The Hargrove Brothers Pueblo Yard..Pueblo, CO mid to late '80's in Tales of the Jointed Track

How many here have had that family squabble? I assume we all have over time. This occurred in the yard office in Pueblo,CO around midnight to 130 am. I may have related this tale on Open Diary, but in a way it’s worth repeating. Railroaders are an odd breed. We protect each other, and we fight each other as well, and it’s not always physical, but unpolitical correct speech is used at times.. We are what we are.

The Hargroves, basically come from southeastern Texas. They were all Santa Fe men who, due to work conditions and seniority, couldn’t hold a job year ‘round. They got cut-off as we would say, laid off as “polite society” would say. It’s booming up here, and the retirements are stressing the Santa Fe and the C&S, they need people. Transfers are welcomed, people off other railroads, are welcomed too, and if an experienced promoted engineer or conductor, wow lets get the brass band out. So coming out of the Beaumont, Temple, TX area, the migration of the Hargroves’ came to Colorado.

Two of the brothers landed back with the Santa Fe, as a lateral transfer of seniority to another “district” as the railroad called them. District, subdivision, semantics, hey its the railroad, Plasma Physics is not allowed. The other brother hired out with the C&S out of Trinidad, CO. He was the Locomotive engineer part of the equation.

James Hargrove: Locomotive engineer promoted, former Santa Fe hire. Temple, Houston, Beaumont, Silsbee, Conroe, Sommerville and the Longview districts. It’s all flat territory, but long heavy drags. He fits in, but this is lite to heavy mountain grade. He has the skills. He doesn’t get bumped around out of Trinidad, because the Denver C&S boys don’t want to protect or be force assigned.

Lynn Hargrove: A yard clerk, when we had those and a crew caller. He called crews on the Santa Fe out of Temple, and did yard clerk duties, timekeeping , bill busting, etc. he knew the Santa Fe procedure. Lynn could do and fill in. He called crews, the Santa Fe north to Denver, Pueblo to La Junta east on the Santa Fe and the C&S southbound to Trinidad,CO. He could bill bust and make up the logistics for the outbound trains. I think at one time he was a train order operator as well.

D. Van Hargrove: Promoted Conductor, brakeman, switchman, and relief yardmaster. Van probably has the hottest temper of the three. All of them are southeast Texas Cajuns, so they could go off. I like working with Van, he was quiet at times and you had to engage him into a conversation. He was a good and knowledgeable railroader.

There are three trains called into Pueblo. Van is the rear brakeman on the crew ahead of me. James is the engineer called to Trinidad, CO on a coal load due to arrive in 30 minutes.

His train will go into Hump track 3, and we will change crews on the mainline, out front of the yard office. We will pass them at Canon City Jct. The two empties are coming into Southern Jct and also about 30 to 40 minutes out. There is a Santa Fe crew taking a coal load to Kings Mill, TX, via La Junta, CO and onto Amarillo. His markers are fading around the curve at the south end of Pueblo yard.

Lynn is the night crew caller commonly known as the third trick. 2330 to 730 is the shift hours. Maybe there was a full moon that night, I don’t remember. There should have been because all three Hargrove brothers were present and accounted for.

Pueblo, CO 0100-0130 am The yard office:

How this meeting of the Hargroves got started I don’t know. I still don’t to this day, because I am retired and so are they.

The yard office is pretty crowded. The inbound Denver Kings Mill crew, is tying up. There are 2 empty crews waiting and the load that James is called for. The bill clerks are getting the paperwork ready of two freights that will be called soon. The train order Operator is busy with the Santa Fe and BN Middle McCook trick dispatchers. The outbound Kings Mill conductor is reporting a departure time, over the radio. Another empty is being chalked on the call board for a 315 am call.

Its a mild night, not too cold. I go out to get away from the din and put a chew in. The 2330 south lead job is banging cars off the class tracks, making up one of the freights that will be called later.

The yard office door suddenly opens, and out storm the three Hargrove brothers. There are stern faces and they disappear around the corner between the Yard office and the Crew locker rooms. I hear loud voices, along with the cars off the lead banging around, as the slack adjusts during the switch moves.

The south lead backs down to make a shove up the yard side and the noise abates. There is still raised voices and dull thudding of flying fists. They are going all out. I think to myself, this is not good, and hope a Company officer doesn’t appear.

Mike Fitzpatrick , my Conductor, shows up with my copy of the train orders for tonight’s run. The Hargroves also show up, shortly after, finishing up business. There is still sour faces, blackened eyes, puffy lips, and bloodied noses, along with some torn shirts. They go back into the yard office and Mike laughs slightly and says ” What the hell happened there?” ” A family squabble I think, they been going at it for the last 5 or 10 minutes”. We laugh again. The crew van shows up and James and his brakeman head toward the south end of hump 3. The soft glow of the headlight, on the arriving coal train is highlighting the roof lines of the standing freight cars.

Van and his crew appear, and walk across the class leads to the mainline. Their coal empty is at the depot, and they’ll change out front. I go in and grab my grip, because our empty is right behind them at Pueblo Jct.

The crew changes are made. I dim the headlight at Canon City Jct, and give a few toots of the whistle to James who is in Hump track 3. The conductor says he is aboard and a high green signal beckons at 29th Street. I wonder if they ever made up?

Last updated August 29, 2014