The Railway & Locomotive Historical Society will recognize magazine writing about passenger rail service with the latest addition to its Railroad History Awards.
The William F. Howes Jr. Passenger Rail Article Award becomes the seventh category of the awards program, which began in 1982. Howes, a career railroad official with the Baltimore & Ohio railroad and successors Chessie System and CSX Transportation, was R&LHS president from 1994 to 2003. He died July 31 at age 83 [see “William F. Howes Jr., railroad official, R&LHS president, author, dies at 83,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 1, 2022].
The R&LHS Executive Committee agreed to add the award at the suggestion of the organization’s Southeast Chapter, which Howes helped found in 1989. The chapter contributed seed funding of $1,000 toward the award, which like the other awards presents winners with a certificate and $250 honorarium.
“Bill was so much about passenger rail,” said Southeast Chapter member Paul Barnes. “This is a great way to honor his legacy for all he’s done for the industry, the passenger side of the industry, and for railroad history generally.
“He was a walking encyclopedia [and he] was all about fostering, paying it forward, and cultivating the future of railroad history. He was always willing to go above and beyond to spend time with younger people who had a definite interest in railroad history to grow their knowledge.”
The Howes award joins six other categories, most of which are given annually:
— The Gerald M. Best Senior Achievement Award for lifetime contributions to the field of railroad history, which Howe received in 2015;
— The George W. & Constance M. Hilton Book Award;
— The David P. Morgan Article Award, given for an outstanding magazine article or paper;
— The Fred A. & Jane R. Stindt Photography Award, given for a notable body of work over a long period of time or a single photographic project or publication;
— The John E. Gruber Video Award;
— The Arthur D. Dubin Medal, honoring truly extraordinary achievements, to be selected from among nominees for the Senior Achievement Award. To date, only three people have earned the medal: Dubin (1923-2011), honored in 2009; John H. (Jack) White, Jr. retired curator of transportation and senior historian at the Smithsonian Institution (2009); and historian and author Cornelius W. Hauck (2013).
Nominations for all categories of awards may be submitted by anyone, members and non-members alike, at this page on the R&LHS website. Written nominations may be submitted to awards Chair Daryl Mundis at Daryl.Mundis@gmail.com or 4 Tanna Hill Court, Baldwin, N.Y., 10505-2017. For questions, his phone is 706-518-2199. A set of rules and eligibility guidelines is available here.
Nomination deadline is Jan. 15, 2023, for the 2022 round of awards. Articles, books, and videos to be considered for this cycle must have been published during the five-year period from Jan. 1, 2017, through Dec. 31, 2021.
Society initials are incorrect (twice) in caption of the picture of William Howes.
Corrected. Thank you.
Bill had a terrific memory even at age 82, he could give me fine details of B&O passenger train operations, even for specific trains, while conversing on the phone. Unbelievable resources at hand at his home and he always followed up if need be.
This is fantastic! Bill Howes was indeed a walking encyclopedia on American passenger trains.
When he was in charge of B&O/C&O passenger trains, the Capitol Limited and George Washington were run top notch until the end.
Looking forward to seeing who gets this award in the future