BNSF Railway Brakeman Jack Schurtz (editor's title)

Jack Schurtz, who works in train service for the BNSF Railway, copying orders in the cab of locomotive no. 799, a C44-9W built by General Electric. At the time of the photo, Schurtz was working as brakeman on a freight train called the El Paso Road Switcher out of El Paso, Texas. Schurtz has worked for the BNSF and its predecessor, AT&SF, out of El Paso since 1973, and many of the area's newer employees owe their knowledge to him. This particular train is rare for 21st century freight trains because it still employs a three-person crew; most freight trains have utilized two-person crews since the 1980s. However, as its name implies, the road switcher performs considerable switching duties serving industries around El Paso, requiring a regular brakeman in addition to the engineer and conductor.

Source	Travis Berryman, El Paso, Texas
Coverage	Spatial, El Paso, Texas; Temporal, April 14, 2009
Rights	Travis Berryman
Date Created	2009-04-14
Creator	Berryman, Travis
Resource Type	Image (DCMI Type Vocabulary)
Format	Digital
Classification	Railroaders' Photographs of Railroads (LCSH)
Extent	10.2 megapixels RAW file
Depicted Railroad	BNSF Railway
Location	El Paso, Texas
Depicted Occupation	Brakeman
Train Type	Freight train
Equipment, Locomotive	C44-9W no. 799
Builder, locomotive	General Electric
Creator Description	Travis Berryman was born in McCloud, California, and enjoyed a close relationship with his grandfather, Jim Berryman, a carman for the McCloud River Railroad. Travis hired out with the McCloud River in 1988 on the summer tie gang, a special work program set up by the railroad to help college students pay for their educations. He left McCloud in 1995 to pursue a career with the Burlington Northern, beginning in Alliance, Nebraska. Berryman worked across the BN and BNSF Railway systems as a switchman, brakeman, and engineer, before switching to management in 2004. He developed a serious interest in photography around 1992 as a means of documenting his family, workplace, and coworkers.
Collection	Travis Berryman Collection

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