At 21 o-clock (nine pm) on July first, 1942 two seventeen year old East Calgary boys started working for the CPR at Alyth roundhouse in Calgary. The first young fellows name was Chuck and the second new employee was Bill whose father worked out of Alyth as an engineer and his brother, then in the RCAF, held four years seniority as a fireman at the same working point. The locomotive foreman’s clerk assigned the two new men their employee numbers and showed them how to punch the time clock. Next the shop’s labor foreman took them in tow and led them through the large 36 stall circular roundhouse to just outside of pit number one to what was called “the locomotive wash rack”. On the long walk all around this steam shop the foreman pointed out the various pieces of equipment, and explained their uses plus he showed them the many different types of locomotives and explained the different services they were assigned to.

This wash rack was a long cement trough, with drains, located on the incoming shop-track between the ash pit and the turntable that was used to place engines into the various stalls in the roundhouse. There was a very large and very dirty freight locomotive spotted over this cement trough waiting to be cleaned up by Chuck and Bill. They guessed that washing that large machine wouldn’t be much different then cleaning the family car except that it was about ten times larger and much, much dirtier. After all incoming engines were washed they were run onto the turntable, which was then swung, around and lined up with the appropriate roundhouse stall, the locomotive was then run inside to where about a half a dozen engine wipers would go at it with hot soapy water and long handled brushes and clothes to get them really clean.

The labor foreman gave Chuck and Bill each a pair of high rubber boots and a piece of heavy black canvass to put over their shoulders that had round holes cut in them for their heads to poke through. Then they were told to tie a light rope over the canvas and around their waists to close the gaps at each side. This done the foreman showed both boys how to hold a heavy black rubber hose, with a four fool long nozzle, over a shoulder. When the high pressure water and steam jet was turned on it nearly knocked the fellow holding the hose on his ass. The foreman instructed the boys that they didn’t have to climb up onto the locomotive running boards, above the wheels, but were told to stand on the ground, on either side of the locomotive and to concentrate on getting most of the grime off the lower locomotive parts including the wheels, driving rods frames and cylinders, then just lightly spray the top and sides of the boiler and engine cab/tender to rinse off the accumulated dust.

There was a hot water and steam hose on both sides of this wash rack, one for each of the two new employees, and it didn’t take long for both of them to find out that they should start at opposite ends of the machine being worked on, otherwise the hot spray could pass through the spaces between the wheel spokes and other spaces under the boiler, and soak the guy on the other side. At times, lot of water would splash back from various parts of the engine to completely soak the fellow pointing the hose the wrong way, without either of them spraying each other directly. They soon learned how to spray certain parts so that when a hostler or any other employee was walking by he would get a shot of that hot spray on his back after he had passed. When he would quickly turn around the hose nozzle wouldn’t be turned anywhere near in his direction. Very mysterious!

From the time that Chuck and Bill started washing those locomotives at about 2130 until nearly 0200 they didn’t get much of a break because when a hostler moved a newly washed engine to the turntable and into the roundhouse the other hostler would place another grubby steam monster in position to be washed. Finally at 2am they got time to eat their lunches and get a chance to partially dry off.

Things got a bit slower after the lunch break so the two engine washers were able to walk up to where the hostler and his helper were filling the tenders of incoming locomotives with water then, after spotting under the coal chute, adding coal to the tender and filling the sand dome toward the top front of the boiler. Next the engine had to be moved west and spotted over the ash pit so the fire could be dumped before placing it on the wash rack for our two new employees to start the cleaning process. Then, if there was no other locomotive, ready to be washed, the two young guys could help the other crew line up the turntable then ride into the shop in the engine’s cab and see how the hostler’s helper, with hand signals, helped the hostler spot the locomotive’s smoke stack right under the chimney opening in the ceiling of the roundhouse. (The name “Hostler is derived from the age-old job of moving horses (locomotives) into and out of the barn (roundhouse).

