Conductor John W. Steele recently completed 55 years service in the Railroad Industry. He is a regular conductor on a Mineola - Fort Worth Turn.
Mr. Steele hired out on the old Texas and Pacific on March 7, 1942. He may well be Union Pacific's oldest active employee. He was already working for the railroad when most of us were born.
"Pop" or "Papa John", as he is affectionately known, is also one of our most universally respected employees, not only by his peers but by management as well.
While putting this together, we had to smile when someone remembered being in the yard office at Mineola once when an employee said of John, "He's a conductor's conductor."
An engineer overheard the remark and interjected , "No, John's an engineeer's conductor."
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