Locating Railroad Employee Records
Great American Railways
According to Randy Houk's "Railroad Timeline", the first American rails are said to have been laid down at Quincy, Mass. in 1826. Since then, numerous railway companies have come and gone, with many mergers occurring along the way.
Grownups and kids alike have had a certain fascination with the railroads, and genealogists have a similar desire to know if any of their ancestors played a role in the development of the American railways. Tracking down employment records from the railroad companies can be a serious challenge.
One of the best resources is the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board. They administer a Federal retirement benefit program covering the nation's railroad workers. However, only those who were employed for over ten years and were employed at the time the Railroad Retirement Board was created (1935) will be found in the Board's records.
In her article, "Railroad Records", Rhonda McClure states, "If you know that your ancestor worked for a railway, but they weren't [included in the Retirement Board's records], then you will need to turn your attention to the actual railroad companies."
We've compiled the following list of railroad employee record repositories, which include records that have been acquired by Genealogy Today (highlighted below) and made available on our web site.
Railroad Employee Records
- Ann Arbor Railroad (1940's-1970's)
- Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway (1894-1950)
- Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (Historical Society)
- Boston and Maine Railroad (1874-1939)
- Railroad and Steamboat Agents of Boston (1929)
- Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad (Newberry Library)
- Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Co.
- Chicago & North Western Railway (Historical Society)
- Duluth, South Shore, and Atlantic Railway
- Erie Railroad (1918-1955)
- Erie Railroad (1945-1952)
- The Frisco: St. Louis-San Francisco Railway
- Grand Trunk Western Railway
- Great Northern Railway
- Gulf, Mobile & Ohio Railroad
- Illinois Central Railroad (Newberry Library)
- The Kansas City Southern Railway Company (1930)
- Lehigh Valley Railroad (1938)
- Lehigh Valley Railroad Company (1849-1962)
- Lehigh Valley Railroad Company (1870-1962)
- Louisville & Nashville Railroad Company (1909-1954)
- Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company
- Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad (Historical Society)
- Missouri Pacific Railroad (1948, 1966)
- Missouri Pacific Railroad (Historical Society)
- Monon Railroad (1851-1971)
- New Jersey Midland Railroad (Historical Society)
- New York Central System (Historical Society)
- New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad
- Norfolk & Western Railway (1874-1957)
- Norfolk & Southern Railway (Historical Society)
- Northern Pacific Railroad
- Pennsylvania Railroad (Voluntary Relief Department)
- Pennsylvania Railroad
- Pennsylvania Railroad Company (1895)
- Penn Central Railroad (Historical Society)
- Pittsburg, Shawmut & Northern Railroad (1872-1960)
- Reading Company Service Records (1883-1964)
- Rio Grande Southern Railroad
- Santa Fe Railroad Collection (1915-1960) [PDF]
- Santa Fe Railway System (1929)
- Southern Pacific Railroad
- Union Pacific Railroad (1922)
- Union Pacific Railroad (1935)
- Union Pacific Railroad (1959)
- Wabash Railroad (Historical Society)
- Washington, Idaho & Montana Railway (1903-1962)
- See also: Business Card Collection (includes railway employees)
Related Organizations
- Association of North American Railroad Superintendents (1886)
- Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers (1888)
- Brotherhood of Railway Clerks (1919)
- Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen (1883-1973)
- Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen, Lodge No. 191 (1919-1968)
- Pullman Company (Newberry Library)
- Order of Railway Conductors (1872-1910)
- Voluntary Relief Dept. of Western Maryland Railway Co. (1919)
Employee Magazines Online
- Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad
- Erie Lackawanna Railroad
- The Railway Conductor (1919)
- Southern Pacific Railroad
- St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad
Additional Resources
- Finding Railroad Employment Records
- National Railway Historical Society (NRHS)
- Obtaining Railroad Retirement Records
- Department of Transportation (DOT) Special Collections
- Railroad Research Resources
- Making Tracks Through Railroad Research
- Family Tree of North American Railroads
- United Transportation Union
- Railroad Collections in the Bentley Historical Library
- Railroad Retirement Unclaimed Benefits Search
- A. M. Spratt Railroad Collection
