Samuel Thomas Bledsoe (May 12, 1868 – March 8, 1939) was the 16th president of

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison, Kansas, Atchison and Top ...

Early life and family

Bledsoe was born in

Clinton County, Kentucky Clinton County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky in the Pennyrile Region along the southern border with Tennessee. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the population was 10,272. Its county s ...

on May 12, 1868. His education took him through various public and private schools in the area; he later attended the Southern Normal School and the Bowling Green Business College. He then took up teaching from 1885 to 1887.

Railroad career

In 1888, Bledsoe moved to Texas where he studied law at the

University of Texas School of Law The University of Texas School of Law (Texas Law) is the law school of the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Law is consistently ranked as one of the top law schools in the United States and is highly selective—registering the 8th lowest ac ...

; he was admitted to the bar in 1890 and began his practice specializing in land and railroad issues in the

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

and

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

territories. His first work for the Santa Fe Railroad began in 1895, which eventually led to his appointment as the railroad's general counsel in 1908. Bledsoe worked his way up through management to succeed

William Benson Storey William Benson Storey, Jr. (November 17, 1857 – October 24, 1940) was the fifteenth president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. Storey was born November 17, 1857, in San Francisco, California, the son of William Bainbridge Storey, an ...

on May 2, 1933, as president of the railroad, serving in that position until his death on March 8, 1939. Bledsoe was the first Santa Fe president to be promoted from a career path that did not lead through the operations or technical aspects of the railroad. During Bledsoe's time as president, he worked to reduce the railroad's operating expenses and bring profitability during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

; it was also during his term that the railroad introduced

diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is conveyed to the driving whee ...

s into its motive power fleet and launched new passenger trains such as the famed ''

Super Chief The ''Super Chief'' was one of the named passenger trains and the flagship of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. The streamliner claimed to be "The Train of the Stars" because of the various celebrities it carried between Chicago, Ill ...

''. Bledsoe also served as a director of the

Railway Express Agency Railway Express Agency (REA), founded as the American Railway Express Agency and later renamed the American Railway Express Inc., was a national package delivery service that operated in the United States from 1918 to 1975. REA arranged transp ...

and the Continental Illinois Bank and Trust Company.

Published works

Legacy

The town of

Bledsoe, Texas Bledsoe is an unincorporated community in western Cochran County, Texas, located near the New Mexico border. It is about 68 miles west of Lubbock, Texas. As of the 1990 US Census, the town had a population of 125. History Bledsoe was founded ...

, was named in his honor.

References

1868 births 1939 deaths Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway presidents 20th-century American railroad executives People from Clinton County, Kentucky University of Texas School of Law alumni {{US-rail-bio-stub