The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-10-07
Population of Topeka Could Be
Increased by 1000.
PAY ROLL is NOW 1850
An Increase of Almost 400 Since
Last Year.
Fall Business OF Santa Fe Rail-
road Shops Is Good.

Real estate men may work day ana
night in their attempts to bring buyers
and residents to Topeka, the CONNER
cial club may devise all sorts of at
fractions TO increase the population Of
tie city, and the various industries
may increase their facilities now and
then-but the real pulse of the growth
and prosperity of the capital city in
Kansas is the Santa Fe.
Every year Topeka sees the pay roll
of the big railroad system climb up
ward in local circles. Every year new
buildings, new departments and new
employees are welcomed by the citi-
zens.
Now that fall-the time of the year
When every railroad brings out its en-
tire equipment. fills up its ranks and
gives work to everyone from the train
crews to the general officials-has ar
rived the blood of good times and bet
ter traffic is running through the veins
of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe
railway.
And Topeka is throbbing with the
Santa F'e.
There are in the big shops of the
Santa Fe in Topeka today. 1850 men
working from morning until night ana
receiving full pay. At this same time
good on the road, there We're but 1890
men employed in the shops in this city.
This means that there have been added
to the pay roll and brought to Topeka
as residents, almost 400 men.
But this isn't all.
If an army of 200 carpenters were to
march into Topeka this afternoon.
knock on the office door of the general
superintendent of the shops and seek
admission. the superintendent would
receive them with open arms.
Not only that, but he would line them
up in battle line again, rush them TO
the east end of the shop district of the
Santa Fe yards and giving each man
his tools he would give the order to
work-and to keep working.
In other words the shops in Topeka
could and would employ this minute
200 more carpenters to work on the car
repair work that is being done in this
city. This despite the fact that there
are at this time 500 men working in
this line.
One thousand men working as car
penters repairing cars in the Santa
Fee shops would not represent a small
portion of the shop population
If the Santa Fe could get 200 car
penters at this time they would be
started out on full time in the morn
ing. The average carpenter who has
learned the trade well enough to be-
come of use to railroad shops is mar
ried. This means that the population
of Topeka would be increased by 1000
people tomorrow morning-if they would
come and accept employment.
For instance the Santa Fe is remov-
ing all of the old wooden underframes
from the oil tank cars over the sys-
tenn and replacing them with steel I'M
derframes. There are 900 oil tank cars
under this process. This means a gem
eral increase of business in several de-
partnlents in the shops. The black
smith shop, the machine shop and the
carpenter shop all come in under this
repair work and their force Of men are
kept busy
This is but one of the special as
signments this fall and winter. The
Santa Fe is converting big per cent
of it's passenger and freight engines
into oil burners. This work is done in
the Santa F'e shops in Topeka for this
district and many men are employed
constantly on the process.
There isn't any excuse for a good
man in Topeka to be out of work.