Re: Question about who called the train crews

Frank Wright started on the D&RG in 1911 as crew caller at Gunnison. He retired from the D&RGW around 1970. He was fireman on the 318 on that last run to Ouray and was engineer on the last run of 268 out of Gunnison. His last job on the D&RGW was running SD8 5305 the Grand Junction hump engine.

Following are some notes from one of my visits with him.

When I first went to work on the railroad as a call boy about 1911 about all the engines working out of Gunnison west end and for the Crested Butte branch were the 200 or 60 class consolidations. About 1912 they laid 65 lb rail on the Crested Butte branch and for a long time the 463 was assigned to that run.

When I was crew caller, if I knew the engine number, I could give you the name of the engineer and fireman without looking at the register.

I started when I was 17. My dad had to sign a minor's release. I was calling crews in Gunnison. I was hot tempered. They had a chief dispatcher who wouldn't call the crews; the Crested Butte branch and the passenger out of Gunnison West until the train got to Sargents. Well it would come down from Sargents in about 50 minutes, and that wouldn't give me time to call the crews. One day he gave me the passenger, the Crested Butte and a freight west. I set the call back one hour on the freight and they put me off my day job onto nights.