The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1952-01-24
FEC GALA REUNION
tIuntinued nom Page One)

of service to the FEC was in
PRODUCED to the crowd. AS Divi-
sion Engineer he began the con-
structlon of the Casa Marina be-
fore World War |.
Carlton J. Corliss, of the Amer
lcan Association of Railroads in
Washington made the original
suggestion for permanent or
gani2atlon of the railroad build
ers.
/ AS | see you for the first time
in forty years, here today" he
said. Many emotions have
crowded my mind. | first came
with the FEC in 1908 and work
ed here until 1914 on the Key
West extension"
/ Corliss said that AL Miller, an
FEC pioneer who could not at
tend asked him to touch the
ground of Pigeon Key for him.
/ Hyman said that in those days
forty years ago. the railroad men
came in to Key West for their
pleasure.
We had a whale of a time for
IS cents. We would take in a ten
cent movie and then go to George
Bryce'S restaurant and have din
ner> for IS cents. Those were the
good old days"
Hyman said that whenever the
train was "a hours late, it was
never admitted. The bulletin
board would read One hour
late" failing to state that it was
one day and one hour late.
Hyman recalled the tennis
| matches held between the FEC
men at Marathon.
When Mr.. Cotton was out of
town, we played constantly. But
when we'd hear the train whistle,
we threw our racket down and
went back to work"
T Hyman had cory of the ORR
ginal program of the opening of
the railroad, January %, 1912.
He also had pictures and copies
of magazine articles of the pc
riod.
He introduced Will r. Porter
to the luncheon guests, as one
of the members of the original
welcoming committee.
Ed Goehring, former construc-
|, ton foreman at Long Key. Bahia
} Honda and Seven Mile Bridge
told how Mrs. Henry Flagler
said she had warned her husband
not to take the railroad all the
way to Key West, but to stop at
Knights Key else the Flaglers
lose all their money. She was as
sured that it would be made up
| by Captain Knight.
Frank Pepper of Miami who
recruited much of the labor for
the huge gangs who built the
line said most of the workers
came from the Bowery of New
York City.
''They would work for us a
short time-and then go off to
Miami or north and spend their
money. Then they came back to
lis with different names so they
wouldn't have to pay the FEC
what they owed it. Some of the
men were escaping justice. One.
man was private detective
looking for murderer"
w. A. Glass one of the leading
pioneers was introduced to the
reunion guests and told stories of
the early days.
James Dunaway read a tele-
gram to the group congratulate
ing them. on the reunion and on
the fact that the building of the
Key West Extension had cost
only $50.000.000,
1T is signed 'Harry'-let's give
him hand"
Applause came from those who
believed him--until Dunaway
laughed and admitted he, not
), President Truman had drafted
the wire.
One of the men at the lunch
con was Percy Roberts. who was
appointed voluntary missionary
to the workmen on the Key
West extension back in 1912.
Roberts who lives in Key West
addressed groups of men total
| ling 1900. He made the rounds
preaching to work gangs of men
at Big Coppitt. Sugar Loaf, Pine
Channel, Long Key, Marathon,
Cooks Siding and on the Quarter
Boat.
Roberts showed me a handful
of dirt which he has kept wrap
ped in a newspaper since the
day when ground was first brok-
en- in Key West for the Exten-
sion. For years he rode up and
down the Keys doing missionary
work among the maintenance
men after construction was COM
. pleted.
/ During the course OF yester-
days reunion, Strunk passed a
J guest book in which the pioneers
signed The complete list of men
and women present follows:
Ed Goehring. Key West; Mr..
A.. III Clnn, fNnral "a.