LIRR Slang

"OK, kid, get on the hack, and back the hogger down." [Get on the caboose, and back the engineer into track 3] Make sure the iron is thrown for 3 [make sure the switches are lined for 3], you should have a clear alley [3 track should be empty]. Put the entire drag into 3 [put the entire train into 3], and when the hoggers clear, tie 'em down and pin a head. [when the engineer has stopped in the clear on his end, put the handbrakes on and go home]

"Nothing made the old timers cringe more then calling a "Hack" a caboose." I remember when I first hired on, there was a hack on main line # 4 at Hillside, as we went by on mainline 2. I called Queens on the radio to ask if a freight was working, or if the hack somehow separated from the back of a freight. I made the mistake of saying "caboose" on the radio. Man, I heard it for days... "It's a HACK, not a caboose."

I suppose as the old timers retire, and there are less people who actually worked freights with "hacks" this will be another tradition gone by the wayside. (Hey, that was a RR term, too. ) Thanks for letting me "Let off steam"

"Bomb Jobs" railroad term for lousy jobs.["Hey what job is Bob on?" " Oh, he is working some bomb collectors job out of brooklyn."] Bomb could also apply to a conductor, engineer or brakeman job that worked lousy hours or a lot of trains.

"Bulls Prick" the coupling pin of an M1 or M3

"Bulls Eye" engineers window on an MU or M1, M3, or M7 . [I have a dirty bulls eye, need to clean it.]

"Cement Train" A very local train. Usually found going to Babylon that stops at every passenger station

"Clear the Hanger" Clearing a hanger is for the train to pull clear or stop before a hanger signal. [LIRR #6001 your arriving on 17 track, pull it all the way west and "clear the hanger" and "take it to west side".] A hanger can be created in other places in Penn also, depending on where you are located, and if the head end is past this signal and the rear end is not clear if it becomes a hanger, you'll also hear ["Engineer you got a restricting on the hanger"] See: "Hanger"

"Coffee Up" [Take a break.] Yardmaster slang, Info: BMC

"Conductor's Valve" emergency cord

"Cut off and Runaround" [Uncouple the engine and put it on the opposite end] Info: JenKar2000

"Dead Man" the controller on an M1 or M3 spring loaded, so if the engineer lets go of the handle, the train will go into emergency; also the pedal on the floor of an engine. Engineer must keep his foot on it, or train goes into emergency (Note: Dead Man Throttle not unique to LIRR)

"Down & Back" [ Take a train out of a Penn Station track, turn it on the lead and bring it back up into another station track (when a line is OOS).] Yardmaster slang, Info: BMC

"Dropped The Signal" A signal that was better then "STOP" suddenly goes to stop while approaching it. Usually a track circuit problem. Info: Bob Anderson

"Dump the Train" Put it in emergency stop

"Drop" Spotting a car on a siding when the switch is facing the wrong direction. (A facing point switch) The car to be "dropped" would have the air brakes made inoperative (brakes bled off, air bottled in release, etc.). The engineer would throttle up approaching the switch (which would be lined for the main.) When coming close to the switch, another crew member would pull the cut lever, cutting the engine away, then race over the switch. Another crew member, stationed at the switch, would line it for the siding. Once the car cleared the siding, another crew member riding the car could apply the hand brake. The rulebook states that "Drops" are prohibited on passenger cars, livestock and hazardous materials.
Note: Not unique to LIRR usage. Also referred to as a "Flying Switch" or a "Roll-By".

"Fall Back" After going off your regular assignment ....go make your regular train. Usually not a good thing.

"Flyer" A train that does not stop at Jamaica ["I caught the Flyer to Babylon."]

"Get the Numbers off the Wood" Get the car numbers (passenger or freight) visually yourself off the cars. Goes back to when the cars were constructed of wood and you had to walk up to the car to get the number to match the waybill. See: "Off the Wood" below: Info: Bob Anderson

"Glass Out" Running MP15s cab forward, "Glass Out" on both the LIRR and NYA. "...I've heard "glass out" referenced as far back as the Baldwin switchers on the LIRR...". Info: Kyle Mullins

"Hanger" A signal that hangs from the ceiling in Penn station, usually a colored Light signal. It is a signal that is just to the rear of the leading end of the train when the train is stopped between a facing point switch and a signal. The hanger would be your starting signal.

"Haul Ass for Hicksville" The old timers from the 50's used it. ["He has to haul ass to make up time"]

"He is a Little Low on the Air" someone who is slow or ditzy

"He has a 20 pound Air Leak" same as above [Bob's a nice guy, but he has a 20 pound air leak.]

"He Straightened all the Curves" [Joe ran a fast train last night, he straightened all the curves on the Port Jeff Branch"] Info: Bob Anderson

"High Speed Couple" collision with the train ahead. The Lynbrook accident in the 70's was a high speed couple.

"If it looks Good, give it a Kiss" [ If the couplers line up, couple it up.] Yardmaster slang, Info: BMC

"In the Hole" train is in an emergency brake application. He saw the car on the tracks and put it in the hole.

