Okay, it's November 7th, time for me to dust off my annual post about the "Día del Ferrocarrilero" down here in Mexico. This year, instead of just giving the original thread (in The Ready Track) a bump, I thought I'd start a new thread here in the International forum. I know this really isn't for Mexican railroads, but recently we seem to be posting a bit about them in this forum. "Here in Mexico, November 7th is "El Dia del Ferrocarrilero", which roughly translates as National Railroader Workers Day. While the day honors all railroaders in general (the railroads played an important part in the develpment of Mexico) the date was chosen to commemorate a specific event. On November 7th, 1907, a couple of cars loaded with dynamite in a mine supply train in Nacozari, Sonora, caught fire. The young engineer, Jesus Garcia Corona, pulled the train away from the warehouse/station area and ran it out of town. The cars exploded before he had a chance to jump for it. A few other bystanders were killed, but the damage was much less than would have occured if the explosion had occured near the station. So the Dia del Ferrocarrilero not only honors rail workers in general down here, but also recalls the "Hero of Nacozari"." I might add that this isn't a general holiday or anything in Mexico. In fact, these days unless you actually work for a railroad or have a railroader in the family (or are a railfan), it's highly likely you even know about the day. Back in the heyday of the railroads and unions, say in the 40's and 50's, there would be big parades in the major cities, especially in Mexico City. Nowadays if there are any special celebrations they are probably limited to a small get together of retired railroad employees. Regards Ed
Do railroads acknowledge the anniversary? Any engines named for Jesus Garcia Corona or anything like that?
Well, since last year's version of my annual "Railroader's Day" post garnered only one comment, I figure I only need to 'bump' it for this year's remembrance. This year is rather special as it is the 100th anniversary of the event. I don't know how i missed replying to Flash's question last year. I suppose that with only one response the posts dropped off the 'TrainBoard Live' screen before i saw that it had even been responded to. So, Flash, belatedly here is a response to the question you posed last year. I don't believe that the current privatized railroad concessionaires do much, if anything. I believe that the union (STFRM) surely holds small events in all the major railroad centers. There were engines named for Jesus Garcia Corona, but that was a long time ago, back in the days of individualized steam locos. But a lot of the major rail towns have a small statue/bust of Garcia, usually near the union headquarters. It's also common to find streets named in his honor in the railroad neighborhood or near the station. The Mexican postal service issued a commerative stamp in 1957 for the 50th anniversary of the event. In my continual search for information on Mexican railroading, I picked up a used book this year about garcia. It's titled "Goodbye, García, Adiós", written by Don Dedera and Bob Robles, dated 1976. Interestingly, it is in both english and spanish, with one language on the left hand page and the other on the right. Lots of great period photos of García, the town and smelter, and life in Nacozari in general. I learned a lot more than I previously knew about the event. At this year's railfan and model railroad convention down here, we had a chance to see the 1933 film, "Heroe de Nacozari", obviously based on the event. Based "loosely", but entertaining nevertheless. Regards Ed
It's nice they remember their railroaders and railroads. That fellow seems somewhat like their version of Casey Jones. I believe that the USA would be well off to also take better note of this part of our history. (Is it even touched upon by our schools these days?) Which might even help raise awareness about safety.... Boxcab E50
Except that "they" in general don't remember any more. Just people associated with railroads or the unions. There's no general publicity of the event, and if you asked 100 mexicans on the street I doubt that even 1 would know what the day is. This was much more widely celebrated 50 years ago when railroads were still very important down here and still very much a part of daily life. The railroad workers union was one of the largest and strongest in the country. Many large cities were rail centers with strong railroad ties. That's all pretty much gone now. And, based my on view of what junior is being taught in school down here, history isn't very big here either. Nor, judging by the number of auto or bus vs train accidents, is safety. Best regards Ed
