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Night Class
By: J.E. Landrum
August 2, 2006
 | | J.E. Landrum |
“R303 by KC at 2213.” Moments later, the wire crackles to life as the dispatcher replied with a curt “OK 303” and silence returns, save for the occasional moan from the heat register, clank or ring from the interlocking machine, and sputter on the radio. The smell of stale coffee, cigarettes, paper, metal, oil, wood, and ink fill the air. CSX operator Harold Hildebrandt writes the final entry for R303 on the train sheet showing its caboose by the tower. The moment, captured in this photo, had been repeated hundreds of thousands of times before at that very desk. Overseeing the junction at Covington, Kentucky between the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway's mainline from Ashland to Cincinnati and the Louisville & Nashville Railroad's mainlines from Atlanta and Louisville to Cincinnati, the tower was given its telegraph designation reflecting L&N predecessor Kentucky Central.
My formative railfan years were spent in many such towers, which could be considered “classrooms of railroading.” The time spent listening to stories, observing operations, and a fading vista of railroading is unforgettable. Towers remain my favorite photo subject, although regrettably there are few opportunities to do so with the inexorable course of automation. KC closed in 1992, two years after this photo was taken. The tower remained, decaying and becoming a haven to hobos, pigeons, and rodents. It was mercifully torn down in the winter of 2002; the body buried ten years after the soul had left it.
I often think of how much railroading has changed in the time between when that photo was taken and today. Railroading had a much greater human element to it then. It was more personable. Getting lots of trains or specific types of locomotives were of little importance then. I photographed whatever passed and resumed conversation in the tower. Visitors such as switch tenders, local job conductors, track inspectors, foremen, and signalmen were common, providing even more insight to an eager pupil wishing to learn more. Today, railroading certainly has not diminished in my eyes, but I often yearn for the human element that no longer exists. Obviously, Safetrans signal bungalows don’t provide much discussion! The employees out in the field today are few and they rarely have time for more than a brief wave or nod of the head. So I look back at this photo and recall the good times spent in that “classroom of railroading.”
Copyright © J.E. Landrum. All Rights Reserved.
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User Comments on this Article:
Posted by Andrew Blaszczyk (2) on August 2, 2006:
Nicely done, J.E. There are so many words to be said about it, but the one that keeps coming back to me is sad. Although I never got the chance to experience this "personal" period of railfanning, I have certainly heard the stories such as yours and wish I could revisit those times. Thanks for sharing and making me feel like I spent the day or night at KC.
Posted by Chris Starnes on August 3, 2006:
Top notch work, JEL. Thanks for doing this one for us!
Posted by Ron Flanary on August 3, 2006:
As I told some of your buddies earlier (upon seeing the draft)....this is one of the best photos of yours I've ever seen....plus the story is real, touching, and well wordsmithed. This is the type of top-drawer effort I've hoped for RailPictures for some time now---powerful photography rather than the dominance and blandness of sunny day wedgies. I certainly hope this will not be your last posting for this exciting new feature on the site.
Posted by on August 3, 2006:
This has been one of the few best B&W photos that I've seen in a while. I can admit that during my formative years at railfanning were spent in the armchair reading RMC and Trains, then later walking around in the Orlando area watching CSX and Amtrak either on the ground or on the bus w/o any photos taken. The best place to watch trains when I was in Orlando was a street by the name of Sanitarium Street ... no towers out there!
Posted by Ryan Parent on August 3, 2006:
I enjoyed reading this very much. You really set the mood. Nice work, J.E.
Posted by Wade H. Massie on August 4, 2006:
This is a wonderful example of photojournalism, the photo and story are both excellent. Tower operators and B&W photography are a perfect fit, as evidenced by your artful photo. Great stuff, J.E.!
Posted by Bret Stringer on August 4, 2006:
Very well done, sir. The picture is moving, almost haunting. The text is top notch. Excellent work.
Posted by Joe Hinson on August 4, 2006:
The picture of Mr. Hildebrandt is top notch. It should be in Life or on a wall somewhere. This is photojournalsm, but it's also art. Exceptional work there.
Posted by B40-8 on August 14, 2006:
Sounds like when I got the chance to go into the Ridgewood JCT. tower in Ridgewood NJ on the NJT.
Posted by Ray Peacock heartlandrails.com on August 18, 2006:
Great image, J.E.,
Nice read too, reminds me of my youth hanging out at the GTW Vicksburg, MI., in the 60s while agent Sam Miller would take the time tolerate my incessant questions while tying up the flimsies getting ready to hoop up orders to the head AND hind end of the train. No, that safetran shanty doesn't cut it..
Posted by Andy Overall on September 27, 2006:
A fine piece. I have only been in the KC area a few times. First time was in '93 when DeCoursey was already ripped up. The only towers I have seen were Boyd Tower in Jeffersonville, IN at the CSX / L&I crossing; the B&O Tower at Watson near the old Charlestown Army Munitions Plant; and the still running Clagg Tower at downtown Louisville. That and Panama Yard along the McAlpine Locks are what's left of the local waterfront rail corridor. A lot of buildings had disappeared by the time I discovered the railroad. I've been inside the Clagg Tower one time back in '98. I got in through a fellow, local railfan who knew the Operator there. We talked with him for a while. I think a Tower Operator is one the least noted railroad jobs, even when they were more numerous for the reasons J.E. Landrum cites. Many workmen from different parts of the system and sometimes from neighboring roads pass through their doors. On the brighter side, there are some groups that have sprung up around the country for the preservation of defunct towers. Let's hope they remain that way.
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