The birthplace of the BLET: Gary Best, B.J. Trumble and David Estes recently visited the Brotherhood monument in Marshall, Mich.
The BLET marks its 163rd anniversary today, May 8. The BLET and its members are proud of our heritage as the oldest labor union in North America.
William D. Robinson, the founder of the BLET, was involved in the movement to organize a national union for locomotive engineers as early as 1855. In April of 1863, while working as an engineer for the Michigan Central Railroad in Marshall, Mich., Robinson gathered 19 locomotive engineers together at the home of J.C. “Yankee” Thompson and inspired them to found a “protective association” that would eventually become today’s BLET. One month later, at a meeting in Detroit, Mich., a dozen engineers cemented a common bond on May 8, 1863, establishing the Brotherhood of the Footboard and electing Robinson as their Grand Chief Engineer (president). The organization’s name would be changed to Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers in 1864.
An impressive monument stands today in Marshall, Mich., recognizing the city as the birthplace of the Brotherhood. Delegates approved funding for the monument at the BLE national convention in 1942. Current officers of the BLET, including First Vice President Gary Best, National Secretary-Treasurer David Estes, and Michigan State Legislative Board Chairman B.J. Trumble, paid respect to the BLET’s rich history while visiting the monument earlier this year after conclusion of the Michigan State Legislative Board’s quadrennial meeting.
In the 1860s and 1870s, meetings of the Brotherhood were held in secret for fear of retaliation from management. The BLET was the first labor organization to obtain contracts with railroads. Among the earliest was an agreement with the former New York Central in 1875. Today, the BLET has hundreds of contracts with railroads large and small and represents nearly all locomotive engineers in the United States.
BLET’s current National President is Mark Wallace, the 25th principal officer in BLET’s long history. He has held the post since May 1, 2025. The BLET is the founding member of the Teamsters Rail Conference and represents approximately 51,500 active and retired locomotive engineers and trainmen throughout the United States.
In 1863, 19 locomotive engineers met in this house in Marshall, Mich., to discuss founding a “protective association” that would become today’s BLET.