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Organized labor transferred into Brunswick from

Martinsburg with the train and engine service employees. By the time Brunswick's East Yard was completed in 1893, engineers, firemen, conductors and trainmen were represented by the "big four" operating craft unions, and the non-operating crafts were recruiting in the shops and offices. Although the BRCA was formed in 1888, a local lodge was not finalized until 1910. The BRCA prospered in Brunswick for half a century, but fell on hard times in the 1960's due to the realignment of the railroad industry. In 1986 it merged with Transport Communications Union, formerly Brotherhood of Railway, Steamship, and Air Line Clerks. In 1988 the car repair shop at Brunswick was permanently closed leaving only a dozen carmen in a terminal that employed almost 300 in the 1920's.

cents each, and every month the company withheld the amount due from the employee's check. To buy a home, one could borrow the money from the Relief Department. The company would regularly withhold an amount of payment, eventually replacing the total with interest. Meanwhile, the Relief Department made payments on the home; it also held the property title until the mortgage was paid. This fund also paid an employee when he was sick or hurt... from the day he was off, according to the number of shares he owned. The Relief Department held annual conventions that served the usual purpose of conventions; to update the members' knowledge, to learn new trends, and to hear about other programs. The relief plan was turned over to Monument General Insurance Company in the 1970' s. Periodic changes were made that gradually reduced the benefits and divorced the railroad of all obligations of this plan. Everything is under Monumental General, and new employees do not come under this plan.

Just like railroad industry itself, railroad unions have undergone radical changes over the past 30 or 40 years. While some thirteen crafts are presently recognized on CSX, some of the names have changed. In addition to the carmen joining the clerks in the Transport Communications Union as mentioned earlier, a major combination developed in the formation of the United Transportation Union (UTU). This union now includes conductors, trainmen, firemen, and yardmasters. Even some engineers who belonged to the former Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Engineers are UTU members. While there can be exceptions in almost all cases, some of the other unions now operating include Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees, and the International Brotherhood of Fireman and Oilers.

CABOOSE The caboose is an endangered species. As it becomes more and more scarce, much to the dismay of railroad lovers, many can recall that this favored piece of rolling stock had been a home away from home to at least a part of the freight train crew. Compactly embraced within its walls - were bunks; a small, pot-bellied coal stove for heating and with a flat top for cooking; benches; tank for drinking water; an ice box with ice on one side of a small partition and food on the other; a coal box; and much food. It was always the last car on the train and had a variety of names. On the PRR they were "cabin cars," other crews called them the "Shack" or "Crummy," but on the B&O, they were "cabooses." B&O was an early proponent of the bay-window caboose. With reductions in crew size and other costcutting measures, continuing use of this piece of equipment could not be economically justified, particularly after the walkie-talkie came into accepted usage. Many remember when a freight train crew consisted of an engineer, fireman, brakeman, flagman, and conductor. When the front-end brakeman was eliminated, the flagman worked both ends of the train. The conductor has always been in charge of the crew. The caboose was used mainly by the brakeman, fireman, and conductor, because they might have

S - Office of J. F. Sturgill, CSX, Baltimore. - Horner Parker, Paul Keller, Norman Thompson, Larry Baker, and Fred Wengenroth W-BRH

B&O RELIEF DEPARTMENT The B&O Relief Department helped many a railroader own his home. All employees of the company had to pass a physical exa·inination to qualify for a job and to belong to the Relief Department. Employees bought two or more shares at 50

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