Interesting photo. It is hard now to imagine the metal working and heavy engineering skills these guys had. You can really see that these locos were 'built'.
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While every thing here may look normal, that may not be the case. I see what looks to be white dust, but probably is removed or dislodged asbestos insulation. I wonder how many of these men would die a painful death from just these working conditions, not once but for their total work lifetime. Multiply this scene by the total number of partial or total locomotive rebuilds, times the total number of steam locomotives owned by the United States railroads, and the number of shop employees exposed is staggering !
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What an amazing slice of history. Thanks for sharing it Ron.
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I don't think I've ever seen a photo quite like this. Aside from the asbestos, the dirt, soot, and grime are quite evident. Sure would hate to have their laundry to do. Poor wives.
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| Posted by on October 4, 2014 | |
I can tell you first hand, when a Hydro was performed on the loco and the jackets and asbestos was removed there was dust everywhere, in the air, on everything and of course, the employs breathed this dust.
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