K&IT Bridge Stories

[Ron Marquardt]

Concerning the discussion in another section about walking on the K&IT bridge, I have a couple of stories from the good old days that you might find interesting.

One wintery Saturday night in the early 1960's, when my regular job was the New Albany yard engine and I was living in New Albany, they had me filling a vacancy on the passenger hostling job at 10th. St. depot.  After I serviced and put #5's engine away for the night, I headed north up 10th. St. and about 8 blocks from the depot I had a flat tire.  I had no spare, no jack, and very little money in my pocket.  I had two choices......  Walk back to 10th. and Broadway (past all the drunk locals standing out beside their 55 gallon fire barrels) and borrow a few bucks off the Monon crew, or walk back to New Albany.  Since I didn't have a gun with me either, I decided the exercise would probably do me good, so I walked all the way back to New Albany, across the K&IT bridge, in a snowstorm, from downtown Louisville.  Ah yes, those were the good old days.

As far as walking the bridge is concerned, we had one old head engineer who would walk from the bunk house in Louisville, across the K&IT bridge and back, every trip, sometimes twice, because he could get a meal for 25 cents less at a restaurant in New Albany than he could in Louisville.  He and his family had gone hungry during the depression, and he was not about to waste a quarter just to save a few steps.  True story.  / Ron 

[Steve Dolzall]

Well, if you used the bridge, I certainly hope you properly paid the toll.

[John Butler]

That was when a quarter was worth suffering for

[Ron Marquardt]

Steve, not wanting to get hit by someone in a car, I walked across between the two tracks, and when you do that there's no toll involved.  I must have timed it right because I didn't run into any trains either.  / Ron

[Tim T Swan]

Ron, that bunkhouse in Louisville.  Did the MONON have its own there, or did you guys bunk in with the K&IT guys, or maybe the B&O or SOU crews?

[Ron Marquardt]

The Monon guys had their own bunkhouse.  I don't know where the B&O or southern guys stayed.  The K&IT guys were at home so they didn't need a bunkhouse.

I have never seen a picture of the Monon bunkhouse, but it was similar to what they had at South Hammond.  It was a coach set on a foundation (crossties if I remember right) in between the two rip track leads.  It was partitioned off about 1/3 of the way back. in the short end was a toilet and shower, a kitchen, a long table with chairs, and overhead lockers.  In the long end were 24 bunk beds (12 X2).  They changed the sheets twice a week, so you made sure whoever you slept after was clean.

They always switched the rip leads on both sides of us on third shift, so sleeping was sometimes a challange, but you got used to it.  Left ear buried in the pillow, and right arm over the right ear.

We worked 16 hour days back then, and we were glad to have the job....  / Ron

[Gene Remaly]

Ron:

During that 8 hrs off, you guys had to cook shower, have some Buds, and keep the fire going in the stove.  Not much sleep time. With the car between switch leads, there was always slack and hard couples--just in case you dropped off to sleep--
LONG LIVE THE MONON

[Ron Marquardt]

You're right Gene, the good old days.  The best thing that ever happened to the south end crews was when they started scheduling trains so they could double the power back, because that meant they could double the crews back too.  No more layovers.  Of course by that time I had moved up to Lafayette, so it didn't help me much.

Many's the time I'd get off at McDoel, Hulcee Martin would take the train to Youngtown, bring a train back to Mcdoel, and 5'30" after I got there I would be back on ready to head to Shops.  That was back when they ran it like a railroad, and we had dispatchers like Rick.  / Ron

PS, whatever happened to Rick anyway??  I heard he moved down south and became a yardmaster on the L&N.  Any truth in that??