Brotherhood of Railway Conductors
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| Founded | December 15, 1868 |
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| Date dissolved | January 1, 1969 |
| Merged | United Transportation Union |
| Office location | Cedar Rapids, Iowa |
| Country | United States and Canada |
The Order of Railway Conductors of America (ORC) was a labor union that represented train conductors in the United States. It has its origins in the Conductors Union founded in 1868. Later it extended membership to brakemen. In 1969 the ORC merged with three other unions to form the United Transportation Union.
The first Conductor's Union was formed in early 1868 at Amboy, Illinois, by a group of conductors on the Illinois Central Railroad. Soon after another division was formed at Galesburg, Illinois, by a group of conductors from the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. The two groups met in July 1868 at Mendota, Illinois, and formed the "Conductors Union", which was to organize conductors across the country. On December 15, 1868 the group met at Columbus, Ohio, where they elected the leaders to form a "grand division" and adopted a constitution and bylaws.
The ORC represented the interests of train conductors, whose job function approximated that of an ocean ship captain and were consequently the most prestigious and highly compensated railway workers of their era. The ORC was governed by conventions held every three years and was not part of the American Federation of Labor.
The original organization was a fraternal benefit and temperance society rather than a labor union. It adopted the name "Conductors Brotherhood" at its first annual convention in 1869, and changed to the "Order of Railway Conductors of America" in 1878.
The order began to publish its official organ, the monthly magazine Railway Conductor's Monthly, in 1884. The publication was renamed The Railway Conductor and moved to a semi-monthly frequency in August 1889. The magazine's frequency reverted to monthly status in June 1891.
The order was incorporated in 1887 and made its headquarters in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The objectives given in the 1887 articles of incorporation were, "To unite its members; to combine their interests as railway conductors; to elevate their standards as such and their character as men for their mutual improvement and advantage, socially and otherwise..." The order provided mutual support and assistance to conductors, and administered a death and disability insurance plan. It covered the territories of the United States and Canada. Membership was open to white men in the occupations of road conductors, assistant conductors and ticket collectors; road brakemen, flagmen and train baggagemen; yard conductors, yard foremen and other yard trades.
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