Section House Dwelling - What Is It - Inquiry

From Karl Brand via Facebook group, note; only accessible by Facebook members:

Frisco Rails Across Missouri

"The section house was provided to be a residence for the section foreman and his family. I have attached the layout from the 1906 standard plans that show the structures required for the section gang at its headquarters.

A bunkhouse with kitchen was provided to the gang members. Two privies, one for the bunkhouse and one for the section house were also provided. A well provided water for the entire headquarters. The tool house for the handcar/motorcar and the gang’s tools was located trackside.

The Frisco utilized Section Gangs of three different sizes, i.e., 10 men, 5 men, or 3 men. A Section Foreman, who reported to the Roadmaster, supervised the section men. The gang’s size was determined by the size of its territory and the maintenance level that territory required. A main line section might be 5-6 miles long.

The 1914 Maintenance Book of Rules prescribed the following. The Section Foreman and his men were responsible for the roadbed, drainage, ballast, ties, tie plates, rail anchors, rail, angle bars, line, surface, elevation, gauge, tamping, turnouts, policing, road crossings, fences, cattle guards, track cars, and tools.

The foreman and his gang served as good-will ambassadors between the local landowner and the railroad. The gang was never “off” the clock, and the gang’s duties required that it be out in all sorts of weather conditions.

The rules prohibited any mode of dress that included the colors red, yellow, or green. The railroad gave the foreman the gang’s only switch key, which was not to leave his possession at any time except for when he was on leave. If the key became lost, the railroad docked the foreman’s salary $0.50.

In order to carry out its duties, the well-equipped gang had a book of rules, 50 foot tape, track levels, torches, track gauge, signal flags (red, yellow, & green), lanterns (white, red, yellow & green), extra globes of the aforementioned colors, torpedoes, hand car/track car, push car, track jacks, spike mauls, spike pullers, lining bars, side tamping bars, track chisels.

Adzes, axes, hand axe, ballast forks, claw bar, brooms, extra handles, brush hook, clay picks, tamping picks, pike pole, wire pliers, post hole diggers, wire stretchers, telegraph wire, track punch, rakes, hand saws, scythes, track shovels, scoop shovels, water keg, tin cups, wheelbarrow, several varieties of oil cans, funnels, grindstone set, drill, drill bits, files, whetstones, monkey wrenches."