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| Amtrak River Runner, Missouri, 2013 |
As
historians and genealogists it’s hard to ignore the importance of the railroads
to our American history. Every time I board a train to commute between Kansas
City to St. Louis, or leave Washington DC bound for Philadelphia or New York, I
think of our ancestors who laid the tracks, sold land and “human property” to
the railroads, made a fortune investing in railroads, and those who lost
everything on a gamble. The railroad led
the Industrial Revolution - building bridges, new depot architecture and production
of rail cars. The expansion of the
railroad post-Civil represented the faces of America with its immigrant and its
ex-slave workforce. As you trace your ancestors from about 1830 through the
Industrial Revolution, remember to follow the tracks.
Finding Your Railroad Ancestor
“Follow
the tracks” is not just a motto, it’s what our ancestors did. Men, and
sometimes entire families and communities, left their home base for work. Skilled
and unskilled labor (and skilled) men were
on the railroad labor rosters. This may have landed your ancestor in the next
county, next state, or on the route of the Transcontinental Railroad.
Practically
every newspaper across America from San Francisco (Central Pacific) to Omaha
Nebraska (Union Pacific) reported daily news of the Transcontinental Railroad. Irish settlements lined the Union Pacific
tracks, and many Chinese Americans worked on the Central Pacific. Railroads
bought and sold slaves, and was the largest employer for ex-slaves after
emancipation. These workers also lined regional and local railways.
Where to Find Records
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| "I have known the slave Jerry" |
Looking for Slave Ancestor?: It has been
suggested that over ten thousand enslaved men, women, and children worked on
southern railroads between 1857 and 1865. For documents/records be sure to
review local railroad deeds, contracts and lawsuits. These records may list
your ancestor by name as contractual labor.
Letters between slave traders and railroad company officers can be
located in State Archives and Special Collections.
Irish Railroad Workers: When
researching your immigrant ancestor if you follow the tracks, you will find not
only railroad documents, but a bit of their day to day life. Be sure to map out
the historical churches and cemeteries along the tracks and review the records.
The B&O Railroad employed low paying Irish workers even before 1850 (the
heyday of the railroad). And the nearby St. Peter the Apostle Church and Cemetery holds accompanying
family data. Have you visited the Irish Railroad Workers Museum in Baltimore,
MD?
What Other Records Are Available?
Railroad Retirement Board. Some of the records that hold valuable genealogical information are the
U. S. Railroad Retirement Board records (RRB) claim and pension files. A great index is on the Midwest Genealogy Center, U. S. Railroad Retirement Claim Records. These records document railroad
workers’ claims after 1936. When researching for this timeframe, be sure to
check both the RRB and the National Archives (NARA) Southwest
Region Atlanta facility.
State Archives and Museums. Family researchers
may find in State Archives or area repositories additional railroad
collections. Often these collections have information on sick, injured, deaths
and dates of service. A favorite is the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission -Pennsylvania Railroad Company.
Unions and Rosters. Many railroad union
membership records and rosters have been salvaged (early 1900’s), and may have
been compiled and digitized for online viewing. The New York Central Railroad Seniority Roster provides names,
dates of service and positions; whereas the larger Northwest Railroad Employees Rosters provide location details specifying the railroad line worked.
Historical Society and Special
Collections. A great place to begin your railroad research
is at the local Historical Society or public library and university’s special
collections. The Indiana Historical Society is the repository for the Monon Railroad Collection (1851-1971). From their website:
"Material regarding Monon employees consists of engineer lists (1878-1923), pension lists (1930s-1970s), retirement dinner programs (1950-1963), fifty year pin lists (beginning 1943), and funeral bulletins (1960-1970s). A scrapbook contains newspaper articles (1947-1949)."
Know
that many records have not been preserved or are in far-reaching archives. For
example the Missouri Pacific Railway, operated from 1851-1997. Their records are not held with the Missouri Pacific Historical Society but
in the Hutchinson, KS salt mine storage facilities.
For More Information
Kathleen Brandt
Website: a3genealogy.com http://a3genealogy.com/#!/pageHome
Accurate, Accessible Answers
This is really helpful. I never thought about the number of ex-slaves that railroads employed. So I guess railroad records are by locality, or by the particular railroad, rather than in some national database. Unions and pensions sound like another good bet. I'm going to copy your suggestions for databases. Thank you for sharing this information with us!
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