20th century AD

Railway Age, Dec, 1999 by Frank N. Wilner

Alfred Edward Perlman (1 902-1 983) restored bankrupt Denver & Rio Grande to profitability, held a technically insolvent New York Central together until merger with Penn Central, spent aggressively on modernizing PC-building for a future realized by Conrail-and positioned Western Pacific for merger into the UP. He was a pioneer in installing CTC and investing in intermodal.

Daniel Willard (1861-1942), CEO of the Baltimore & Ohio (1910-1942), double-tracked the main line linking Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington with Pittsburgh and Chicago. He canceled outside contracting, returning locomotive repair to B&O shops. "He has a conscience in dealing with labor," said Time magazine. AFL-CIO President William Green called Willard "deserving of honor and tribute."

100 YEARS OF RAILROADING

1900

Jan. 1, 1900 A railroad system of 193,000 miles represents $11 billion investment; $1.4 million annual operating revenues, 1,017,000 employees.

1901 The first grade crossing accident involving an automobile and a train demolishes $8,000 Mors motorcar at Westbury, Long Island.

1902

1902 As locomotives got bigger and trains got longer, malleable iron couplers were becoming impractical. Believing the coupler business was moving to cast steel, Buckeye Malleable Iron & Coupler Company built a modern steel foundry. Once construction was completed in 1902, the company's output was almost exclusively steel castings, thus spurring a name change to Buckeye Steel Castings Company. The company bears the same name today

1903 The Elkins Act-Rebating Act makes the published freight rate the legal rate and the acceptance of rebates, drawbacks, and other concessions a criminal offense.

1903 Hayes Track Appliance Co., predecessor to Western-Cullen-Hayes, Inc., introduces the industry's first Model "A" De-rail.

1904

1904 America's first Mallet-type steam locomotive, American Locomotive Co. (ALCO)-built No.2400, weighing in at more than 150 tons, is shown at the Louisiana Purchase Exhibition in St. Louis.

MINER W.H. MINER DIVISION

1905 On Feb. 14, W.H. Miner patents the first steel friction draft gear.

1905 The Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central cut their running times between New York and Chicago to 18 hours. (PRR's Pennsylvania Limited, renamed the Broadway Limited in 1912, and NYC's 20the Century Limited trim these schedules to 16 hours in 1938.) Long Island Rail Road becomes the world's first steam road to make practical use of electricity for power.

1906

1906 The Hepburn Act puts teeth in the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887, giving the ICC maximum rate-making authority, the power to compel standardized reporting, and the requirement for a uniform system of accounts.

1907 Congress pass the 16-hour or "hog law," limiting the numbers of hours in 24 a railroad worker could stay on the job.

1908

1908 Hudson & Manhattan Railroad completes the first Hudson River tunnel. Congress passes Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA). Railway Age merges with the Railroad Gazette.

1909 Railway Business Association, predecessor to the Railway Progress Institute, is founded.