RAILROADS HELP BUILD AREA TOWNS

Despite mergers and major structural changes over the past 40 years, two of the nation's largest railroads -- the Burlington Northern and Southern Pacific -- still play a role in the economies of Cape Girardeau, Scott City and Chaffee.

But that impact, in terms of the number of employees and payroll, has significantly declined over the years. The specific impact, however, can't be determined since neither railroad releases payroll data.

Despite decreases in terms of employees and payroll, both railroads continue to provide local and regional industry with a transcontinental network for receiving raw products and shipping finished goods.

With continued development of the Southeast Missouri Regional Port, the BN, SP and Union Pacific railroads also will provide interchange service with the port's short-line railroad at Cape Girardeau and Scott City. The port authority is negotiating with UP for the purchase of its Cape Girardeau branch line between Scott City and Cape Girardeau.

The SP's main-line tracks through Scott City are a part of a major east-west, transcontinental rail link.

Approximately 12 SP freight trains stop at Scott City during a 24-hour period to change crews. That's six northbound and six southbound. The crews operate freight trains between the SP's Valley Junction yard at East St. Louis and the railroad's Pine Bluff, Ark. classification yard.

There are 56 locomotive engineers assigned to the north and south crew pools at Scott City and about the same number of conductors.

Under existing agreements with the rail unions, most trains have two-man crews: an engineer and conductor.

D.E. "Gene" Thompson of Scott City is the general chairman of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. Thompson said the number of trains that change crews at Scott City is down about 30 percent from three years ago.

"Back then we had 75 locomotive engineers working out of the (Scott City) office, and there was no extra board. Everybody was working," said Thompson. "Some of the loss was due to the downturn in the economy, some from last year's flood that we're still getting over, and some of it because the carrier is running longer trains."

Before it was totally absorbed several years ago by the merger of the SP and Denver, Rio Grande & Western Railroad, the St. Louis-Southwestern "Cotton Belt" played a major impact on the former towns of Illmo, Fornfelt, and Ancel, now Scott City.

In fact, the Cotton Belt literally created the three small towns when the railroad built the nearby Thebes, Ill., railroad bridge in the early 1900s. It continued to be the major employer in Scott City until the late 1970s.

"If it weren't for the (Cotton Belt), there would be no Scott City," said Shirley Young, president of the Scott City Chamber of Commerce. "We are here today because of the railroad."

But time and the ever-changing nationwide business climate have taken their toll on the railroad's influence in Scott City.

First, the old Cotton Belt Illmo Division office was moved to Pine Bluff, leaving only the yard office. Last month the Scott City yard office was closed, and the clerks sent to SP offices in Memphis and East St. Louis. The Scott City yard office is now used by incoming and outgoing train crews to pick up their orders and clearances.

"The economic impact of the railroad that created the three towns that later became Scott City is no longer what it was, but the railroad still has an impact, but on a reduced scale," said Young. "And with the continued development of the port authority, we believe that may change as the port authority's short-line railroad begins to exchange business with the Southern Pacific."

Like Scott City, Chaffee also owes its existence to the railroad. In its case, the former St. Louis-San Francisco "Frisco" Railroad was absorbed in the early 1980s by BN, now the nation's largest railroad in terms of total track.

At one time Chaffee was division headquarters for the Frisco, complete with railroad yards, locomotive roundhouse and other support facilities. There was a large number of service and maintenance-of-way employees based at Chaffee, in addition to the north and south pool of locomotive engineers, brakemen and conductors who relieved train crews at Chaffee.

But major changes that have taken place in railroad operations the past 40 years has taken its toll.

As steam locomotives gave way to diesel locomotives, freight trains could travel greater distances. Instead of stopping a steam locomotive from St. Louis at Chaffee for water and fuel, the new diesels could go all the way to Memphis before refueling and servicing.

The Frisco closed the roundhouse and other support facilities, but left the Chaffee depot and yard office. But that too was closed and torn down a few years ago. Today, incoming and outgoing train crews use a smaller building.

At Cape Girardeau, a Frisco switch engine worked the railroad's South Cape Girardeau freight yard six days a week. The railroad also had a passenger depot and freight office at the foot of Good Hope. Passenger train service at Cape Girardeau ended in the 1970s. The passenger station and freight depot were replaced by the yard office at the foot of William Street.

Today, the Chaffee office is a crew-change point for crews that take the BN freight trains on to Memphis or St. Louis.

The Cape Girardeau office coordinates the switching of freight cars destined for local industrial customers in the Cape Girardeau-Chaffee area.

BN Trainmaster Bill Belongy is responsible for the operation of the railroad's River Division between St. Louis and Memphis. Belongy said three north and three southbound freight trains operate over the River Division during 24 hour. The trains stop at Chaffee to change crews.

Currently, there are 14 locomotive engineers and 14 conductors assigned to the Chaffee crew-change point.

Also assigned to Chaffee are the eight engineers and eight conductors who handle the BN's Rush Island Power Plant coal train between St. Louis and the Union Electric power plant along the Mississippi River in Jefferson County.

Besides the operating crews, there are 25 maintenance-of-way employees based at Cape Girardeau who maintain the railroad tracks and right-of-way from St. Louis south to Turrell, Ark. Six signal maintainers are also based at Cape Girardeau.

The River Division has one clerk each at its offices in Cape Girardeau and Crystal City and four clerks at Blytheville, Ark.

In addition to the through freight trains that stop at Chaffee each day, the BN's Chaffee switch engine services BN customers in the west Nash Road Industrial Park near the airport, the Procter and Gamble plant north of Cape Girardeau, the Lone Star Cement Co., and an agricultural fertilizer business in Chaffee.

Incoming freight cars for those industries are set out at the BN's Cape Girardeau and Chaffee freight yards by the through trains and switched by the Chaffee local engine. Outgoing cars are delivered to the yards by the local engine for pick up by the through trains.