File:B&O Railroad Baltimore Division Seniority List.jpg

Summary

Here is a rare find. It's a seniority list of all the names of railroad employees in the Baltimore Division of the B&O Railroad. This 1926 booklet was personalized for Brunswick railroader R.T. (Bob) Foster. He was the husband of Lula (Sis) Foster and father of Mary Foster Cage, longtime BHS teacher. Noting the home address, the Fosters ran a boarding house for railroaders from 109 W. Potomac Street for years.

See the endorsement of S. & N. Katz "Official Railroad Watch Inspectors". The company later established a franchise business on the Square Corner in Brunswick, operating from 1946-1980. Although the Katz chain was sold to Reliable Stores Corporation in the late 1950s, the Brunswick store was the last to keep the Katz name until store manager Frank Miglio retired, the year S. & N. Katz closed its doors.

Troy Lloyd Now that’s cool! Seems to be a roster for the official B&O Railroad Watch Inspector’s. Around this time, having a working watch with precise timing was very important for train movement schedules and preventing train collisions. Would love to see the names inside the roster book.

Tom Greco I believe it was 1973 when I met Mr. Foster. I was 25 years old at the time and wild about the B&O, as I still am. We sat together on the porch for a couple of hours while Mr. Foster regaled me with B&O stories and answered my questions. He gifted me with one of his timebooks from the early 20th Century, which I still treasure.

Fred George III I remember Bob Foster. Good friend of my grandfather. We used to sit on his steps and view the parades. The adults sat on the porch.

Jeanne Green Brandenburg-Smith My dad was Local Chairman of the Carmen's Union for over 20 years. He had file drawers full of information, Seniority Rosters dating back to 1928, all kinds of things. I kept EVERYTHING. He even had Babe Ruth baseball All-Star Rosters, newspaper clippings.. Definitely a treasure to me.

(Photo courtesy of David McIntosh; information from "Brunswick: 100 Years of Memories")