A Railroad Man

This is my grandfather, Henry C. Layer (1884-1964), at age 17 in about 1901 according to notes on the back. I found it recently among some family items. After high school, Henry took a job on the West Jersey and Seashore Railroad (WJ&S), which was owned by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR). The WJ&S provided passenger and freight service across southern New Jersey. It competed with the smaller Atlantic City Railroad, which was owned by the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad. Both lines were consolidations of small railroads built in the late 19th century.

Henry’s father (and my great-grandfather), Charles Armond Layer (1845-1935), was a conductor for the WJ&S. He most probably helped his son get a job, but also working for the railroad was a natural for Henry given trains between Camden and Atlantic City ran behind the Layer house in Hammonton. In 1933 the WJ&S and the Atlantic City Railroad were formally brought into the PRR system as the Pennsylvania Reading Seashore Line.

Henry worked for the PRR for 53 years, 50 of those as a steam locomotive engineer. Given that Charles' and Henry's time with the PRR overlapped, it is very likely they worked as conductor and engineer on the same trains many days. Some of their interactions at work must have been interesting given the conductor is responsible for the train – passengers, freight, rolling stock, maintaining the train’s schedule - and the engineer operates the train.

When I was about 6 or 7 (1953 or 1954), I remember my parents handing me up to Pop Pop (Henry) in the cab of a steam engine. I got to ride the locomotive as Pop Pop turned it around on the Wye Track (triangle shaped) that existed in Hammonton at the time. Henry was forced to retire four years later at age 73 as the PRR replaced the last of its steam locomotives with diesel locomotives. The above photo of Henry and an unidentified conductor was taken on the day he retired.

We have only a few photos of Henry. The following photo was probably taken July 2, 1944 or 1945 on my half-sister's, Dorian's, 5th or 6th birthday. It also includes my grandmother, "Etta" (Marietta), and of course Dorian.

Most of the steam locomotives used in southern NJ were K-4 Pacific models. These were built between 1914 and 1928 at either the Baldwin Works in Philadelphia or the PRR Yards in Altoona, PA. According to Wikipedia only two K-4 locomotives survive. Both have homes in Pennsylvania. Number 1361 (built in 1918) is at the Railroader's Memorial Museum in Altoona where it has been undergoing restoration for an extended peeriod. Number 3750 (built in 1920) is on display at the Pennsylvania Railroad Museum in Strasburg. It has not been restored. The following photo of a PRR K-4 is from the Internet.