Erasmo Gamboa - Bracero Railroaders: The Forgotten World War II Story of Mexican Workers in the U.S. West

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BRACERO RAILROADERS

BRACERO RAILROADERS

THE FORGOTTEN WORLD WAR II STORY OF MEXICAN WORKERS IN THE U.S. WEST

Erasmo Gamboa

University of Washington Press

Seattle London

2016 by the University of Washington Press

Printed and bound in the United States of America

Design: Dustin Kilgore

Typeset in Cassia, designed by Dietrich Hofrichter

20 19 18 17 165 4 3 2 1

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

University of Washington Press

www.washington.edu/uwpress

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication

Data Names: Gamboa, Erasmo, author.

Title: Bracero railroaders : the forgotten World War II story of Mexican workers in the U.S. West / Erasmo Gamboa.

Other titles: Forgotten World War II story of Mexican workers in the U.S. West

Description: 1st edition. | Seattle : University of Washington Press, [2016] | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2016007087 | ISBN 9780295998329 (hardcover : alk. paper)

Subjects: LCSH: Foreign workers, MexicanUnited StatesHistory20th century. | RailroadsUnited StatesEmployeesHistory20th century. | World War, 19391945ManpowerUnited States. | World War, 19391945War workUnited States. | RailroadsUnited StatesHistory20th century. | United StatesEmigration and immigrationGovernment policyHistory20th century. | MexicoEmigration and immigrationGovernment policyHistory20th century. | World War, 19391945Participation, Mexican American. | World War, 19391945Economic aspectsUnited States. | RailroadsWest (U.S.)History20th century.

Classification: LCC HD8039.R12 U634 2016 | DDC 331.6/2687207809044dc23

LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016007087

For Adriana Cristina,
Andrea Elena, and Carole

Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments

W hen the final story of the American railroads has been written, a chapter of interest and significance will record the substantial part that Mexicans played in helping to maintain thousands of miles of war-burdened tracks at a time when, without this labor, these tracks would surely have been seriously weakened, with unquestionably adverse effect upon the war effort. It was a fortunate day back in May 1943 when the state departments of the two countries, in conjunction with the War Manpower Commission and immigration officers, negotiated agreements permitting the entry of six thousand Mexican citizens into the United States for unskilled labor on the railroads, a number that was increased to twenty thousand in June of that year, to forty thousand in March 1944, to fifty thousand the following July, and, early March 1945, to a new ceiling of seventy-five thousand.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Several early influences inspired this book on the World War II bracero railroad workers. I grew up in rural Washington State, where trains and railroad tracks intersected with everyones daily lives. My father, Gumecindo Gamboa, shared his memories with me about working on the railroad during the 1920s. The railroad had taken him and his friends far away from Edinburg, Texas, to Ohio and West Virginia. The omnipresent trains of my youth, coupled with my fathers railroad history, led to a personal interest in learning more about Mexican track laborers. As a historian, I had written about bracero agricultural workers in the Pacific Northwest during World War II. I realized that I had overlooked the important experiences of the wartime bracero railroad workers. This omission motivated me to write the forgotten story of more than one hundred thousand Mexican braceros employed in the U.S., maintaining the all-important network of railroad tracks during World War II.

Later, in 2000, I worked on a lawsuit to recover decades-old unpaid wage deductions owed to the wartime generation of agricultural and railroad braceros. My association with the lawsuit provided an opportunity to gather much archival information and to develop a deep awareness and empathy for braceros wide range of harsh experiences. I collected rich and detailed first-person narratives from former bracero and Mexican American railroaders. Workers reflections were also found in historical documents or shared by their spouses and descendants. To be sure, I would not be as informed had I not worked on this lawsuit. I owe a great debt of thanks to Enrique Martnez for his confidence in asking me to work on the lawsuit and help bring redress to this generation of Mexican workers.

Numerous other people have made equally important contributions to this book. I am particularly indebted to Andrea E. Gamboa, who shares my passion for social history. She became an active and encouraging participant in the research by helping to uncover records of the bracero railroad workers in archival collections in Mxico and the United States. Felipe M. Mndez carefully read and edited early drafts of the manuscript, offered helpful feedback, and asked questions that greatly enhanced the story. Ana Davenport and Ellen Palms offered valuable help preparing the manuscript.

The pursuit of knowledge about the railroad braceros took me in many directions and brought me in contact with people whom I would never have met otherwise. Vicky Sierra, Eulalio Partida, Mike Rivera, and Fernando Barba Gonzlez are among the many women and men who graciously welcomed me into their homes and responded to my inquiries about their experiences. Now elderly, much time has passed since working on the railroads; recalling some of their experiences brought back unpleasant memories. Still, they shared my desire to tell their stories, and I am very appreciative. Of course, the braceros and their families whom I never met (but whose names and voices of distress appear in the archival records) are just as indispensable to the book.

I wish to acknowledge Ranjit D. Arab, at the University of Washington Press, for his enthusiasm and stress-free way of facilitating publication of the book. I am grateful for his exuberant commitment to the project. I am also indebted to Deborah Barker at the Franklin County, Kansas, Historical Society; and Cara J. Randall at the California State Railroad Museum for assisting with the illustrations. The indispensable support and encouragement of all these and other unnamed persons made this a most rewarding endeavor.

Abbreviations

AAR	Association of American Railroads
AFL	American Federation of Labor
AT&SF	Atchison, Topeka & and Santa Fe Railway
BMWE	Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees
CB&Q	Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
CMStP&P	Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
CNW	Chicago and North Western Railway Company
CTM	Confederacin de Trabajadores de Mxico (Confederation of Mexican Workers)

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