Wow is all I can say.
Nick
Come on now, someone here knows what i’m talkin about!!!
Yup - poling was the practice of taking a stout pole and using the poling pockets on the locomotive tender or front beam and the corresponding poling pocket on the freight car to push it along an adjacent track. Also used to push a car into a siding where a locomotive may not be able to go. Very dangerous as someone had to hold the pole and align it with the pockets as the engine moved forward. Many people hurt or killed when the poling pole shattered. Practice was used a lot in yard situations so the engine did not have to go back to a switch to move over a track to move a car.
Steve Weidner said:
Yup - poling was the practice of taking a stout pole and using the poling pockets on the locomotive tender or front beam and the corresponding poling pocket on the freight car to push it along an adjacent track. Also used to push a car into a siding where a locomotive may not be able to go. Very dangerous as someone had to hold the pole and align it with the pockets as the engine moved forward. Many people hurt or killed when the poling pole shattered. Practice was used a lot in yard situations so the engine did not have to go back to a switch to move over a track to move a car.
Bingo, give the man a prize, I always wondered why those oval dish like pockets were on the locos and cars, These guy were Nuts. I was told about this the other day by a old Engineer and I thought he was full of it till I did a little research, Just Amazing and this went on till the 50’s Betcha OSHA would have a heart attack if that was still practiced today.
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/nicholas_savatgy/_forumfiles/pole.jpg)
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/nicholas_savatgy/_forumfiles/POLE2.jpg)
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/nicholas_savatgy/_forumfiles/POLE3.jpg)
Although outlawed the practice continues today in certain situations. I have seen it done as recently as three years ago on a short line. Crew got into a situation where a pole push was the only solution - They picked up an old plank from along the roadbed and used it to move a car. Later in that same move the used a chain to pull a car on the adjacent track. I have pictures but won’t post them - I don’t want anyone to get in trouble.
Oh, and the CVSRy, being exempt from AAR and OSHA rules, uses the practice often. Poles are conveniently staged in the yards for the crew to use.
If you look at pictures of old yard goats, you can see the hooks just under the edge of the tender where the poles were kept when not in use. I see the hooks modeled often, but not many know what they are for and don’t put a pole there. Somewhere I have some pictures of some. If they cracked, the shop would put iron bands around them to keep them together until such time they finally broke. I sure would not have wanted to be holding one when it let go. I wonder which caused more injuries over the years - poling or link & pin accidents?
Note also that some roads used special cars for this practice.
(http://prr.railfan.net/photos/kebaythumbs/S5_Poling_Car_No_data.jpg)
Note the pole mounted at the midpoint of the car below the man standing
In our scale, a pencil is often just about the right size if you want to give it a try … 
Not exactly poling, but I heard the story from a steam locomotive engineer once that has the same kind of “good grief!” factor:
There was a tourist railroad (long ago) that this engineer and some other folks from our place visited. The layout of the station involved a platform on the main track, and a parking lot behind it … there was a siding that split off from the main and went around the back side of the parking lot. The main line was somewhat upgrade to the facing point switch that this siding started at.
The locomotive in use was a Gas/Mech, along the lines of a 12 ton Plymouth or Vulcan … and the car being used was a steel heavyweight of some type.
The object of the game was, to move the locomotive to the other end of the passenger car in the absence of a passing track or a second available locomotive. So, a flying switch was set up … except that upgrade, there wasn’t enough “oomph” to fling the car into the siding … so a cable was used. The cable had a quick release at each end. It was also not really strong enough on the grade to accelerate the coach.
So, here’s how it was supposed to work: The Gas/Mech started out coupled to the coach. The locomotive would accelerate the coach up the grade toward the switch, where a switch tender was stationed. At speed, the engine was uncoupled, and ran out to the end of the cable. When the engine passed by the switch, the tender threw it, sending the car into the siding. The brakeman, as the car did this would pull the handle releasing the cable, and then set the brake on the car when it stopped. The engine could then run back through the switch, and couple to the opposite end of the car.
Simple, right?
Here’s what happened: Everything went as above up to the point that the engine ran out to the end of the cable, and it came tight … bending both quick release mechanisms beyond operability.
The next thing that happened was the locomotive went bouncing across the parking lot backwards with the engineer holding on for dear life and frantically honking the horn as the brakeman tried to wind up the handbrake …
I believe a few parked cars may have been in some jeopardy, but as the story went, no one was injured, fortunately.
Matthew (OV)
Now on a lighter note…
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/nicholas_savatgy/_forumfiles/push.jpg)
I think they call that a “grass-mechanical.” 
Later,
K
I really want to comment on your topic but I cannot Nick…
And just what did you think the ‘poling pockets’ were for? That is also the reason yard track spacing!
Paul
LOL Kevin … ! On a more serious tack … I think this is the modern version:
Kevin Strong said:
I think they call that a "grass-mechanical." ;)Later,
K
He he he he…
David Russell said:
I really want to comment on your topic but I cannot Nick…
David, Yes I know, I was trying to keep the thread clean. HE HE HE…
(http://freightsheds.largescalecentral.com/users/nicholas_savatgy/_forumfiles/pepper.gif)
E. Paul Austin said:
And just what did you think the 'poling pockets' were for? That is also the reason yard track spacing!Paul
Hi Paul,
I just play with Trains so I dont get to crazy with knowing what every part on them are, Besides before the other day
I thought those pockets were for the crew to rest there heads in while sunning themselves waiting for a passing train…
I don’t know…But I wish I could un-see it! 
looks like it replaced the pole arrangement but it also looks like a homemade mongrel
This site has a picture of it new…Doesn’t help it much!
http://www.newenglandrailfans.com/apps/photos/photo?photoid=73978940