"Takin' Twenty" with the Virginian Brethren by Skip Salmon

[NW Mailing List]

Last night I had the pleasure of "Takin' Twenty" with eight of the 
Brethren and Friends of the Virginian Railway. We signed Happy Birthday 
cards for Landon Gregory and Felix Price. Landon, 75, started his career 
on the VGN June, 1956 as an operator at "AN", Abilene, VA, M. P. V143. 
He actually had to learn to send code, but used the land line phone as 
much as he could. Landon moved on up the ladder and retired from NS with 
37 years service in 1993, as Chief Dispatcher, Virginia Division. Felix 
Price started as a laborer in the Power Plant in Narrows, VA in May, 
1949, and worked his way up to Relief Power House Director. In 1962 when 
the wires came down, he came to Roanoke and retired from NS with 36 
years service, as an Electrician in the Line Gang in Roanoke Shops. 
Felix is 86.

Passed around was a photo Tom Marshall gave me in Mullens of the last 
stages of life for the Motor Barn. Also passed was a brick that Tom gave 
me from the Motor Barn that will be proudly displayed in our Station in 
Roanoke. Passed around for the Brethren to peruse was the December 2011 
"Trains" magazine with a great article about "NS 21st Century 
steam-powered public relations" and "A 50th birthday, Southern style". 
My favorite photo is on page 21 of a freshly painted SD40-2 #3461, one 
of the 20 that NS recycled from mainly Burlington Northern to be 
upgraded and added to the fleet. Winter 2011 "Classic Trains" was also 
passed. This one has articles about "Riding backwoods lines in West 
Virginia, 1948" featuring the Buffalo Creek & Gauley; Nicholas, Fayette 
& Greenbrier; and Elk River Coal & Lumber. Also this issue has an 
article on steam and diesel tourist trains that keep the WV railroad 
past on the move "Riding through the Mountain State".

During our meal, I got a call from our good friend Jeff Sanders, 
reporting the old Virginian Railway Derrick B37 (now NS 540037) was 
about to be used to re-rail NS Dash 8 32B #3558 on the Coca-Cola spur 
track behind VMT. I left the session early and got the photo seen at:
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=379810

It was with sadness that I told the Brethren about VGN Turbine Operator 
at Narrows Power Plant, W. Cliff Cawley's "taking the west bound" at age 
86, October 26, 2011. Cliff worked for me as an Electrician in Roanoke 
Shops.

I showed the Brethren the latest Roanoke Chapter "Turntable Times" which 
highlights our own Raymond East, with a photo of him posing beside old 
Number 4, the last VGN steam engine standing. The article also tells of 
the Brethren's part in the "Virginian Railway Day" at the Virginia 
Museum of Transportation, September 24, 2011.

For "Show and Tell" I brought the first of many to come, VGN items given 
to me by Greely Wyatt, Electrical Foreman-Mullens. This week's book is 
"The Virginian Railway Company Electrification, Electric Power System 
Roanoke-Mullens effective December 1925, revised 1931". Inside is the 
name Albert Mooney, number 632, Princeton, WV, "Description of Power 
Supply System, Rules and Instructions for its Operation and Maintenance, 
and for the Protection of Employees and the Public". This book shows the 
entire distribution of the 88,000 volt primary and 24,000/12,000/440/220 
volt secondary (11,000 volts between trolley wires and the rails, and 
22,000 volts between the balance wires and the rails) along with every 
place there are trolley wires above spur tracks with power.

Then there's this: "Slick" Inge told this one July 21, 2005: "Two VGN 
men, on their day off, were fishing from the Wasena Bridge in the 
Roanoke River beside the VGN Yard. A funeral procession started across 
the bridge. One of the men took his line out of the water, took off his 
cap and held it over his heart until the procession passed by. The other 
man told him he thought it was great that he showed that much respect to 
someone he did not know. Oh, he said, 'I should show some respect, after 
all, I was married to her for 25 years'".

Time to pull the pin on this one!

Departing Now from V248,

Skip Salmon

CCCXCII

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