Evening star., 1951-12-27
Women in
Railroad
Business
By Dorothy Roe
,sociated press women's Edito,

Newest field opening up to
women is the railroad business.
longtime all-male stronghold.
Already exerting a strong in
f1uence on the Nations railroading
is the National Association of
Railroad Women, whose So mem
bers hold executive or supervisory
positions with most Of the coun-
try's mainline rail companies.
These girls aren't female coun-
terparts of Casey Jones. They
do not run the locomotives or toot
the whistles. They leave that
part of railroading to men.
They do, however. sit in i'm
portant executive jobs where the
woman's viewpoint is reflected at
the policy-making level. The i'm
portance of this viewpoint is be-
ing realized today by most of the
big United States railroad COM
panies. F. H. Baird, assistant vice
president of the New York Central
Railroad, expressed a widespread
opinion in a recent speech at the
NARW convention in Santa Fe,
N. Mex. when he said:
'I cannot understand how any
carrier can do today's job with
out the experience and judgment
and wisdom of trained women.
On our railroad, half our patrons
are women and children, and the
balance frequently are Influenced
travelwise by women"
New Comforts
Perhaps you've noticed some
new comforts and ref1nements
recently when riding crack
train. Maybe the seats seemed
more comfortable. the colors more
cheerful. the decorations more like
those in a home. When you've
found ample supplies of cleansing
tissues in the dressing rooms or
cheerful colored tablecloths in
the diner, you can thank the rail-
road women.
Recently accompanied group
Of these women executives on an
inspection trip through the plant
of the Budd Co., makers of rail-
road cars and equipment, near
Philadelphia.
Some Is members of the asso-
citation made the trip, coming
from such widely separated spots
as Minneapolis, Chicago, Balti-
more, Washington, New York and
Jacksonville. Fla.
All exhibited a keen awareneSS |
of the stiff competition the rail-
roads have to face today from air
and automobile travel and all
agreed that train travel must be
made more and more comfortable |
and attractive for passengers.
Get Preview
At the vast Budd plant, the
railroad women had a preview of |
a series of streamlined new cars
that are to be put into service
soon on the Pennsylvania Rail-
road. They exclaimed with notice.
able satisfaction over the cheerful
colors. the modern seats, the
etched glass panels and general
federal decorative theme, all un-
mistakably rejecting the woman's
touch.
Edith Alden. secretary and as !
Sistant treasurer Of the Chicago,
Burlington & Quincy Railroad, /
with headquarters in Chicago, said /
she got into the railroad business
during the First World War, be- =,
cause her father was an officer /
of the company. and has been {
there ever since. Il
Olive Dennis, former research
engineer for the Baltimore & Ohio
lines and among the first women
to receive an engineering degree ,
from Cornell University, is cred ,
tied for many of the refinements |
of the B & o. service.
Louise Jones, interior designer ,
for the Seabord Air Line Railroad,
with headquarters in Jacksonville,
Fla, is pioneering for gay colors
and living room comforts in train
travel.
Among other women who made
the trip were Irene L. Rieke. as
sistant secretary, Minneapolis &
st. Louis Railway; Velma McPeek.
supervisor of passenger train serv-
ice, Chicago, Burlington & Quincy
Railroad, and Esther Craig, pas
senger traffic representative, Sea-
board.