On Feb. 20, 1925, 9-year-old Gaspar Marone ran away from home. The Alton Evening Telegraph newspaper announced the next day that “Alton has a new champion runaway boy.”
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At 4:45 p.m., the Chicago & Alton Railroad’s fast Chicago-St. Louis train left the Alton station with an unexpected passenger. Gaspar perched himself on the pilot (also called a cowcatcher) at the front of the engine and clung there for eight miles as the train went down the track. The train normally made no stops between Alton and St. Louis, but a telegraph operator at the Roxana station saw something white at the front of the engine and threw a semaphore signal, which brought the train to a stop. The train crew came out to see what was wrong and found Gaspar sitting quietly on the cowcatcher. According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch article, “He was cold but contented and a little angry at being stopped so soon on his adventure out into the world.” He told the train crew that he was going to Chicago. However, the train he took was headed in the other direction: to St. Louis.
“He was grimy black from soot and cinders, but showed no fear, and seemed quite elated over his novel experience,” reported the Alton Evening Telegraph. John C. McGuan, Chicago & Alton yardmaster, just happened to be a passenger on the train. “He took charge of the runaway boy, leading him into the smoking car where he became the center of attention. Passengers out-did themselves to provide candy for the lad, and he had a royal trip as far as Granite City.” There, McGuan made arrangements to have him sent home to Alton on the next train. Gaspar arrived back in Alton at 6:30 p.m. and a police officer took him home.
The Associated Press picked up the story and misreported Gaspar as being 5 years old. Articles in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Fort Cobb Record (Fort Cobb, Okla.), and The Daily Republican (Poplar Bluff, Mo.) all gave Gaspar’s age as 5. Gaspar’s whole adventure on the Chicago & Alton train lasted from 4:45 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., so it is possible that his parents didn’t even realize their 9-year-old was gone. Gaspar was one of seven (living) children and at the time would have had a 7-year-old brother, 5-year-old brother, 4-year-old sister, and 2-year-old brother (as well as two older siblings). If the 5-year-old really was the train runaway, this would probably have been a much more terrifying experience for Gaspar’s parents.
In various sources, including the Alton Telegraph newspaper, Alton city directories, and United States census records, the family name is spelled Marone, Maroni, Maronie, and Marona. Gaspar is also spelled Jasper. Gaspar’s parents, Dan and Mary, both emigrated from Italy in the late 1800s or early 1900s, which may have contributed to the assorted spellings. Gaspar Marone’s obituary and gravestone both use the spelling “Jasper Maronie.” The 1925 articles referred to “Gaspar Marone,” so that is the spelling used for this article.
Sources
“Boy, 5, Rides Engine Pilot.” Fort Cobb Record (Fort Cobb, OK), February 26, 1925.
“Child, 5, Hoboes His Way On Pilot of Fast C. & A. Train.” The Daily Republican (Poplar Bluff, MO), February 21, 1925.
“Child Tak[e]s A Wild Ride.” Blackwell Journal-Tribune (Blackwell, OK), February 22, 1925.
“Dan Maronie.” Alton Evening Telegraph (Alton, IL), April 14, 1964.
“Five-Year-Old Boy Taken From Pilot of Chicago Train.” St. Louis Post-Dispatch (St. Louis, MO), February 21, 1925.
“Jasper Maronie.” Alton Evening Telegraph (Alton, IL), October 31, 1994.
Leshnick’s Directory Co (Peoria, Ill). (1922) Leshnick's Alton City Directory, Including the town of East Alton, 1923. https://archive.org/details/alton-city-directory-1923/
“Mrs. Mary Maroni Dies After Operation.” Alton Evening Telegraph (Alton, IL), August 13, 1926.
“Runaway Boy Found on Pilot of Fast Train.” Alton Evening Telegraph (Alton, IL), February 21, 1925.
Wikimedia Commons. Alton Limited 1924. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alton_Limited_1924.JPG
Wikimedia Commons. Alton Limited smoking room buffet car 1907. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alton_Limited_smoking_room_buffet_car_1907.JPG
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