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Santa Fe Four: 1943

March 1943. "Wellington, Kansas. An Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad crew posing in front of their engine before pulling out of Wellington for Waynoka, Oklahoma. Left to right: D.C. Quivey, head brakeman; D.B. Wallingford, conductor; B.F. Hale, engineer; and fireman Walker." Acetate negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size.

March 1943. "Wellington, Kansas. An Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad crew posing in front of their engine before pulling out of Wellington for Waynoka, Oklahoma. Left to right: D.C. Quivey, head brakeman; D.B. Wallingford, conductor; B.F. Hale, engineer; and fireman Walker." Acetate negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size.

 

On Shorpy:
Today’s Top 5

The Un-Coaler

Oh, look! The single-named fireman has a 'shovel' under his arm too! Seriously, ol' #4097 didn't need any shoveling in any event since she was an oil burner. Makes sense in Texas and similar instead of hauling coal a long ways.

Joke

Q: Why can't a steam locomotive sit down?
A: It has a tender behind!

Unfun

In my childhood musings, I thought driving a locomotive would be a blast, but these guys don't look like they have any fun at all!

Not just one

But two cardigans on Mr. Wallingford.

Dress Code

Seems like a necktie is a bit overdressed to be shoveling coal into a firebox. Or any other job on a steam engine like this one.

Status

Delano signaled the relative job status of each man: conductor and engineer in the middle, head brakeman with adjective of rank (a standard crew would have had a second brakeman), fireman without initials (unless Walker was his first name, in which case even more so). Even their heights convey comparative 'stature'.

Brakeman?

The fellow on the far left is carrying a shovel. I'd wager he's the fireman, and the brakeman is on your far right.

[That's a glove, not a shovel. Stoking locomotives with shovels ended long before this photo was made. - Dave]

A couple of Stormy Kromers

With a lot of miles on them I'll bet.

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