My father worked on the railroad after he graduated high school in the mid 70's. This might have been the worst time to start a career on the railroad. In 1959, American rail operations began to be consolidated, bought out, or shut down entirely. By 1981, some of the biggest rail operators had declared bankruptcy. When my dad hired on to work the rails, he was not more than a few years from being laid off.
I grew up hearing tales of the incredible, sometimes sad, and occasionally crazy things he had to do at work. Despite the often grueling conditions, I could tell that he was fond of the job and the memories.
I also grew up hearing about the idea of a mural on our basement wall. He wanted it to depict a freight train barreling toward the viewer, giving the viewer a sense of what it is like to stare down a train. This is something my father had to do once, almost.
While spike lining in the middle of a large bridge one winter, he and his crew heard a terrible noise. The crew foreman yelled to clear the track. They turned to look behind them and saw a train engine coming straight at them.
Running over elevated railroad ties or on the rails themselves is a dicey thing. It's a choice between walking on a balance beam very quickly, or leaping over the open spaces between the ties. Making a mistake on either means falling. My dad found this out quickly, and made a different choice.
He saw before anyone that the train would catch them all. He stopped and looked back at it, but it was still not quite in view. There was only time to jump into the icy river. He looked one last time at the train.
And that was when he heard the brakes. It never crossed the threshold of the bridge. It wasn't even a freight train. It was a rail x-ray machine pulled by a train engine. His dispatcher never told the crew it was coming. He never had to make the jump, and we'll never know if he would have made it. Had a better chance than the other guys though. I don't even think he took the rest of the day off.
The mural is titled Death of the American Railroad. Here it is:
This mural would not be what it is without a great background.
Or a great sky.
Also, the name Traitors has a double meaning. It was my dad's bowling league name. Their logo was the noose hanging from the "s." He always wanted it on the train, and I must say, it fits well. It is also meant as an accusation against rail operators that laid off so many of their employees creating difficult times for people
like my dad.
Duke Skellington, train engineer. The driver and the ghost train symbolize the death of the railroad. It was a touch that my dad always wanted in his painting. It ultimately makes the entire mural more dynamic. Good ole' Duke steals the show, in my opinion.
