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CATTLE PENS

FRUIT GROWERS EXPRESS

Sometimes cattle came to Brunswick and had no place to go! When there was no car designated yet for their destination, they had to lay over -just as railroad workers sometimes had to do. The men would transfer the cattle to cattle "holding" pens along the canal, west of the eastbound hump, which was opposite New Addition. They would feed and water the stock until a train was made up that could include them, at which time they would be returned to cattle cars and sent on their way. Prize bulls were given special treatment; each was given a car for himself alone and was carefully strapped in so he would not be hurt in anyway.

Shipping perishable cargoes placed a great responsibility on the carrier. Like the old home cooler, the railroad had to rely on ice for cooling meats, fruits, and vegetables before the days of the mechanical refrigerator car. When the Potomac River was frozen, the B&O would cut ice from the river. An "ice plow" was pulled on top of the river to cut uniform blocks. These were brought in for storage at Number 6, which was in the lower (eastern) yard, where the yard office now stands. This unreliable source was given up years ago. Later the B&O had a contract with the Charles Town Ice Company to supply railroad needs. The Fruit Growers Express Company played a role in Brunswick's ice supply as they were the contractor for providing perishable protective service in this area. That company, known familiarly as "Fruit Growers," was owned by the B&O and several other northeastern railroads. They restocked refrigerator cars with ice in Brunswick. There was an ice bunker at each end of the car into which ice was dropped through a top hatch to protect the perishable lading. The B&O kept one insulated car that held nothing but ice on the ready track to supply its own local needs: train crews and engine crews. Otherwise, FGE had the contract for refrigeration. There was a complement of perhaps 20 men doing piecework in the Brunswick yards; they deaned refrigerator cars ridding them of any debris or even usable wares that remained after a trip. The cars were actually brought empty from various places to Brunswick to be cleaned then returned to the west for new loads. They were made ready for re-icing and loadingatanypointneeded. For example, some were sent to Winchester forshipment of apples. The railroads could bring produce in five or six days from California to Baltimore or New York by way of Chicago. Bananas coming from Florida through the port of Baltimore would be loaded with these iced cars for distribution. For storage, the B&O had an ice house between the two main lines, between Delaware and Dayton A venues. There was an inclined conveyor platform with a level length at the top; this enabled men to shovel the ice over into the bunkers to replenish for preserving food that had not yet reached its destination. The Fruit Growers Express, independent of the B&O, used a refrigerator car like the one just described. Their workers were not B&O employees, but FGE employees.

S - Dutch Burns W-MMM

RAILROAD CROSSINGS A pattern has developed for the protection of railroad crossings. When a road was built over an existing track, the B&O would install a bell that would sound as a train approached to cross the road. This saved the expense of a watchman at the crossing, as the bell rang well before the train reached the crossing. However, when the railroad crossed an existing road, the company assumed a greater responsibility and immediately put up a shanty with a stove to keep the watchman warm. The watchman would remain inside the shanty and wait for his signal, the ringing of a bell within the building; then he would step outside with a red stop sign with white letters to stop motor traffic at the crossing. At night he would go outside with a lantern to halt traffic. Other crossing-protection systems included crossing gates which were first manually controlled and then later automated, as well as flasher lights tied into automatic track circuits. These are used where auto and truck traffic is heavy, such as in cities and where principal highways encounter grade crossings. The X-shaped "crossbuck" sign, probably the most familiar of all crossing devices, was used at rural and other lightly-used crossings. S - Dutch Burns W-MMM -BRH

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