After a week or so Chuck and Bill decided working with a hostler would be a much drier and much more challenging job then blasting grime off on the wash rack so whenever a chance came up the two of them would work with the hostler and his helper (a wiper like them) to learn that job in the event that a vacancy came up. Besides, working steady shifts from 21 o-clock to 5 am really cut into their social lives. The hostlers’ helpers worked one week on each shift; for example their shifts were 8am to 16 o-clock, 16 o-clock to midnight and midnight to 8am six days a week. One night a hostler’s helper failed to show up for his shift; it could have been pay day and he had other plans so the two new workers decided to cover their own jobs and to take turns helping the hostler for the complete shift. The shop foreman knew what they were doing and guessed why they were doing it, so as soon as a couple of helpers got set up (promoted to the fireman’s spare-board) they each got steady jobs helping two of the hostlers.

Bill was assigned to a hostler by the name of Boyd Huston and started out on a midnight shift on the yard locomotive side of the three shop-tracks. I will explain that, starting from left to right from the last roundhouse stall (there were 36 of them) and leading to the long turn-table, were several short stub end storage tracks where spare wheels etc. were stored. Then there was the outgoing shop track, which led past the fuel oil tank and eastward past the coal chute, the supply shack and a large wooden water tank. The next shop track, to the right, was for in-coming road locomotives which started at a water stand pipe then ran west through the coal chute and sand-house and continued over the ash pit and wash rack to the turntable. Right beside pit number one was the yard engine side of the shop track area, which also went over an ash pit, past the coal chute on the south side and to a water standpipe. Two other tracks branched off this single yard sidetrack, which was used for storing switching yard locomotives when they were waiting to leave for their various assignments. None of the locomotives assigned to yard service were placed in the roundhouse unless they required repairs. The steam pressure was kept up and the fires were kept going by the hostler and his helper who “watched” these idle locomotives. Some nights there were six or more engines to “watch” until their crews arrived to go to work with them. (The term “watching” a steam locomotive doesn’t mean just sitting and watching it or making sure that nobody steals it, but it means to keep the fire going and the steam up and the boiler water at a safe level so the part above the firebox would not become overheated which could cause the boiler to blow up.)

Bill’s first chance to make a trip or shift as a fireman on one of these yard assignments came on Aug. 23rd when, after working the midnight shift (24 o-clock to 8am) the locomotive foreman asked if he would care to fill in for the fireman on engine 6256 (a small 0-6-0 switcher) because the regular fireman had failed to show up for the 8-30 (on duty time) for his “9 o-clock Sunalta” assignment. There was just time to dash the four blocks home and return before the engine was due off the shop track. The engineer’s name was Herb Richards and when Bill explained that this was his first trip he put the young fireman at ease by stating “seeing as how he had been working around the shop tracks helping hostlers and watching locomotives etc., for about seven weeks, there wouldn’t be any problem with doing the fireman’s job”. The engineer also stated that he would keep an eye on his young, green, fireman and would give any helpful advice when required. Except for being tired, after having worked all night, it was a great day for Bill especially when he learned that his pay for the 9-hour shift would be over six dollars. He wished that he could do that at least once a week besides covering his regular shift. Bill made a point of informing the crew clerk and the callboy that he would be available if any other firing jobs came up. The next chance to fire a yard shift came up in Sept. firing the 6938 on a day shift at the coach yard at Calgary’s depot with engineer Ben Spinney.

Sometime in late Nov. or early Oct. Bill was asked if he would like the temporary job of relieving the locomotive watchman, at Banff, Alberta, on weekends and work the rest of the week inside Alyth roundhouse painting locomotive front ends, gray with black handrails. The weather was becoming colder and being a hostler’s helper was shift work and damn cold at times especially when standing on top of tenders filling them with water and dusty coal then above the boiler filling the sand domes, so he welcomed the change.

