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The story of agents is complex. It involves much more than the public perception. For decades the job required the mastery of the cryptic Morse code. For some this would be a daunting task. There were downsides, ranging from labor disputes over unionization, hours, and other workplace issues to managing unruly individuals who haunted depot waiting rooms. Still, the position held distinct attractions–possibilities for steady employment and advancement, decent wages, a safe working environment, workdays that were usually different, and community respect. Then there was that direct association with arguably the most fascinating business in the world–the railroad. The "romance of the rails" can't be minimized.
This study of agents is limited to steam railroads; after all, these carriers constituted the vast majority of trackage in the United States. Yet there was that short-lived electric interurban era. This transportation alternative emerged during the mid-1890s, expanded explosively, and peaked in 1916 with 15,580 route miles. Yet it died out rapidly following World War I. Interurbans were commonly found in the Midwest, especially in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, but they also appeared nationwide. In fact, the largest was the 500-mile Pacific Electric Railway, which radiated out of Los Angeles. That company immodestly claimed to be "The Greatest Electric Railway System in the World." Although these "juice" roads frequently used commercial storefronts and hotels for their stations and had an abundance of wayside shelters, they also had depots staffed by agent-operators who resembled those employed by steam carriers and who might belong to the Order of Railroad Telegraphers. One has only to look at such interurbans as the Illinois Terminal Railroad (nee Illinois Traction) in Illinois, Lake Shore Electric Railway in Ohio, Piedmont & Northern Railway in the Carolinas, Portland-Lewiston Interurban Railroad in Maine, or the Spokane & Inland Empire Railway in Washington State to find similarities.
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