1970 Frisco Calendar

Good stuff Charlie...

 

For anyone interrtested, this calendar will work for 2015. THe dates are the same. I just can't seem to get it to scale to print on 8.5" x 11" paper.

 

I will be looking forward to this calender, that's the year I went to work for the FRISCO.
Eighteen and just out of high school, I was a long way from home (Norwood seemed a long way, at that time from Springfield). The heavyweight bunks were sitting on the siding at Norwood. There was no minium, for bunks, from the main track, not even a slow order. The first week scared me, especially about 2 or 3 AM, engines screaming by, only as little as ten feet away. Anyway, I picked out a bunk and threw my footlocker under, the six inch pad , it was a little cool in October, that didn't last long. Their is a heater already in the handle of a spike maul. Tat, tat, tat, went the Spikemaster, we had to keep a lead on it, was not allowed to slow it or heaven forbid stop it. By 10AM, we had our first person quit and by noon 3 of the 4 new hires grabed their lunch bucket and headed home. They walked out, didn't even wait for a ride. The foreman was on the field phone, hanging from two wires on the pole line, oh, the misery, the dispatcher give him the rest of the day. Man didn't spend too much time at the water can, else you might not catch up. Set spikes in every other tie, and no one set yours, while you took a break. The foreman stayed with the spiker, made sure you did your share of spiking, you didn't want to get called a bunch on bad names. The day seemed to linger on, using mucles, not used before.
Long in the distance, finally the machines were, working their way out, which would end the day's work. The foreman counting each tie, banking a few for a early quit on Friday. We worked our way, to the machines, loaded on and roared for the hole. Completely exhausted, I laid on my bunk, awaiting my chance to take a rinse in the gravity flow shower, hoping their would be a little warm water for me. Gone, the next thing was the foreman yelling "time to go to work" sore wasn't the word, but you know by 10 am, I was not sore at all.
Another 1200 ties awaiting, at $ 3.65 an hour, good money in 1970.

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Thank you for that walk down memory lane.

 

Got the calander Keith, thanks!
Tom, yes the Frisco used the Fairmont Tie shear, it was run by Joe McMorris, he was a huge guy the took great pleasure in leaving the gang in the dust. He ran it for years and got very good in the movement and dropping the heads. One thing, he was a expert with throwing rocks, he could hit about anything at a long distance. When he got way in the distance he would do a little rabbit hunting. Dinner quite offten was just a stones throw away.
He also took pleasure seeing us work, harder, he liked to see the tie crane break down, then we would have to throw the tie butts by hand. Three sections, each tie, made a lot of extra work, generally they would put three guys on that job, but that would depend on how many guys showed up for that day. The shear ran wide open and could eaisly out run the gang. I always looked forward to when the foreman would shut down the shear, it signaled the end of the work day. The shear would then just cut out the centers. The normal function was to cut the center, lift the heads, with the center butt, pull up and lower the kicker, which pushed out the end sections.
Once in a while, as a joke the spike puller men would put a dead skunk, possum or take a dump on the tie to be cut out. Chip (Joe McMoreris) would jump out and start cussing, chasing the spike puller guys and occationly chuck a rock over their heads. Sometimes we would leave a spike or two, just to tick him off, he couldn't kick the butt that way, he had to get off and pull the spike.
We had fun times also.
Bill