Eugene L. Huddleston was born January 29, 1931 in Ironton, OH, son of James Earl and Bernice (McClave ) Huddleston. He grew up in Russell, KY; graduated from Russell High School in 1949, and after attending Ashland Junior College, graduated from Marshall College in 1953. Following an M.A. from Ohio University in 1956 and graduate work at Indiana University, he obtained the Ph.D. from Michigan State University in 1965. Winner of the Norman Foerster Prize in 1966, he pursued a career in the Dept. of American Thought and Language until retirement in 1992. Along with his scholarship in early American literature, Huddleston pursued a lifetime interest in railroad history and photography. He was a frequent contributor to Trains Magazine writing articles and co-authoring books about the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad. He was co-author (with Phil Shuster and the late Al Staufer) of C&O Power: Steam and Diesel Locomotives of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, 1900-1965, considered the most authoritative book on the subject.
As the son of a C&O conductor, and brother of another C&O employee, Huddleston was drawn to the history of that railroad line. Early in his life, he began taking pictures of C&O modern-steam and early-diesel subjects in Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia. Following his move to Michigan, Huddleston expanded his railroad interest to include Michigan and Indiana.
He died April 2, 2011 at the age of 80.
From the guide to the Eugene L. Huddleston collection of railroad slides, 1950s-1990s, (Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan)