"In the Hole" means that you’re an inferior train, such as a freight, or a train that does NOT have the right of way and you are required to take the passing siding when a train superior to you is due at your location. After the meet occurred and the superior train had passed, the inferior train was allowed back on the main. Freights always went “in the hole” for passenger trains on the LIRR.

And . . . westbound trains were superior to eastbound trains during morning rush hours and eastbound trains were superior to westbound trains during evening rush hours (This is approximate. The Book of Rules and/or ETT tell what the exact times are for determining superior and inferior trains) . Inferior trains always went “in the hole” when a meet was about to happen. Dave Keller LIRR Historian

"Let Go of the Handle" Specifically on an M-1 or M-3, the engine is equipped with a spring loaded control handle, so if the engineer takes his/her hand off of it, the train goes into emergency. Info: Bob Anderson

"Milk Run" a local that makes all stops (years ago some locals delivered milk)

"Mod Squad" LIRR Spotters checking on crews. These are special duty Conductors who check trains from time to time for various reasons. The regular crew is relieved, and the "squad" works the train. Their official title is the transportation test team, but everyone calls them the Squad, or Mod squad. Info: Bob Anderson

"Non-essential Personnel" management, "Sears Suits", [Oh, Geez, here come the Sears Suits.]

"Not so hot today, right?" Westbound coming into Patchogue Tower PD, the Railway Express man would be standing on the freight house platform with the ramp up ready to drop it in the REA car door as soon as you stopped. This was on the offside for the engineer; so we had a mark to stop at. As soon as you stopped you could hear the ramp drop. Once in while you might miss the spot and it would be a few seconds before you heard the ramp drop, at that time the old engineer used to make this comment.

"Off the Wood" Goes back to when the freight cars were wood and you had to walk up to the car to get the number to match the waybill. On freight cars, where you had to identify the contents of car by matching the waybill number to the number on the wooden box car (which only ID'd the original railroad, Reporting Marks), was where the term came from according to "Old Timers".

"OK, On the Seal" This is the Conductor telling the Engineer the speed control seal is sealed before leaving.

"On the Ground" was always used; never train derailment.. One guy left a switch open at Amagansett, and the rest of his career he was known as [On the Ground Brown]

"On the Pin" [Used when you couldn't get the pin to come up in an effort to separate 2 cars or an engine.]
Info: JenKar2000

"Outlaw" go over 12 hours on duty. [ Man, you don't want to outlaw.] "You have been on duty 11 hours?..."

"Pin Ahead" 1. [Done for the day; go home early.] 2. It also means to [Cut the engines away from your train.]. If going to switch a freight customer and plan to cut the engines away; for example. Info: Jay Eichler 2a.The phrase means literally, [Pull the pin in the head car], cut the engine off and/or anything that means [Leave the cars where they are] 3.The phrase may be used when coupling a train together with a pre-arranged instruction to continue to the next move. This may also be used when spotting cars for loading or unloading. Info: JJ Earl

"Plant" Indicating an interlocking. [I'm holding you at the stop signal while the West Hempstead crosses the Plant.]

"Polishing Rail" an equipment train, or a particular run that had a lot of trains [Oh, he's out polishing rail.]

"Put the Engine on the Pit" Refers to anyplace where the engine would lay up overnight or until the next crew reports. JJ Earl

"Restricting on the Hanger" You will hear the conductor tell him [Restricting on the Hanger] when they are ready to leave the station. There are signals behind the engineers on Track 16-17 at Penn that they can't see and thus must know the aspect of the signal before they can depart.

"Ride the Hump" Brakeman would climb the side ladder of a boxcar to reach the brake wheel, then, once the car was set loose on the elevated hump track (track running downhill in a classification yard), he would manually brake the car before it either hit another car or the bumper block.

"Rounders" My Job has 3 round trips to babylon, three of the trains are locals, three are express. ["My run makes 3 rounders to Babylon...3 regulars, 3 flyers.."] Info: Bob Anderson

"Rodgers Rangers" [Classes given to familiarize new employees with the rail road.] Info: JenKar2000

"Rudolph's" in the wake of the Richmond Hill disaster in 1950, they found that the engineer on the second train probably did not see the small markers on the first train. So, on certain equipment, trainman were given red lenses to put over the rear headlight to act as a large marker. They were called "Rudolph's" (as in red nosed reindeer)

"Scoot" Was a term going all the way back to the early steam days as in the "Greenport Scoot" or the "Sag Harbor Scoot" or the "Patchogue-Babylon Scoot" etc.

It simply referred to a local rail shuttle service. Back and forth many times between two points, and always connecting with other trains (as at Manorville, Eastport, Bridgehampton or Babylon for example.) Info: Dave Keller LIRR Historian

"Skell" Undesirable types. This is police jargon and perhaps not unique to LIRR.

