"Día del Ferrocarrilero"

[egmurphy]

Well it's November 7th again, time for my annual post regarding the "Día del Ferrocarrilero" down here in Mexico.  I thought I'd copy the main part of my original post on the subject.

I posted this somewhere else, but it probably bears reporting here.

Here in Mexico, November 7th is the "Dia del Ferrocarrilero", which roughly translates as National Railroader Workers Day. While the day honors all Mexican railroaders in general (the railroads played an important part in the develpment of Mexico) the date was chosen to commemorate a specific event.

On November 7th, 1907, a couple of cars loaded with dynamite in a mine supply train in Nacozari, Sonora, caught fire. The young engineer, Jesus Garcia Corona, pulled the train away from the warehouse/station area and ran it out of town. The cars exploded before he had a chance to jump for it. A few other bystanders were killed, but the damage was much less than would have occured if the explosion had occured near the station.

So the Dia del Ferrocarrilero not only honors rail workers down here, but also recalls the "Hero of Nacozari".

You can read a longer English version of the story of the "Hero of Nacozari" here:

http://www.mexconnected.com/mex_/travel/mexphilat/mexphilatjesusgarcia.html

I might add that this isn't a general holiday or anything in Mexico. In fact, these days unless you actually work for a railroad or have a railroader in the family (or are a railfan), it's highly likely you even know about the day. Back in the heyday of the railroads and unions, say in the 40's and 50's, there would be big parades in the major cities, especially in Mexico City. Nowadays if there are any special celebrations they are probably limited to a small get together of retired railroad employees.


Regards

Ed

[fifedog]

Enjoyed your post, Ed. What got you interested in Mexican rail?

[samfp1943]

Enjoyed your post, Ed. What got you interested in Mexican rail?

Fifedog;  I think Ed is an American ex-pat down there, according to his avatar, anyway.

[egmurphy]

Yup, that about sums it up.  As retirement time grew near, I reactivated my interest in trains and model railroading.  I had lived and worked down here for a number of years.  But when I finally moved down permanently it just seemed natural to take an interest in the railroads of the area.

Regards

Ed