Alphabet File page 306
Chairman McDonald stated that he could not close without a few timely remarks from one of the oldest citizens who came to Bay St. Louis before there was a depot, fell off the train and rolled in a sawdust pile. Joseph O. Mauffray was then called on and drew a number of laughs from the audience; also praised the L. & N. and its officers for bringing the ___vision accountant and his force to Bay St. Louis, and for building the new depot. He stated the L. & N. was for Bay St. Louis and that Bay St. Louis must be for the L. & N.
The affair ended just as the Pan American rolled into the station at 10 :00 p.m. (SCE 5/24/1929)
1930's - THE DEPRESSION ERA
Ironically, the Depression era saw a trend toward heavier motion power of the NO & M. K-4 class Pacifics became standard power for the passenger trains, the first run being on June 13, 1935, when No. 234 headed train No. 1 from Mobile. Required train-stop equipment was applied to K-4's 226, 216, and 233 shortly thereafter and, in enduing years, to several others.
On August 15, 1937, a test train of 50 cars (2000 tons) was operated from Sibert Yard (Mobile) to New Orleans with an H-29 Consolidation on the point. With all bridges now strengthened, these 1300-series locomotives became standard freight power by 1938; they also were steam-heat-equipped for passenger train use and lasted throughout World War II.
L & N weathered the great Depression as most roads did, by consolidating management and cutting employment. General Manager W.E. Smith's Circular No 220 announced the merging of the Montgomery & Mobile and the New Orleans & Mobile Divisions, effective July 1, 1931. Col. L. L. Morgon, who had been Superintendent of the NO & M at New Orleans for three years, moved the new Montgomery & New Orleans Division Offices to Mobile.
Further consolidation of L&N operating divisions was made on January 1, 1935, when the Pensacola & Atlantic, and Southern Alabama Divisions were added to the fold, creating the Montgomery, New Orleans & Pensacola Division. This covered all L&N trackage south of the Alabama capital and east to Chattahoochee, Fla., about 700 miles of main line. Mobile remained division headquarters. Thus the NO&M line had evolved within 60 years from an independent road to division and finally to sub-division.
Although the port of New Orleans provided a great percentage of NO & M's freight traffic in its earlier years, there was a considerable on-line business of fresh fruit and vegetables, lumber and forest products, and canned seafood. Shipments of agricultural products continued into the mid-1960's, but most of the region's lumber mills vanished during the Depression. As the L&N was coming out of those frightening years of national collapse, the first major industry between the NO&M's namesake cities was established in 1938 when the Ingalls Shipbuilding Corporation built a major shipyard on the Pascagoula River's east bank, already served by L & N City Spur. Soon, thousands of people were at work, and the carloads of steel and heavy equipment provided a needed traffic boost to the NO & M.
During the frantic days of World War II, the number of trains operated daily on the NO & M rose from a prewar level of about 30 to as many as 50, including the constant flow of troops and supplies to and from the numerous military bases in the region. Due to the abnormal traffic density and the complexity of movement of trains by timetable and train orders, the NO&M Subdivision was split into two dispatching segments, with Ocean Springs as the dividing point. Operators were assigned round the clock at some locations which had previously been day offices. Moreover, the station at English Lookout which had been closed in October 1938 but not dismantled, was reopened with three tracks.
Retired Conductor C. C. Eubanks recalls having been a trainman for only about a year and a half when he was promoted to conductor in 1942. He remembers one hectic wartime run: "The Cincinnati to New Orleans Silver Bullet (NO.71) was the fastest freight on the L & N at that time. But one night on this hotshot we headed into Saint Elmo siding and stayed 9 1/2 hours; during that time we met or let pass 27 trains! Many were troop and military supply trains, running as passenger schedules in 8 to 10 sections. We left there and ran 20 miles to Pascagoula, where we went into the hole again and met 4 more trains. Finally, the 16-hour dog law caught us at Ocean Springs, 58 miles from Mobile"
Automatic block signals and automatic train stop proved to be a real life saver in those confusing times. Although there were many bottlenecks and delays, it was a tribute to both men and machines that no serious accidents occurred on the NO & M throughout the war years. Unfortunately, the neighboring Pensacola Sub-Division, without signaling suffered several disastrous collisions during this period.
Not only was the Ingalls shipyard at Pascagoula a vital part of the wartime effort, but a second yard, owned by Higgins Shipbuilding and located at Michoud, La. (which was given the railroad name of Higgins in 1942) was a major producer of PT boats. The Army Air Force's Keesler Field at Biloxi, Miss., was the key online military installation served by the NO & M. To handle the increased traffic density in this New Orleans suburb, work began in the spring of 1942 to double-track 7 1/2 miles of main line between Higgins and the Gentilly Yard. The project was rushed to completion in the following August. Other than this construction, the L&N was able to add no plant improvements to aid the traffic flow during the war.
Shortly after the war ended, L&N assigned nine K-5 class light USRA Pacifics to the NO & M, replacing a similar number of K-2A, K-3 and K-6 engines. One newcomer, No. 245, starred in the Warner Brothers production of Tennessee Williams' play "A Streetcar Names Desire" in 1950. At the Canal Street Station in New Orleans, two specially made up trains were provided for the filming. With yard engineer N.R. Pigott at the throttle, the 245 "arrived" several times, with Vivian Leigh, in the role of Blanche Dubois, detraining and walking past the engine to the station entrance there to board the trolley.
In January 1949, 27 J-3 class light USRA Mikados were assigned to the NO & M, replacing 28 H-29 class 2-80's. The 1500's, most equipped with duplex strokers, gave the crews a much improved ride. Indeed, the only problem which arose was an occasional supply of bad coal. When the tender got wet (which was often in the tropical weather), the fireman would have to crawl up into the bunker and punch the coal pile to keep it flowing into the stroker.
A serious operating problem during the steam era was the poor quality of water from the various L&N wells on the Gulf Coast. To reduce its foaming tendencies, extensive chemical treatment was required; this diminished, but did not completely solve, the boiler problems. For example, Mobile & Montgomery Sub-Division locomotive boilers were washed out monthly at Sibert, but NO&M engines were given to his attention after every trip and were pressure-tested every 30 days. A casualty of the foaming process was H-29 No. 1343. In 1943, while passing Theodore, Ala., the engineer of a northbound freight turned on his injector and lost the entire crown sheet of the 2-8-0. The fireman and brakeman survived the blast, but the engineer jumped from the locomotive and unfortunately was killed.
The J-3's operating record was excellent. Following a test in the summer of 1949 with newly outshopped No. 1574 coupled to a dynamometer car, an 85-car train limit was adopted, an increase of 20 cars over then current limits. Many J-3's were equipped with auxiliary water tanks as had been their H-29 predecessors. However, because of the Mikes' greater power, the previous necessity of doubleheading was eliminated. Indeed, the J-3's were versatile enough to be used on local passenger trains in emergencies. They saw only limited use on local fareights because of short turntables at Ocean Springs and Bay St. Louis.