The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1906-07-10
rhe oldest Conductor Dead.

! William T. Bailey, the oldest conductor
on the pay roll of the Pennsylvania Rail.
road Company, died Saturday night al
his home in Trenton. The deceased, who
was 70 years old, had relatives and friends
in Mount Holly. He leaves a widow and
four children.
When the Pennsylvania railroad had
only single track between New York
and Philadelphia, the rails of the road
being hidden from view by weeds and
T. Bailey was one of the two OF three
conductors in the employ of the system.
Mr.. Bailey was the Oldest employee of the
company at the time of retirement on
January /, 1900.
1t was back In the sixties that Mr..
Bailey was taken as brakeman on the
line, having worked with Andrew Quin-
ton, who at one time had charge of a
from the heart of Trenton to Kensington.
Afterwards he was entrusted with the
Johnny Bull, the first steam locomotive
operated in this country. There were
ny Bull" but this little wonder
carried the only lot of cars which ran di-
rect from Trenton to Philadelphia. OF
course there were several trains running
freight and passengers to different points
along the route, but William Bailey was
the single through conductor, and he ran
what was then considered the Limited ex-
press.
Mr.. Bailey in conversation recently said
he made eighty eight stops between Tren-
ton and the Quaker City in those days,
and only ordinary hand brakes were used.
1t took almost two hours to go the dis
lance, even when the engine was pushed
to its utmost. In answer to other ques-
tions Mr.. Bailey said:
''You wouldn't believe it, but there are
men and women in Trenton and Philadel
phia, in the prime of life, some with gray
hairs, who as children lifted on and off
the cars and kissed goodbye while
placed them in their mothers arms"
On the Sd of June, 1879, MIR. Bailey
was given run betwean Trenton and the
metropolis, and ever since that summer
until his retirement he passed each day to
and from New York. In the last years,
however. he made two trips daily. leaving
the Trenton station at Z o'clock in the
morning and again in the afternoon. The
records of the company show that the
pensioner had been faithful worker, and
during all his years of duty his trains
never took a human life nor met with a
serious accident
Mr.. Bailey was always at his post.
About 1897 he fell from a platform while
stopping at New Brunswick, and though
he had his right arm broken and a shout
der dislocated, he refused to surrender
the care of his coaches until he had gone
to Jersey City and made safe return to
the Clinton street station. Here he was
taken to his home in an ambulance and to
show that his injuries were of no mean
his home for three months.
A son, an engine driver, was killed in
railroad wreck in California. Mr.. Bailey
was jovial. good natured old man, with
a kind word and smile for every one
II am just as good for five more years, :"
said he in 1900 on his retirement, ''as l
have been for the last five, and am more
willing to work than l ever was. No,
don't know that | should complain of the
retirement, as the officials of the company
undoubtedly know what's best. They've
been very good to me-" he added, showing
pass for himself and family, "and may
not even now be away from the trains al
together"
Since being on the railroad Mr.. Bailey
travelled more than 100000 miles, or
more than sixty times the distance round
the world. Possibly his red letter trip
was in 1898, when he took the Johnny
Bull' to the Chicago exposition.