It’s National Train Day! These hats are just a sample of the numerous railroad related objects that NUMU has in its permanent collection. They were traditionally worn by those who drive and operate the engines, and ensure that everything runs smoothly. This now-classic style was invented in the early 1900s by train engineer George Kromer and his wife, Ida. At the time, and as baseball was increasing in popularity, George took time off from the railroad industry to play semi-professional and professional baseball. When he returned to engineering, he wore his baseball caps to work, but they didn’t quite fit his needs. So he and his wife designed a more practical cap that he could wear to work, which she made out of the blue and white pinstripe pillow ticking that she had on hand.
Los Gatos train depot, 1900. Courtesy of Los Gatos Library.
Los Gatos train depot, circa 1880. Courtesy of Los Gatos Library.
George and Ida Kromer. Courtesy of Union Pacific Railroad Museum.
The railroad industry played a large role in the development of Los Gatos, which was still a small, relatively unknown community before the Southern Pacific Coast Railroad chose the town to be the site of an important freight and passenger train depot on the line connecting the Bay Area with Santa Cruz in 1876. It took two years to build the depot, and once they were done, Los Gatos became part of a busy and thriving railroad network, attracting not only industry, but tourists as well. The Los Gatos station was also critically important as a water-refueling stop for steam locomotives about to make the trek up and over the mountains to Santa Cruz.
There is more to this history we want to explore through the Los Gatos History Project. Particularly the stories of the Chinese laborers and other under-represented communities of color who were integral to the success of the railroad industry, not only locally, but nationally as well.
-Alexandra Schindler, Collections Registrar
Train passing Los Gatos depot, 1955. Courtesy of Los Gatos Library.
