Louisville and Nashville Railroad Company--Management

Ashby, who was the superintendent of the Atlanta Division on the L&N Railroad, is interviewed about the following topics: his family's background in railroading, railroad passenger service, railroad terms and positions, the structure of a railroad, railroad costs and a short history of the L&N Railroad.

Main topics: Early life, University of Tennessee, banks closed 1933, hired as draftsman and instrument man; moved with L&N; career from division engineer to Assistant Vice President of Personnel and Labor Relations. Areas of experience: 1955 railroad strike, merger with N.C.&St.L., DeCoursey line up Straight Creek, Hurricane Betsy, involved in C.E.&I., and work as independent consultant. Descriptive sections on L&N: L&N in 1937, life out on the line, track and bridge repair and streamlining of curves, divisions of the L&N and their boundaries. Changes in division boundaries through merger, operation department and its chain of command, South Louisville shops, reasons for moving personnel throughout the divisions, description of camp car gangs, defense facilities and industrial development. Sections on routine maintenance and projected maintenance: types of crossties, explanation of rail conditions, suppliers of ties and rails, lining bars on tracks with caller versus more modern techniques, laying of rail and spikes, condition of track in relation to derailments, single track repair schedule. Repairing procedure for damage of Hurricanes Betsy and Camille. Additional information on work crews and union jobs. Modernization in many areas: scheduling of construction work, rapid loading facilities, critical path method (PERK). Discussion of labor and personnel: good explanation of the Brotherhood's responsibility to the provision the Railway Act. Descriptions on labor consideration: Lace Curtain money, reasons some agreements take so long to be resolved, hard feelings carried over from the 1955 railroad strike, Clark's past experience that enabled him to understand labor's viewpoint. Final comments: Differences in position when Clark held position of Vice President Operations in Jacksonville; was working in labor relations during three mergers: N.C.&St.L.; N&W & the Virginian; and recent experience with the New England railroads.

A Male High School graduate, Daulton's father was with the carman's union. Coleman Daulton started working for the L&N in the passenger department. He worked in the City Passenger Agent's office in the Starks Building. Stayed until cutback and worked for a while at the Andrews-Collins Company. Returned to the L&N in the personnel department where he remained for several years. Moved to the vice president's office as accident report clerk. Became secretary for assistant vice president R.C. Parsons. With this position Daulton traveled extensively throughout the entire L&N system, attended yearly stockholders' and director's meetings. Career experience with the L&N as assistant and then superintendent of safety began about 1950. This position began with three safety inspectors (maintenance of way, mechanical, and transportation) but gradually lost all three. Daulton was then given duties of head of freight loss and damage prevention when the department head retired. Changes came about when C.H. Sanderson joined the L&N. From 1972-1975 additional backing was given the Safety Department to accomplish its work. Accomplishments and programs of the department over the years (safety shoes, head protection, earmuffs, comprehensive rulebook replaced numerous sections put out by various departments). Emphasis on the importance of the red book on chemicals to the railroad in time of danger. L&N company policy of promoting men through the ranks and the effect this had. Thought on effects of reversing this policy. Family background of many people deeply involved in the L&N Railroad and how this relates to settlement of different areas in Louisville. Newsletter of national safety organization and Daulton's relation to it. Sections on early days in the L&N when traveling with Parsons and later experiences under C.S. Sanderson. Relationship between the Safety Department and the Claims Department (Law). Procedure when an injury took place. Important safety improvements for railroad.

