Last Man Standing: A Railroad Detective's Story 1965–1985

Railroad police officers started to come onto the scene officially in the 1850s, but in one form or another they have been around almost as long as the railroads have. Consisting of various individual departments, in their present incarnation they are spread out along many miles of line, in virtually every state in the union and in every country. Now, just as then, their mission is one of the most difficult faced by any police organization. As I knew it, the job was demanding, but it was made even harder by the back-stabbing and in-fighting that occurred among the ranks at all levels. With the various factions struggling for power, the job was frequently left undone as those in higher office settled old scores. There were those who were dedicated, hard workers, but they were the ones who served at the pleasure of the powers-that-be. They were expendable.