My Present Past
A genealogical experience
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Background:
Chicago Burlington & Quincy Depot
Liberty, Clay County, Missouri
Looking east  1945
Robert E. Jacobs was hired in September 11, 1944 as a station helper at the Chicago Burlington & Quincy depot
in Liberty, Missouri. At the age of seventeen he was eager to learn about the duties of the depot and with the
returning of the soldiers from the war, this would be an excellent time to secure a job that could become a
career. With the help of the station agent, James E. Deems and the other operators, Gene was given the
proper instructions on the execution of the duties as an operator, leverman and express agent of the Chicago
Burlington & Quincy railroad. After four months he took his operators test in Brookfield, Missouri, passing the
test he was hired on June 08, 1945. He went out on the road relieving other agents at several locations
including, Brookfield, Browning, Callao, Cameron, Cameron Junction, Carrollton, Chillicothe, Hamilton,  
Hunnewell, Kearney, Liberty, Lathrop, Macon, Monroe City and Shelbina. One year later he passed his
 levermans test at Birmingham. Being a leverman includes the responsibility of switching trains from one track
to another and the proper reading of the semaphores or signals from the tower, which was required at
Birmingham and Block 222.
During the time he spent at the Liberty depot in 1945, there was a particular young lady, Ruth Engel who would
pick up the mail for the American Red Cross at the depot. She was the Executive Secretary for
C. Ray Franklin, who was the Chairman of the Clay County Chapter, which had their office at the Clay County
Court house on the square. They struck up a friendship, which turned into a relationship and they were married
one year later on November 30, 1946 in Liberty, Clay County, Missouri.
1945 Chicago Burlington & Quincy Depot - Liberty, Missouri

James E. Deems - Agent
Frank W. Saunders - 1st Operator
Willard I. Moyer - 2nd Operator
Robert "Dixie" Slaughter - Custodian
Robert E. Jacobs - Station Helper

Trains East
#4 Local Passenger
#56 Passenger
#74 Time Freight
#70 Time Freight Local
Trains West
#3 Local Passenger
#55 Passenger
#67 Time Freight
#75 Time Freight Local
1945 Burlington depot, workers L-R rear: Melroy McGinnis, Bert McGinnis
Front row far right, Henderson, signal maintainer
Above:
Letter from R. L Huffman,
Chief Dispatcher at Brookfield, Missouri acknowledging my
dad's desire to learn the leverman's position at Birmingham
and Block 222. Gene passed his test in August, 1946.
Left:
1944-45 Chicago Burlington & Quincy Pass for Robert E. Jacobs
Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad
In the summer of 1945, my father remembers four distinct locomotives passing through the Liberty, Missouri
C. B. & Q. depot. The first was locomotive #6311 a 2-10-4 C that was built by Baldwin Locomotive as a class
M-4 in October, 1927 (c/n 60211). It was converted to class M-4-A in February 1940 by application of 28x22
cylinders, roller bearings and cross counter balance (main wheels only), and sold for scrap in November 1960.
Locomotive #6312 was a 2-10-4 built by Baldwin Locomotive as a Class M-4 in October 1927 (c/n 60252),
rebuilt to M-4-A in January 1940, retired and sold for scrap in May 1961. Locomotive #6313 was a 2-10-4 built
by Baldwin Locomotive as a Class M-4 in October 1927, converted to Class M-4-A in August 1939, and sold for
scrap in October 1960. All three were "Texas Type" locomotives.
In the latter part of 1927, the Burlington received from the Baldwin Locomotive Works 12 locomotives of the
2-10-4 wheel arrangement, commonly called the Texas type after the design's origin on the Texas & Pacific in
1925. Numbered 6310-6321 and classed M-4, the Burlington engines (known on the Q as the Colorado types)
were the largest and most powerful two-cylinder locomotives built up to that time. They were designed to
replace 2-10-2's on southern Illinois coal drags over the Beardstown Division and in doing so to increase
tonnage per train, obtain the greatest fuel economy possible and reduce the amount of overtime paid to crews
on the slower 2-10-2's.  
The boilers of the M-4's were of the radial stay, inverted wagon-top design, 92 inches in diameter at the first
stay ring, and 104 inches across at the throat. The barrel contained 87- 2½" firetubes and 222 - 3½"
superheater tubes. The large firebox, carried above the trailing truck, was 150 inches long by 102 inches wide
inside the sheets, giving it a grate area of 106.5 square feet. It was equipped with a combustion chamber and
arch tubes. Southern Illinois bituminous coal was the locomotives intended fuel, and it was supplied to the
firebox by a Duplex stoker. A low steam dome was centrally located on the boiler barrel, and was flanked fore
and aft by large sand domes. Engines 6310-6315 were equipped with Elesco feedwater heaters, while engines
6316-6321 had Worthington BL heaters. All 12 locomotives were outfitted with Strombos quadruplex air
whistles (actually horns) mounted atop the boiler just ahead of the front sand dome. These air horns were in
vogue for a brief period of time during the late 20's and were applied to a number of Burlington locomotives.

The fourth locomotive was a 4-4-2 "Atlantic Type" that was pulling the #3 local passenger schedule through
Liberty on it's way to the Murray Yard due to a "bad order" drive wheel. He did not get the locomotive number
but does remember it because of the "bad ordered" wheel.
The term "bad order" is a terminology used in the railroad
industry for designating repair for a particular piece of
equipment including locomotives, rail cars and track.