Chucaluck's recent inquiry about the "S" line loob at 8th and Westen reminded me of a piece I wrote for a rail enthusiasts site a awhile back. Set during WWII, It briefly outlines the contribution of women street car motorman, conductors, and bus drivers to the war effort on the home front. The operator in the piece was a regular motorman during my late teenage years.
The lady in the picture is Cora M. Dravis. She joined the Los Angeles Railway in the dark days of World War II, when women replaced men called up to serve in the military.
In September of 1942 the privately owned and operated Los Angeles Railway earned the distinction of being the first transit agency in the U.S. to hire women to operating positions. San Diego Electric Railway followed shortly thereafter, and the practice soon spread across the country.
Cora became one of more than 300 women employed by LARY as Motormanettes, Conductorettes, Coachettes and Driverettes. The requirements at the time were modest - age 21-40, weight 120-140, and height 5’3”-5’10.” Initially all of the women operated out of one division owing to a lack of restroom facilities.
Cora is shown here at the Whittier and Brannick loop. The year is 1963, and on March 31, her career as a streetcar operator will end with the abandonment of LA's last five streetcar lines. Cora will become a bus driver for a short while, before retiring from the Los Angeles Metroplolitan Transit Authorty with an accident free record. She has since passed on, but her contribution, and that of her wartime sisters to the battle on the home front lives on in Los Angeles rail transportation history.
While not in the Noir genre, hopefully viewers will find it interesting.
Cheers,
Jack