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Below is a reprint of the entire first issue of ConRail Magazine, Conrail's first corporate newsletter--a great treat for enthusiasts today. All pages of the issue have at least one online version in the form of a gif or jpg image. Some of the more important pages in the issue also come in pdf format, usable with Adobe's free Acrobat Reader. Click on a page's image to read it online, or click on its in-text link to read or print the pdf version. I hope you enjoy reading this historical look at the beginning of Conrail and gain insight into a difficult and emotional time in northeastern railroading. Thanks to Dave Goldsmith for donating his collection of early Conrail employee magazines to the CRCyc so that I can share them with the world.The very first issue of Conrail's new employee newsletter, ConRail Magazine, launched on the same day as the new railroad, April 1, 1976. Its front cover (upper left) features a serious chairman and CEO, Edward G. Jordan, standing to the right of president and chief operating officer, Richard D. Spence, against the backdrop of PC 6910, an SD-9, at Camden's Pavonia Yard in New Jersey. When the railroad began official operations, it still did not have an official paint scheme or logo. All they had was the original ConRail, with a capital R, between two bars. However, in the magazine the logo always appears in blue, when the page is in color. Did someone know that blue was going to be the railroad's color? Or was it just a lucky guess? What do you think?
Since they consider the cover as page 1, the issue actually begins on page 2 (left, 249k pdf) with a brief welcome message from Chairman Jordan, a message written prior to Day 1 or, as he sometimes calls it, Activation Day. In his message he reinforces the idea that Conrail would be a new railroad with new management. It would rise from the tangled mess of its bankrupt predecessors into what he calls "a time for true rebuilding." He continues: "We must put an end to the feeling of despair and failure that hovered over the old railroads. We must begin a new era of hope and optimism." He clearly understood the dilemma facing the new railroad: if many of his employees in the field were to remain as depressed after Day 1 as they had been leading up to that day, the railroad could easily collapse. Those were difficult days in 1976, a time when everyone, from brakemen to congressmen, questioned Conrail's ability to succeed. Of course, we know how the story unfolded, but for them it was the opening lines of the very first chapter.
The right facing page in the issue, page 3 ( left, 192k pdf), continues the issues welcome theme with Richard Spence's message to the employees, in which he stresses the company's commitment to service. This makes perfect sense since he was the chief operating officer at the time, and service would be his main concern on Day 1. He also gives us some personal background, and then calls upon the company's many employees to be the best railroaders that they could be. It's a sincere message, but not quite as insightful as Jordan's. Still, it's worth reading since these two men would help shape the future of railroading in the northeast and guide the industry through some of its most difficult times. Finally, the page contains the issue's table of contents.Page 4 (far left) is a large, pixilated, black and white image of Penn Central U33B #2922 with the large
ConRail logo placed over the unit's nose. The first major article, "A Look at the New Railroad," begins on the following page (near left, 218k pdf)
continues on page 6, (near right, 291k pdf), and then continues again on page 10 (far right, 244k pdf). In the article, we get a good history of Conrail's formation, what Conrail will be like on Day 1, and what it hopefully will become in the future. On page 6 President Gerald Ford gives his opionion on Conrail and what he saw as the railroad's future: "We expect that within five years ConRail will overcome the unprofitable legacy of the bankrupt lines." A prophecy that would eventually come true.
Today, the article "ConRail: Your Questions Answered," which is on page 7 (right, 197k pdf), is what we would call a FAQ, or frequently asked questions. Basically, the article answers some of the main questions that former predecessor railroaders might have, mainly what is Conrail, who owns it, who manages it, are we government employees, is my job secure, what can I do to make Conrail a success, and so on. I always find it interesting to look back, see management's answers, and then compare them to what really happened. Were employees' jobs secure? I guess it depended on how high up the corporate ladder you were, and even then you were far from safe from cuts.
The center-spread of the issue (pages 8-9 left) contains a real gem, a schematic map of the entire system. Usually, such schematic maps aren't that useful, but on this map every region is labeled and color-coded. For example, the Eastern Region is gold, while the Atlantic Region is red. The map gives a sense of the new railroad's size, which must have seemed enormous to railroaders from the smaller lines, such as the L&HR. To print the map, simply divide the image into two using a good graphics program and print each half on a separate sheet of paper at 150dpi.
The next three pages (left) provide profiles and pictures of the company's new management team, stressing the team's experience while also implying that it will not be more of the same management that drove the predecessor companies into bankruptcy. According to the page's blurb: "One month ago, ConRail announced the appointment of its department heads. The new team represents a blend of persons with current rail operating experience and new management. It brings to ConRail a unique combination of new and proved skills and techniques, from within the industry and from outside."
The last article in the magazine, pages 14-15 (right), looks at what it took to get the railroad from October 1975, when management teams began researching how to improve railroading in the northeast, to the actual creating of Conrail on April 1, 1976. Originally, the teams had a very different plan for the region, such as keeping the Erie Lackawanna a separate and competing railroad while folding the Reading Company into a redesigned Chessie System. Of course, we all know how those plans turned out.
Management was sure there would be a future for Conrail, at least until the next issue of ConRail Magazine. The rear cover teases the reader with some future articles on how maintenance of way crews were already tackling rebuilding many of Conrail's deteriorating 17,000 miles of track. However, the issue would also feature articles on Day 1 operations, the new steel-wheels logo, and much more on the rebuilding of the northeast. The adventure continues in Issue 2, online soon. 
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