheater.

I never had the "pleasure" of meeting Willy Lump-Lump and the Mole. I did hear of a classic trick played on him by the SEPTA shop crews. They painted a PCC in red, white & blue, numbered it "7600" took it outside for photographs, and then immediately took it back into the barn for repainting into proper SEPTA colors. They mailed the pictures to Willie telling him what line it was on. Sure enough he showed up with the Mole in tow on Saturday morning. They then told him it was on another line across town. They kept him running all over the city for the entire day before letting on to the joke.

kevin.r.gillespie@verizon.net

The
> "other" Superheater was a regular
> on the SR steam trips in the 70's. I believe
> he had a hat, shirt or button proclaiming
> "Steam is Clean". There were a
> number of characters who rode and chased the
> midwestern steam trips in the 60's and 70's.
> Good fodder for a "Real TV"
> segment.

"Superheater" did not wear the "Steam is Clean" shirt. The owner of that shirt, who also wore a black derby hat was from Greensboro, NC. He had a normal white collar job during the week, but had a weekness for steam engines. He was usually in the baggage car making tape recordings, and he always had a couple of cameras.

Of course Yours Truly was known for showing up at the Alexandria station in kilt on a number of occasions following a day at the Virginia Scottish Games.



kevin.r.gillespie@verizon.net

One of my all time favorites was when we were on the Waterfront Electric Ry in Toledo. We were on a good day of riders and were in between trips when a rather excited gentleman covered by recording equipment approaches. "I have some great recordings of your locomotive working" says he, "If you just shut the locomotive off, you'll be able to hear them better". "'cuse us" says I, "we have a run to make".


lamontdc@adelphia.net

Let's not forget "Stick Man'. He always had a tape recorder with the microphone taped to a stick. His pick-up truck had the following messages (in large letters) on the tail gate; "Steam is King", "Ban the Diesel".
Back when we still ran #1223, we saw this microphone on a stick visible above the tender. He was riding the platform of the first car, making a recording, which is not allowed. A couple of well placed pieces of wayward coal got the message across.

rick@strasburgrailroad.com

> We always called him "Peace Man." Nothing quite like standing trackside and seeing "Superheater" and "Peace Man" standing side by side in the baggage door, Peace Man holding his medallion out from his chest like a blessing.

And Superheater and Peace Man could yak and smell all they cared to if it meant another crack at 4501 going to Cumberland Gap, or 1218 at Ingleside on 50 empty hoppers. Cheap at the price.

JAC

Sometimes I think they all moved to Chama