Main topics: Education, early years with the L&N, characterizations of the L&N presidents: Milton H. Smith, Wible L. Mapother, James B. Hill, and John Tilford; made General Counsel under Hill. Under Tilford the push made to change to diesel power. ICC: Joseph Eastman and his connection with Louis D. Brandeis. Passenger service. Importance of business following the rail lines and the modernization of the L&N. Merger background. Change in hierarchy of the L&N. Board of directors of the L&N, chairman of the board of the Seaboard Coast Line. Importance of decision to convert from steam to diesel power. Financing the railroad through bond issues: L&N always had conservative financial policy. L&N involvement with coal fields in eastern and western Kentucky, Birmingham area. Law Department: involvement in issues that went before the ICC, cases involved rates. Levels of appeal before going to the Supreme Court. Cases before the Supreme Court, N.C.&St.L. Political activities in 1950s. Legislation adverse and profitable to the railroad. Lobbyists for the L&N - Pinkston and Lewis from Lexington. Labor and rates were main concern. Development of law staff. Prime Osborn - great knowledge about ICC. Philip M. Lanier - Vice President Law and General Counsel. Personal items about Mr. Grubbs' life, activities at St. Paul United Methodist Church and foundation of LOA (Love One Another) class. Family relationships and books written by Grubbs.

Moore is retired from the L&N Railroad having served most of his years of employment with both the L&N and the NC&StL Railroads in the areas of personnel and labor relations. Main topics: background prior to employment with the L&N Railroad; World War II years and the effects on hiring and promotional procedures; labor problems and agreements from 1949 including merger consideration; Moore's transfer to Louisville and the differences in his work; procedures for handling labor disputes; massive re-education program for management and reclassification of jobs through setting descriptions for all jobs and crafts; changes in labor force due to improved technology; railroad labor organization; background on the operating and nonoperating crafts; insights into specific unions such as Brotherhood of Railroad and Airline Clerks; racial and minority considerations in personnel; the importance of unions today and future trends for training skilled personnel.

Family connections with the L&N including Mrs. RoBards's father who was a Diamond Button man. The old L&N Magazine, the importance of its relation to the L&N family. The importance of the L&N to the growth of the following: industry (coal), institutions (colleges), and agriculture (South). RoBards deals with these items in great detail. Role of public relations and the L&N Magazine was to show how these industries relate: various colleges and universities, people of the South and the history of the railroad in the early years, and publicity of "The General" locomotive. Additional information of special trains include: Mammoth Cave trips, Friendly Service (safety emphasis), Kentucky Derby trains and the Bond Rollers. Various topics include: TOTE, dieselization of the railroad, the role of railroads in World War II, and the effects of trucking on the railroad system.

Early Life and education, immediate employment with the Atlantic Coast Line, description of the railroad in those early years, difficulty of building track through swamp, Florida still a very underdeveloped area. Move to Rocky Mount, North Carolina, and years with the Charleston and Western Carolina railroad through the Depression years and on to Augusta, Georgia. Experience with the military railway service for 13 years. A very good description of the railroad's role in the conduct of World War II. Includes General Patton's operation and working the troop supplies across Europe. Techniques brought back to the Atlantic Coast Line. Continued innovations brought from Europe. Return to civilian life and the ACL headquarters in Wilmington, North Carolina, and various positions held by Sanderson. Leadership of the ACL of Mac Davis, the Delano family, and then ALM Wiggins to consolidate some areas of operation. Historical background of the ACL and the L&N's connection with the Clinchfield railroad. Interstate Commerce Commission's stipulations concerning the lease. Clinchfield has for many years been under the influence of the Norfolk & Western railroad. Wiggins brought the railroad into its present importance. Modernization of the Clinchfield during Sanderson's years as general manager (1954-1962). Continued dieselization of the Clinchfield and descriptive passages on the people and the area covered by this railroad. Move to L&N in 1962 as General Manager. Was able to take part in the continuing modernization of the L&N. Description of the difference in the terrain and maintenance considerations on the ACL and the L&N. Positive aspects that Sanderson noted from the beginning of his experience with the L&N. The handling of chemicals as it relates historically.