"Spotters" LIRR or MTA employees dressed as passengers checking on the performance of crews. They may try to pass invalid tickets to see if the person is doing their job, they may just observe and write someone up for rules or uniform violations. I remember one time I was accused for not collecting short riders at a particular stop.
Glad, I had the car numbers for that day, because the spotter had the wrong car numbers, and no badge number, so the charges were dropped. Info: Bob Anderson

"Stink Track" [The Stink] was in Yard A which was part of LIRR North Shore Yard. [The Stink] was so named for West Disinfecting Co., which had an industrial track siding servicing it.

"Straight Shoot" [When entering Long Beach Yard #4 track it is a straight shoot.]

"Stop the Train" [Switching and getting ready to couple.(Hitch)] Info: Jay Eichler

"Switch Tender" Utility Brakeman (Assistant Conductor)

"Telltail" The dangling knotted ropes that hung from a steel frame prior to an overpass or tunnel portal, to warn brakemen on the top of the car that a low clearance was approaching. It would slam the brakeman in the head as a warning that a short distance later, it would be a bridge or tunnel he'd be hitting.

"Take it to West Side" This means to clear you train (make sure there is no passengers on board) and bring this equipment to "WSSY" West Side Storage Yard for either storage, (getting it out of the way), layover, or to swap it out for new equipment.

"This Train is Bombed" A train that took a "hard hit" from its passengers being very messy.

"Tie it Down" [Apply hand brakes and follow the rules for laying up equipment.] Yardmaster slang, Info: BMC

"The Signal Dropped" A signal that was better then "STOP" suddenly goes to stop while approaching it. Usually a track circuit problem. Info: Bob Anderson

"Top Switch" The first switch into the yard, usually the switch that sets the path to either the high side or the low side of the yard.

"You could grab that KO for Hillside Correctional" KO is Ronkonkoma and Hillside 'Correctional' is slang because of the isolation of working there and the guards.

"Vomit Comet" A designation given to trains that leave New York early morning Sat/Sun consisting of all the obsessive compulsive alcoholics.

"Watch the Birdie" It's the Block operator ( or Train Dispatcher) telling the Engineer or Conductor to keep their eye on the signal, it will be "coming up" from a stop signal to a passing indication. [Hey, Divide the freight just went by at SG. OK, here we go, "watch the birdie"] see next entry.

"Watch the Low Home on the Wall" A low home signal that is attached to a bench wall and not located on the ground. You hear that coming out of West Side Yard, when you come out on the low side along the driveway near 10th Ave. There is a low home on the ground, usually near the walkway, the next signal is attached to the wall, around the bend. You can't see the low home on the wall until you are on top of it. The Block operator or Yard master is warning the Engineer, or Conductor who might be backing up a drill move, to be aware that the signal on the wall is still at stop.

"We got Company" [A transportation manager or road foreman is about to get on your train.] Usually a good engineer will let the crew know over the PA prior.

"Whiz Quiz" Oh, he put a train on the ground, so they sent him for a whiz quiz." [He derailed a train, so they sent him for a drug test.]

March 2007 issue of RMLI's Postboy regarding "HACK". Anyone have anything to add? Al Castelli

Talk to anybody who works or worked on the LIRR and mention the car that was used on the end of freight trains. They all will call it a “hack.” Ask them why it is called that and they will probably say, “that’s just what it’s called.” On the Pennsy, the caboose was referred to as a “cabin car.” Sometimes train crews called them a “crummy,” and with good reason.

Last August I was visiting Engine 39’s former home, the Long Island Museum in Stony Brook. They have on display a smaller version of the familiar stage coach seen in many western movies and TV shows. The museum’s example is an 1860 Hack Passenger Wagon. I thought I was on to something and reasoned that maybe freight crews called the caboose a hack because it was the “passenger” carrying car of a freight train.

I tried to find out some more information and found some references on the Internet. The first station wagons (the automobile type) were a product of train travel. They were originally called “depot hacks” because they were used around train depots for carrying passengers and baggage. “Hack” is short for “hackney carriage,” another name for a taxi. (Most of us have probably heard of taxi drivers being called hacks, and taxi stands being called hack stands.)

Searching for this information also led to the origin of the word “caboose” itself. One account says it was first used in reference to railroads in 1861. It comes from the nautical usage of a wooden cabin on a ship’s deck. The German word for this was kabhuse. In Middle Dutch it was kabuis, a compartment on a ship’s deck for cooking. This makes sense since the first cabooses were wooden shanties or cabins built on flat cars; hence the term “cabin car.” Early cabooses were described as having a “crummy ride,” and the cars themselves were called “crummies.”

Another account mentions “caboose” as the name of a cooking stove used on ships. American railroads used a caboose-style stove in a special car for the train crew to keep warm. The car itself became known as a caboose, and hack was used for them as well from about 1916.

The exact origin of both words in relation to railroads may be lost to time, but hopefully this little investigation sheds some light on the subject. If anyone has any additional information or theories, please email me and share them with the rest of us.