I talked with L.Tillman Walker about his years working on the Rock Island for several hours on Decmeber 10, 1988 at his home in North Little Rock, Arkansas. He had an incredible recollection about his years working for the railroad and shared lots of fascinating experiences. I've pulled 11 segments of the interview, which you can download and listen to here as MP3 files. Sadly, L.T. died a few years ago, but his words live on.

The photo to the right of L.T. on the back of a caboose comes from the September 1968 issue of the The Rocket, Rock Island's employee magazine. The article was on the importance of track maintenance crews watching trains as they pass for any problems that could cause an accident.. L.T. was quoted saying, "Those maintenance gangs let me sit up in my cupola with a little more ease. When you pass one of those, you have a lot of eyes watch you roll by." He explained that lumber was one of the most common forms of freight they would handle and was also one of the most likely kinds to shift, which could cause a derailment.

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 1 - STARTING WITH THE ROCK ISLAND. He discusses how he came to work for the railroad and the student trips he made to get certified. He also mentions the necessary equipment he had to get. MP3 audio runs 8:02 (3.21 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 2 - CHANGES. Having started during the final years of steam locomotives, L.T. discusses the conversion to diesel engines, as well as other equipment changes he witnessed over the years. MP3 audio runs 12:19 (4.93 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 3 - HIS FIRST ACCIDENT. In January 1943 he was part of a crew that had to jump from a train carrying gavel near Malvern, Arkansas when it lost its air breaks. The train's steam engine ended up turning over. MP3 audio runs 5:23 (2.16 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 4 - SECOND ACCIDENT. This wreck occured because another train crew had improperly left a caboose on the main line, which L.T.'s train then ran into at Jones Mill, near Malvern, Arkansas. MP3 audio runs 5:15 (2.10 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 5 - THIRD ACCIDENT. This one occured west of Little Rock, when a steam engine collided with a large boulder that had fallen from nearby bluffs. L.T. would be injured that time when he jumped from the train. MP3 audio runs 9:05 (3.63 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 6 - FOURTH ACCIDENT. This was a head-on collision that occured outside of Hot Springs when one train lost its air breaks and wasn't able to stop for another. MP3 audio runs 5:48, (2.32 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 7 - FIFTH ACCIDENT. This time it was a broken rail that caused L.T.'s train to derail near Stuttgart, Arkansas. Here he also explains how block signals work and could have prevented this accident. MP3 audio runs 2:25 (996 kb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 8 - HITTING CARS. One of his biggest frustrations was running into cars and trucks that would drive around down railroad crossing gates. Here he talks about many of these accidents. MP3 audio runs 14:54 (5.97 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 9 - HITTING PEDESTRIANS. This too was a frequent occurence, often with winos and the like being killed. Sometimes they were asleep on the tracks or were too inebriated too realize the danger they were in. MP3 audio runs 13:29 (5.40 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 10 - SAFETY. He served for many years on the safety committee for the railroad, looking out for the well being of employees. Here he discusses accidents that took the lives of Rock Island employees. MP3 audio runs 8:11 (3.27 mb).

MP3 AUDIO: L.T. WALKER 11 - BANKRUPTCY. Despite the economic troubles Rock Island went through in its later years, L.T. said he never expected that two years after he retired that the railroad would shut down for good. Hear his thoughts. MP3 audio runs 6:45 (2.70 mb).

I photocopied a few photos that L.T. loaned me, with two of those below. I wish I knew who had these today because I would love to have nice scans of those to include here. But I tried to clean up the photocopies as best I could. Both photos have a date on them of June 1969. In the photo in front of the engine, L.T. is the second person from the right. In the shot in front of the caboose, he is in the middle. I don't know who the other crew members are. If anyone knows, please email me.

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