Early life and college years; employment with the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway. Depression and his apprenticeship program. Maintenance of the steam locomotives, wartime measures, description of the NC&StL shops during the steam locomotive days, terrain of the NC&StL. Responsibility in Nashville shops: to develop new sources of steam for the shop boilers (burning oil), types of locomotives, instructions for car diesels and the teaching responsibility for apprentices and locomotive firemen to engineers. Merger of the NC&StL and the L&N in 1957. Mr. Sapp was assistant manager of planning and production. Comparison of the NC&StL equipment and that of the L&N. Train crews continued to operate on the same lines as before. There was a learning period for Sapp with WI Johnson in charge. This was the beginning of his experience with freight cars. Moved to the L&N on Jan 1, 1953, and appointed mechanical engineer. He describes the mechanical engineer's office and staff at that time. Large amount of travel involved. Areas of technical development that Sapp was directly involved in until his retirement: design of freight cars; split sill car underframe patented; door mechanism also patented; needed special operation (air pressure used) in Louisville South shops. Good description of the pits and conveyor belts used at the TVA plant at Bull Run; working out of the audio radio system with supplier field testing for freight cars and the American Association of Railroads called in to help. Test track set up near Frankfort that became the specification track for the AAR. Information on the Car Construction Committee of the AAR. Information on other professional organizations that Sapp felt useful during his career.

Family background and early years with other railroads: Southern and the Pennsylvania, for more than 16 years. Left Penn Railroad to sell railroad accessories. Total of 20 years spent in railroading, mostly with the Union Switch and Signaling Company in New York City, Pittsburgh and Chicago. Came to position at L&N by acquaintance with Mr. Kendall at the Pennsylvania Railroad. At L&N, organized advanced program maintenance and capital expenditure; promoted togetherness of the L&N family and positive feelings. Reorganized accounting department, started public relations; justified to the president all expenditures. Procedures for request from various depts. and presentation to the board of directors for all money spent. Discussion of the Osborn Yard in Louisville. Osborn Yard and the importance of Telex system and real time to L&N. South Louisville shops and the bad order ratio of rolling stock; renovation and new machinery; one stop repair satellite shops. Budgetary process: preplanning and projected needs, meeting with department heads, emergency measures, close relationship with deparments and their heads. Holding companies formed by the railroads to diversify their services. Transportation field from the manufacturing side rather than of the railroad. Maintenance of way, communication and signal needs, national microwave system, package deals and systems of equipment, government funding of highway crossing and flasher gates, railroads' roles in developing research such as test tracks, having railroad using department to generate ideas and where there is competition and cooperation among railroad or suppliers. Mergers, positive and negative aspects of recent mergers and pending mergers recalled.

Overview: 1926 L&N track man until 1928. Rejoined the L&N in 1948; reflections on President Harry Truman, Thomas Dewey and events of that campaign. Talked with President Truman about problems of segregation. Experiences of pre-integration. Events on day Martin Luther King was assassinated. Turning in purse lost on Derby Day led Owen White being moved into Mr. Kendall's private offices. Attached to boat Cloe Bee for seven years. Had opportunity to make many contacts. Later worked at Guest House at 4201 Tournament Lane. Examples of interesting opportunities, taking players to Master's Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. Description of being track man in 1920 and type of lodging that was standard. Feelings about Roosevelt, Thompson Restaurant, Henry Bickel's, Watterson Hotel, and sharing among people in the 1930s. In the 1940s, L&N needed workers and rejoined. Talks about segregation on L&N RR. Reflections on segregation procedures. Other transportation experiences north and south. Comparison of wartime Macon, Georgia and the present date, 1980. Reasons for remaining in Louisville, different pressures in railroad position and regular day-to-day life. Explanation of railroad passes. 1950: Changes to keep passenger services going. Scheduling problems with being on the president's staff. Greater Salem Baptist Church. Supplemental check and explanation of straight salary. Union benefits and experiences, strike of 1956. Integration experiences for son at Male High School. Money raising experiences at Male in 1960 as they relate to racial relations. Attachment to Mr. Kendall's office, difference in attitude towards Mr. Jones, people served. Lost financial security with last position, relationship with other blacks, other individual, Southern politics, possibilities of black power in relations with whites.