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Railroad Union Birthplace

Calhoun County · dedicated 1974 · 633 West Hanover St, Marshall

In April 1863 a meeting held here at the home of Jared C. Thompson led directly to the organization of the Brotherhood of the Footboard. Under the leadership of Marshall’s William D. Robinson, founder and first Grand Chief Engineer, fifty-four locals were established in the next sixteen months. Renamed the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers in 1864, the union grew to over eighty thousand members by the mid-twentieth century.

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Marker data: Michigan History Center

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