Railway Express Agency & the PRR

I'm doing some research on the REA. PRR handled massive amounts of REA business. What did the PRR have to provide in terms of rolling stock and accommodations for REA traffic & employees. If there was no REA employee on a PRR train, did the crew get extra pay for handling the REA traffic? Does anyone have a copy of a master agreement between PRR & REA? Is there a route guide for REA operations over the PRR? WJP

Since you're doing research on REA, do you know whether any of their records were preserved at all after the bankruptcy and liquidation? Normally, when a railroad was merged or otherwise disappeared, a Technical & Historical Society got hold of as much archival material as it could and preserved it for future reference, but I've never found such an organization for REA. Something I've sometimes wondered about was whether individual packages destined to intermediate local stations were simply handled by the train baggageman, and if so, was he compensated by REA, or was the railroad compensated, and the handling of REA shipments was considered part of the baggageman's regular job? (I believe station agents were compensated directly for handling billing of REA shipments from their station, and if they happened to work the right station it could be a substantial supplemental income.)

When I worked for the Boston & Maine (1968-86), the former Supervisor of Mail Traffic, E. A. Lindberg, now deceased, was somewhat of a railfan, and he recounted interesting happenings in the railroad world. Railway Express was one of them. Outside major cities, Railway Express usually occupied space in a railroad passenger station and it was billed for rent, utilities, etc. In many small towns, there was not enough business to justify an employee, so the local railroad station agent was paid a commission on express shipments originating from the station. Mr. Lindberg told the story of a furniture company on B & M's Conway (NH) branch whose products were profiled in Better Homes and Gardens magazine in a post-World War II issue. The furniture was a hit and it set off a home decorating trend that lasted for several years, years in which the agent earned more per year in Railway Express commissions than his railroad earnings. He probably did most of his REA paperwork on company time too. I think the station was Mount Whittier.

I once had at least one Master Contract that Railway Express had with each railroad. Mine was with the Boston and Maine and I donated it to the Boston & Maine Historical Society, but since it is a Master Contract, there are probably others reposing in many of the railroad historical societies. Also, Pullman had Master Contracts.