Trains.com

railroad fashion

3195 views
11 replies
1 rating 2 rating 3 rating 4 rating 5 rating
  • Member since
    October 2007
  • From: Lexington, S.C.
  • 336 posts
Posted by baberuth73 on Tuesday, February 5, 2013 6:36 AM

I'm glad my railroading days were in the South- blue jeans and golf shirts in warm weather; blue jeans and golf shirts in the "cool" months with a light jacket in case you have to ride a long shove. On rare occasions I wore coveralls .No fancy shmancy uniforms for a freight only operation. One of my kids gave me a pair of bib overalls that I wore about once, I think- not my style- gotta have that golf shirt.

  • Member since
    March 2004
  • From: Jelloway Creek, OH - Elv. 1100
  • 7,578 posts
Posted by Buckeye Riveter on Monday, February 4, 2013 7:52 PM

When we run the Baltimore, Ohio and Wabash Railroad we wear:

Celebrating 18 years on the CTT Forum. Smile, Wink & Grin

Buckeye Riveter......... OTTS Charter Member, a Roseyville Raider and a member of the CTT Forum since 2004..

Jelloway Creek, OH - ELV 1,100 - Home of the Baltimore, Ohio & Wabash RR

TCA 09-64284

  • Member since
    December 2011
  • 17 posts
Posted by JayOttawa on Monday, February 4, 2013 4:59 PM

That was a great piece of Canadian railroad history. Thanks so much for posting!

Jay in Ottawa

  • Member since
    March 2012
  • From: San Diego
  • 247 posts
Posted by overlandflyer on Monday, February 4, 2013 8:49 AM

Gray Cat

Green Streak RR
Gary,
take a look at these videos.

http://www.nfb.ca/film/railroaders

...

Wow what a great insight into Railroading in the 50's Heck just the 50's in general! I especially got a kick the trainman wiping down the handrails before the passengers disembarked. Who would think of doing that these days?..

Gary, can we assume you are planning on getting in period appropriate "gear" for the debut of your live steam engine? If so, pictures! please..

Pat

that was a great mini-doc film.  funny that i picked up on the same scene seeing the porters in action.  nice to see a time when people actually seemed to care about their jobs.

also read up on the Stormy Kormer legend.  interesting that the cap design was a modified ball cap that would stay put in windy conditions and also that the material itself (starched pillow ticking) was chosen out of availability and durability.  since he was born in the 1870's i'd guess the basic Stormy cap would be correct for any 20th century outfit.

James and Pat, can't say i haven't been thinking about some sort of signature garb.  doing a quick survey recently, the basic engineer's cap is a popular choice.  of course at 1/8th scale speed tradition vs practicality is the most likely factor with those.  in the southwest, sun protection seems to come into play more often, so for now i might just see how the Tilley (shown in my Avatar) holds up after catching a few cinders.  i'll have to check the warranty.

appreciate all the input.
cheers...gary
  • Member since
    July 2003
  • From: Wisconsin
  • 2,877 posts
Posted by Bob Keller on Monday, February 4, 2013 7:46 AM

Not a book, but shorpy.com has a ton of old, hi-res images of life in the past, and railroads are a significant factor in their free archive. Just search "railroads" and many of the images show railroad employees.

Bob Keller

  • Member since
    February 2007
  • From: Northview, Missouri
  • 409 posts
Posted by JamesP on Sunday, February 3, 2013 4:59 PM

Gray Cat

Gary, can we assume you are planning on getting in period appropriate "gear" for the debut of your live steam engine? If so, pictures! please..

Pat

I'll second that motion!  Actually, what you are wearing only matters at the start of the day... by the end of the day you will be entirely covered w/ grime - except for the whites of your wide open eyes and a huge smile that won't go away... Big Smile

 - James

  • Member since
    February 2011
  • From: Warrington, Pa. 18976
  • 269 posts
Posted by Gray Cat on Sunday, February 3, 2013 3:52 PM

Green Streak RR

Gary,

take a look at these video's.

http://www.nfb.ca/film/railroaders

They'll give you a good look at Railroaders...

Check out their other videos too.

(you'll have to type in the link to get to the video's)

Wow what a great insight into Railroading in the 50's Heck just the 50's in general! I especially got a kick the trainman wiping down the handrails before the passengers disembarked. Who would think of doing that these days?..

Gary, can we assume you are planning on getting in period appropriate "gear" for the debut of your live steam engine? If so, pictures! please..

Pat

Lover of all things Gilbert, truly a man ahead of his time.

  • Member since
    April 2005
  • From: South Carolina
  • 9,713 posts
Posted by rtraincollector on Saturday, February 2, 2013 8:13 PM

I have "The Long Island Railroad Company BOOK OF RULES"

inside it says effective 2:40 A.M. JULY 1st 1926

page 161

706. Uniforms - Designated uniformed employees will change to summer uniform May 15th

Standard mohair coats may be worn b y designated employes may 15th to October 14th both inclusive.

Coats must be buttoned except when trainmen are actually engaged in lifting transportation

Life's hard, even harder if your stupid  John Wayne

http://rtssite.shutterfly.com/

  • Member since
    December 2006
  • From: lone star, texas
  • 30 posts
Posted by Green Streak RR on Saturday, February 2, 2013 8:03 AM

Gary,

take a look at these video's.

http://www.nfb.ca/film/railroaders

They'll give you a good look at Railroaders...

Check out their other videos too.

(you'll have to type in the link to get to the video's)

Railroad Crossings: Thinning the gene pool daily!

  • Member since
    January 2008
  • From: Duluth, Minnesota
  • 1,967 posts
Posted by Northwoods Flyer on Saturday, February 2, 2013 7:22 AM

One of the iconic pieces of railroad fashion is of course the Stormy Kromer. 

I found these images on Google

 

http://designbyamerica.com/story/the-stormy-kromer-story

 

Here is a link to a brief article in Wikipiedia.  It isn't much but it is a start.  I own two of them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stormy_Kromer_cap

This sounds like an interesting research project, please keep us posted.

Enjoying the World's Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

The Northwoods Flyer Collection

of

American Flyer Trains

"The Toy For the Boy"

  • Member since
    December 2004
  • 276 posts
Posted by David Barker on Saturday, February 2, 2013 6:52 AM

The inside covers of Gilbert American Flyer Catalogs of 1939 on to 1948 had photos of engineers in their working clothes.  Here is a link for RFG

http://www.rfgco.com/americanflyertrainscatalogs/index.html

  • Member since
    March 2012
  • From: San Diego
  • 247 posts
railroad fashion
Posted by overlandflyer on Saturday, February 2, 2013 6:16 AM

whether for practicality, specific employer/ roadname rules of conduct, or even when perhaps informally denoting 'pecking order', i'm looking for a publication/ article(s) which cover railroad worker fashion through the decades (turn of the century through the 1940's will do).

thanks...gary

Join our Community!

Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.

Search the Community

FREE EMAIL NEWSLETTER

Get the Classic Toy Trains newsletter delivered to your inbox twice a month