LIRR Thomas M. Goodfellow Historical Dates - Christopher T. Baer

June 16, 1954 Thomas M. Goodfellow (1907-1981), Superintendent of Pittsburgh Division, named General Manager of LIRR and Superintendent-Special Duty-Central Region; N. L. Fleckenstine to Superintendent of the Pittsburgh Division, replacing Goodfellow; J. F. Piper to Superintendent of the Panhandle Division, replacing Fleckenstine; Howard C. Kohout to Superintendent of the Susquehanna Division, replacing Piper. (MB, NYT)

Aug. 12, 1954 LIRR certificate of incorporation amended as a railroad redevelopment corporation under 1951 New York law and ICC terminates trusteeship of William Wyer; PRR loans LIRR $5.5 million to be repaid over 12-year  course of redevelopment; PRR foregoes interest on $61,74 million of LIRR
debt it holds and all dividends on stock; 20% fare rise goes into effect; Thomas M. Goodfellow takes over as General Manager; 12-year, $60.3 million rehabilitation program begins. (AR, NYT, Moodys)

Aug. 18, 1954 New LIRR Board elected with nine holdovers and five Long Island residents, George E. Roosevelt, T. Voorhees, G. Cushman, A.T. Roth and J.I. Straus as new "public members" appointed by Gov. Dewey; W.S. Franklin elected Pres. and Thomas M. Goodfellow VP & General Manager; Democrats blast reorganization as Republican sell-out to big business as part of campaign to  win governorship in fall elections; Board votes to buy 100 new MU cars. (NYT)

Dec. 31, 1955 Walter S. Franklin resigns as President of LIRR; succeeded by Thomas M. Goodfellow. (AR)

Feb. 11, 1956 Thomas M. Goodfellow announces that LIRR has added 17,000 seats in last 18 months; 170 cars rebuilt and all 222 cars on order to be delivered by Apr. 1956. (NYT)

Sep.? 1957 LIRR Pres. Thomas Goodfellow offers his predictions for 2007 for a time capsule to be buried at the New York State Fair; says LIRR will be the safest, most comfortable way in and out of New York City but commuters will still complain; predicts the survival of the cry exchange at Jamaica. ť (Trains)

June 8, 1961 LIRR Pres. Goodfellow reports that the Town of Brookhaven has refused to consent to substituting rail-bus service on the East End. (MB)

July 15, 1965 LIRR Board authorizes sales of property to Metropolitan Commuter Transportation Authority and of Bay Ridge Branch to PRR; thanks Pres. Thomas M. Goodfellow for performance during transition period. (MB)

Jan. 20, 1966 Special meeting of LIRR stockholders approves sale to State of New York; Metropolitan Commuter Transportation Authority hands PRR a $55 million check for the balance due, and PRR delivers all 1,099,827 shares; all old officers and directors resign; operation by Metropolitan
Commuter Transportation Authority begins; five MCTA members elected LIRR directors; William J. Ronan elected to new post of LIRR Chairman; Pres. Thomas Goodfellow and all other officers remain.
(MB, NYT)

June 1, 1967 Frank Aikman, Jr. (1910-1987), who began on the PRR in 1934, named Pres. & General Manager of LIRR, replacing Thomas Goodfellow, who is elected President of the American Association of Railroads. (NYT)

In December 1954, C-Liner #2002 appeared with a new paint job consisting of a dark smoke gray body, orange pilot, and black or dark green roof.  The switchers had their white pilots replaced with orange and some even had the whole nose and rear of the cab painted in orange.  This change in paint scheme coincided with the start of the “Goodfellow Years”.


Charcoal gray (Goodfellow gray) with orange nose (diesel locomotives)
LIRR 2001 FM CPA-20-5 Goodfellow scheme - Graphic: Will Anderson

FM CPA20-5 #2003 Morris Park Shops - 9/27/1955  Archive: Dave Keller

Charcoal gray (Goodfellow gray) with orange wave 1964-1968  (diesel locomotives)
C420 #200 Morris Park Shops 3/14/64 Photo/Archive: Ralph A. Shelhamer

Long Island Railroad
"Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow"
Oct. 1954

Thomas M. Goodfellow - Vice President and General Manager

Material Courtesy: Otto Vondrak

RDC2 #3121 "East Ender" at DIVIDE Tower
View  E 10/1955 Archive: Robert Emery-SUNY Stony Brook

During the L.I.R.R. presidency of Thomas R. Goodfellow, retirees were given "Lifetime" passes to ride the L.I.R.R. free of charge.  Railroad men of other roads used to afford this courtesy to each other, unofficially.  Dave Keller

Goodfellow Yearly Employee Pass -1955

By the mid fifties, the LIRR was in bankruptcy and the PRR had washed its hands of all control of the LIRR.  These old wooden hacks were getting more and more fragile as time went by and a fleet of new ones was sorely needed and the receivers, under the direction of LI president, Tom Goodfellow had vowed to erase all appearance of the old PRR ownership. Wooden hack #12 has been preserved and restored and can be seen at the Oyster Bay RR Museum.  Caboose #60 is on
loan from the Twin Forks Chapter and is currently on display at the NY Transit Museum in Brooklyn, celebrating the LIRR’s 175th anniversary.  Both of the PRR steel hacks have been preserved but still have not been restored.  New hacks were ordered and delivered in 1958-61.  These hacks were all steel and lacked the familiar cupola that everyone expects to see on that little red caboose behind the train.  The color also showed a different glow as hacks #50 -61 sported an orange paint job with large blue-gray lettering known as “Goodfellow colors”.  Eventually, they sported the logo that became so familiar during the 1960’s, that of the Dashing Commuter, Dashing Dan   Author: JJ Earl
 

Note: The GLF (Grange League Federation) grain elevator behind the station. Central Islip was one of several Goodfellow-era passenger (and freight) stations and towers built of of inexpensive cinderblocks.  Richard Maske

Hoisting the eagle down to a flatbed for transport. October 28, 1963 with the official start of the Penn Station demolition.  The three officials with suits and hard hats looking at the lowering; on the right is LIRR President Thomas M. Goodfellow, on the left is J. Benton Jones - VP of the PRR and center is Irving Mitchell Felt - President of Madison Square Garden (and thus the name "The Felt Forum".
Photo: Newsday

"Take A Big Bite" - That's the instruction Mayor Robert T. Waldbauer of Patchogue is getting from President Goodfellow, as they prepare for the demolition of our 75-year-old Patchogue station. It will be replaced as part of the a give-and-take arrangement that will produce a quarter-million-dollar station and commuter parking complex. A 30-foot house trailer is serving as a temporary ticket office and waiting room.