On a Friday afternoon photographer Mike Palmieri was at the Union Passenger Terminal in New Orleans, Louisiana (commonly known as NOUPT). While there he observed this blue terminal switcher shuffling about and recorded her as she was running up to the terminal for more work. His comments are below the photograph.

The number 3 has a soft place in my heart. A dozen years prior to this image (give or take a year), I was a very young teenager standing on a platform at the NOUPT with my dad. I was intently studying this locomotive as it sat there idling away unattended. By and by the crew showed up, having returned from lunch. They were taking their place in the cab and on the rear platform when the engineer called down to me and asked if I wanted to come up for a look-see. With bulging eyes, I shouted my desire, the engineer asked my dad if that was okay, and he gave his nod of approval. Once in the cab, the engineer had me seated in front of the controls and proceeded to point out every lever, switch and gauge and what their function was. Then he asked if I wanted to take a spin with them (like he had to ask!). A shout to my dad, and with another nod, we were off.

But to my surprise, he didn’t take my place at the seat but rather directed me in the steps to get the beast rolling. Three short toots of the air horn, move the reverse lever to the rear, rotate the brake handle to release the brakes, then finally pull that big throttle lever two notches out. The engine roared, and with a slight shudder, we started rolling. We ran way out to the switches beyond the platforms, and a switchman lined the route for the track we were to enter to make a pickup. Reversing the direction, we then crept into the track to grab a couple passenger cars. We coupled up and that signaled the end of my throttle time and excursion. The “train” was to go way down to the coach yard, a bit too far for me to walk back from. So I reluctantly surrendered my position and climbed down to the ground, and the switchman escorted me back to the platform where my dad stood, hands in pockets, and with a smile on his face because he understood the joy I had just experienced. I remember that event like it was just yesterday. 🙂