Christine Gonzalez Aldeis (born 1952/1953)[1] is an American train engineer. She became the first woman to work as an engineer on a Class 1 railroad.[2]
Aldeis was born and raised in El Paso, Texas, where she came from a family that had strong ties to the railroad industry.[3] Her grandmother was a Harvey Girl, her grandfather worked as a Pullman conductor, her father worked as a train conductor and her mother was a secretary to the Santa Fe trainmaster in El Paso.[4][5] Her family was supportive of her announcement to become an engineer and she began training as a hostler in May of 1973.[1][3] After graduating from simulator school in Topeka, she then started work as the first woman train engineer for the Santa Fe Railway system in February of 1974.[1][5] She was first assigned to Socorro, New Mexico.[3] Aldeis was featured on the cover of Redbook in March of 1975.[6] In 1980, she met Robert Aldeis and they were married and had two children.[3] Aldeis took some time off to be with her children, but returned to the railroad as part of the reserve board.[1] In 1989, she became a volunteer for Operation Lifesaver.[3] After the BNSF merger, Aldeis became a field safety support manager and later the regional manager.[3] In 2012, she retired from BNSF.[3]
References edit
- ^ a b c d "21-Year-Old First Woman RR Engineer". Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, the Evening News. 17 March 1974. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
- ^ López, Carlos Andres (14 March 2017). "US' First Woman Train Engineer Speaks in Las Cruces". Las Cruces Sun-News. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
- ^ a b c d e f g "The First Female Locomotive Engineer for the Santa Fe Railway Reflects on her Career". Friends of BNSF. 2012-02-28. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
- ^ "She's A Hard-Driving Locomotive Engineer". Tampa Times. 19 August 1974. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
- ^ a b "Maintains Family Tradition". The Indianapolis Star. 26 February 1974. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
- ^ "Magazine Features E.P. Girl". El Paso Herald-Post. 3 March 1975. Retrieved 29 March 2019.