The locomotive “watching” job at Banff consisted of deadheading the eighty miles west, on passenger train No. 1, which left Calgary station at 23, o-clock and arrived in Banff at 1-35 if it was on time. The watching shift started at 18 o-clock Saturday and ended at 7-30 on Monday. The way freight’s crew covered for Bill until he arrived on No. 1. There was only the one engine to look after and that didn’t take much effort except that the watchman couldn’t go to bed but had to stay up both nights dozing in that little ten wheeler’s warm cab. He spent many hours sitting in the station visiting with the operator and listening to the pounding of the telegraph sounder and the operator repeating train orders to the dispatcher. On Sunday the conductor, engineer, two brakemen and the fireman usually stayed in the caboose and played rummy Bill only watched (cards weren’t his thing). At 6-30 on Monday morning Bill would go into the caboose and wake the three man train crew then go over to the small bunkhouse to call the engineer and fireman. Then it was then time to clean the locomotives fire, raise the steam pressure and get the engine all ready for it’s return trip to Calgary.

After sweeping out the bunkhouse and making the two beds it was a short wait for passenger train No. 2 which would arrive in Calgary at noon. Several times Bill made the return trip to Calgary on the way-freight’ locomotive with engineer Jimmie Kirk and fireman Red Burwash. They even let him fire at times when it didn’t matter too much if the steam wasn’t up as far as it could go. If there wasn’t too much switching to do along the way this way freight could stay ahead of the passenger train No. 2 all the way to Calgary but usually it arrived at 14 or 15 o-clock after the passenger had arrived. Bill spent the rest of the week, in the roundhouse; painting locomotive front ends (smoke boxes) the western lines standard gray and black.

Another chance to catch a yard shift didn’t come until Dec. 1st on a midnight extra job with engine number 3699, a heavy 2-8-0 consolidation and engineer Jim McQuistion. Then on Dec.5th he fired a large transfer locomotive No. 6606 for Jimmie Dardis on a shift that started at 15-30 and ended at 02-15 the next morning. That same afternoon he worked on that same locomotive, with Charlie Stewart, from 15-30 until 24-30. On Dec. 21st he was able to work the “18-45 house” (freight shed job) with Tommy Graham and engine No.3502 until 22-15 and then loco. 3699 until 05-45 am. The first engine broke down.

That was it for firing steam locomotives in the yard until Jan. 4, 1943 because Bill had been set up (promoted to the position of “fireman”) and asked if he would care to be in charge of the small stationary boiler on a troop train’s cook car, which he accepted. The ten or twelve car train was to leave Calgary on Dec. 23rd and go to Kingston Ontario then return empty (no troops) to Winnipeg Manitoba. Making this trip meant that Bill wouldn’t be back until after New Years. The working hours were long but the food was the very best and lots of it. Bill was told that he could order anything he wanted as long as it was in the refrigerator. He ate better then the general in charge of the troops.

Upon returning to Calgary the Locomotive foreman asked Bill to put in a few shifts as a hostler (at $5.50 per hour) then his next shift firing was on Jan. 4th and he made four more yard shifts, which paid about a dollar a day more then hostling. Then on Jan. 18th he was called to fire locomotive No.5141, a hand fired “P1” Mikado on his first road trip on a “Carbon turn” with engineer West Laut. The total distance was only 152 miles but with switching at Shepard, Carbon, Irricana and Shepard again the total miles earned, during the thirteen hour trip was 214 That would have paid Bill about $ 12.00. That was a tough trip because it was very cold, the coal was very poor and so was the fireman! Bill worked his butt off and still couldn’t keep the steam up. The train had to be stopped twice to give Bill a chance to play “catch up” and when they finally back to Alyth the engineer said that “He sure as hell wasn’t the best fireman that he had ever had but, at least he, wasn’t the worst”.

My name is Bill Yeats and I said THANKS! That other young fellows name was Chuck Breen, and that’s how we started out with the CPR.