Black Mountain railroad worker subject of N.C. Transportation Museum exhibit

‘The Life of a Brakeman’ highlights the 40-year career of George Winslow Whittington

The Valley Echo
September 3, 2021

“The Life of a Brakeman” exhibit that opened, Aug. 28, in the N.C. Transportation Museum, highlights a Black Mountain man, George Winslow Whittington, who held one of the most dangerous jobs for Southern Railway for nearly 40 years. Photo courtesy of N.C. Transportation Museum

More than half of George Winslow Whittington’s life was spent riding the rails with the Asheville Division of Southern Railways. The Black Mountain brakeman’s career, which began in 1926 and ended with his retirement in 1963, spanned the eras of steam engines and diesel locomotives. 

A fixture in the community until his death in 1970, Whittington’s story was memorialized by the installation of a metal sign on the caboose at the depot in his hometown in 2020. His courage and strength in the face of one the industry’s most dangerous jobs is the focus of a permanent exhibit, which opened Aug. 28, at the N.C. Transportation Museum.

“The Life of a Brakeman” offers details on the difficult job, which included walking from car to car to manually set brakes, as the train navigated the tunnels and switchbacks along the mountain terrain. The challenges of the dangerous position were exacerbated for Whittington, who as a Black man, risked his life to ensure the safety of passengers during segregation. 

The exhibit was created with content curation aid from Whittington's granddaughter, Regina Lynch-Hudson, contributions from his son, Les Whittington, and other descendants. 

“The Life of Brakeman” includes two panels, each standing 5-feet-five-inches tall, and an interactive brake wheel that allows visitors to experience how brakes are set on trains. Artifacts from the museum’s collection, related to brakemen and Whittington himself, are also featured in the display, accompanied by a short video produced by Lynch-Hudson. 

The N.C. Transportation Museum was established in 1982, and is located in Spencer on a historic site that was once home to Southern Railway’s largest steam locomotive repair facility in the southeast. For more information on admission prices and hours of operation, visit nctransportationmuseum.org. 

A panel highlighting the life of Whittington can also be viewed on the second floor of the Swannanoa Valley Museum & History Center in the “Our Pathways The People and Stories of the Swannanoa Valley” permanent exhibit. 

Read more about the legacy of Whittington in the story “Light at the end of the tunnel,” originally published by The Valley Echo, Jan. 1.