Patsy Molese and the BUDD Car

Hi Folks:

I've been in wonderful comunication with Patsy Molese's granddaughter and together we have put together a vignette about him and that fateful morning at Blue Point Road crossing in Holtsville, when both Patsy and the BUDD car became LIRR history.

I've also illustrated the vignette with a few photos, one of which was through the kindness and generosity of Richard Glueck, with whom I was a railfan 35+ years ago and another which is a scanned collage of mementoes of Patsy Molese courtesy of his granddaughter.

Please check it out on my website at this link:
http://www.trainsarefun.com/lirrphotos/ ... gnette.htm

Dave

Very nicely done, Dave. I knew of the incident, but never the whole story as you told it, thanks a lot for sharing it. Patsy seems like he was a great man, and I'm sure he would be very pleased with the job you have done telling his story.

-Kyle

Thanks, Kyle, for your kind words.

Patsy's granddaughter, Joan, gave it her blessing when she proof-read it as well. I knew at that point that I was portraying it as it should be.

As both my books have been dedicated to those LIRR veterans, past and present, who made the LIRR what it is today, likewise are all the vignettes posted on my site.

A wheel can't roll without its spokes.

God bless all those spokes!!

Dave

Wow.

I started working for the RR in 1973 6 years after this accident, but I heard it mentioned a few times since most of the people involved still worked for the RR at that time. One Engineer in particular Rudy Nichols, told me how Patsy shoved the fireman out the door and saved him while sacrificing himself. (Rudy has since passed away). Another Engineer who remembered it was Clyde hancock, who recently retired after 40 years of service. Interesting note about the Cassidys, beside Jack Cassidy the actor, "Old man Cassidy" had another son who was also an Engineer, Joe Cassidy. Joe Cassidy was a great guy who was for a time rules examiner before coming back to run the trains. He used to run Book of rules Classes on his own time on saturdays to instruct employees who were going up to qualify. A lot of former and current men on the LIRR owe their succsess to these classes (including me). Joe took 5 dollars a man for these classes much of which he invested in coffee and donuts evey week for the classes. One of the truly good guys in RR history.
His son, Joe Cassidy Jr. Was also an Enginner for many years, and General Charirman of the BLE for a time before retireing. Joe Cassidy JR. has a daughter Kelly who is currently an Engineer on the RR.

Lirr Conductor:

Thanks for your memories as well. Joe Cassidy sounds like he really was one of the "good guys," helping the others the way he did!

Another LIRR family!

Dave

Dave,

What a well written and insightful article! Glad you have shared it with us and that the memory of Pat Molese lives on. He seemed to be a great man with a true love for his family and railroading. Sad to see somebody leave this World in the fashion that he did, but he lived a long life doing what he loved.

Joe

Dave, That story was great, thank the grand daughter for alowing it to be put on line. It's nice to see and read about these employees of a bygone era. and many of us are lucky if we even get to work with their grand kid (if they took a job on the long island)

Thanx for the kind words, Guys!

Dave

Good bio and profile. Thanks to the granddaughter and thanks to you, Dave, for getting it out here for us to see.

My pleasure, JJ!

Dave

Well done, Dave.
Iremember the event and even wrote a letter to Newsday about the criticism of the LIRR, using Molese's sticking to his post as a heroic, but unappreciated act. When Newsday wanted to publish it, I retracted the letter, for fear of embarassing my father. Hey, I was a kid, and scared.
The story I heard was that Molese push the trainman into the passenger compartment and told the passengers to brace themselves, while he manned the brakes.

The Granddaughter remembered Cecil Kraft in her statement. Krafty was quite a guy. He was a genuine hero as well, having saved a child by running ahead of his slowing train to scoop a child up off the tracks. THere were other events as well. Kraft wore overalls, a striped cap, and red neckerchief right up into the Diesel era. He was deeply involved in the Oyster Bay fire department, and the steam locomotive bell displayed outside the O.B.F.D. came from Cecil Kraft. The "Friends of 35" could create a whole section of their museum plan around the legend of this one magnificent locomotive engineer. He was the last of his kind, and should not be forgotten, as his life is threaded through the history of our LIRR. We shall not see his kind again, I'm afraid.

Thanks, Dick!

As for Cecil Kraft, I have a nice on-the-job portrait of him in my first LIRR book. He's in the cab of an early diesel at Oyster Bay around 1952, wearing his striped cap and railroad jacket, and, being in passenger service at the time, a bow tie!

I've also got a shot of him posing in front of a G5s at O.B. along with his fireman in 1940. He's wearing the complete outfit with bandanna, overalls and long gauntlet leather gloves. Long-spout oil can at the ready.

An old-time railroad man, most certainly and dressed for the part.

Dave

And an extra:

Krafty hired on as fireman on 5/22/18 and was promoted to engineer on 3/20/25 (per my official 1947 LIRR roster of engineers and firemen).

Dave

Just added the official accident investigation report from the DOT FRARSB, courtesy of Art Huneke (Arrts-Arrchives):

http://www.trainsarefun.com/lirrphotos/ ... gnette.htm

Scroll to the very bottom of the vignette after the last photo for the link. It will download the files for you to open.

Check it out!

Dave