Item AAAB4137 - A.L. Robinson interview

RECORDED: [location unknown], 1979-11-15 SUMMARY: TRACK 1: A.L. Robinson discusses his experiences railroading: running from Prince Rupert to Prince George and then back to Prince Rupert (22.5 hours on shift alone) -- bad track, sore feet, once was off track for 1000 yards before anyone noticed, very frequent trips between these two towns; describes what he would do on a shift; places on the Grand Trunk; picking up and sorting the mail; never received overtime pay; incident when he was stuck in the woods for three days with no food due to a washout or a slide; the Island line is considered the best run in Canada; employed by the post office department, not the railway; 8 to 10 cars on a train on the Grand Trunk line; working on the Island meant shorter days than working in northern B.C.; postal service was much better in those days; salary of about $50 a month plus mileage; describes routes he traveled; mail service changed when it began to use trucks; letters with cancellations; incident at South Wellington where the track had been washed out. TRACK 2: Mr. Robinson discusses: incident in Chemainus when engineer lost a piston; celebrating the 93rd anniversary of the first train arrival in Nanaimo- only 3 people went; helping a young kid who was 'riding the rails' in the Depression. (End of interview)