Around The Railroad

Memorial Honors Fallen Agents

November 4, 2008 | 10:10 a.m. CST

On Aug. 19, 1878,  Union Pacific's Henry Vincent and Robert Widdowfield were shot and killed in Carbon, Wyo., while attempting to arrest a band of train robbers known as the "Big Nose" George Parrot gang.

In 1935, the Western Pacific's Roderick Gordon was stabbed 29 times by a hobo he found sleeping in a rail car in Stockton, Calif.

These are just a few of the names memorialized on a plaque honoring fallen law enforcement officials who put their lives on the line for the railroads they served. Created by UP's Police Department, the plaque includes their names, dates and locations of the deaths, and the railroads they've represented. There are actually two identical plaques – one is housed on UP Center's 10th floor and the other at the Union Pacific Railroad Museum in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

"These agents made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," said Dennis Jenson, assistant vice president-chief of police. "To read their moving stories of courage is inspiring, and this memorial ensures their deaths will never be forgotten."

The railroad police force dates back to the mid-1800s, when the number of U.S. Marshals was insufficient to police America's growing rail network. Members were called Pinkertons, named after their originator, Alan Pinkerton. Today, they're railroad special agents – 2,500 law enforcement officers who carry full police and arrest powers. Crimes they investigate include trespassing on railroad rights of way, theft of railroad property and terrorism threats. They also investigate derailments, train/vehicle collisions and hazardous materials releases. Their jobs are among the most potentially dangerous of career choices.

Creating a memorial dating back to the 1800s has not been an easy task.

As a former International Association of Railroad Police historian, Jim Beach, division director-Police, from Fort Worth, Texas, has been researching special agent deaths for nearly 20 years, gathering information from other railroads and organizations, death certificates and newspaper articles.

"Many railroads have merged, so it can be difficult to find records and, in some cases, they may not exist," said Beach. "It's an ongoing project and there is no way of knowing if, or when, all fallen agents will be found."

Jenson led the project and, along with Lynn Beebe, director-safety process and program development, and Rita Chase, safety project coordinator, designed the plaque. Beebe is the great nephew of Special Agent Thomas Gentleman, who was shot in Omaha, Jan. 8, 1904, while arresting a man stealing coal.

Among the list of other fallen agents who have relatives carrying on the railroad tradition is the Missouri Pacific's Bernard Kelly – shot in 1932 while attempting to stop a car carrying suspects who stole telephone wire. Kelly was the grandfather of retired Northern Region Vice President Mike Kelly, Mechanical Foreman Tim Kelly and Locomotive Manager Patrick Kelly; and great grandfather of Train Dispatcher Nicholas Kelly and Conductor T. Jacob Kelly.