The Railroad Watch

A number of families in Delmar have their grandfather’s railroad watch tucked away in their memorabilia.  Back in the day when there was more than one train an hour going down a single track it was important that the conductor (who was in charge of the train) be aware of the schedule of the others trains using the track.  At certain times he had his train pull off on a siding so another train could go by.  His watch had to be accuracy or an accident would result.  In 1891 Near Cleveland Ohio a faulty conductor’s watch stopped for four minutes resulting in a train collision that killed eleven.  As part of the investigation the railroad hired Webb C. Ball to investigate watches used on the rail road, he found there was no standard and the condition and accuracy of watches varied greatly.  The result was the adoption of the 1893 General Railroad Timepiece Standards.  This standard changed over the years but generally the minimum was it had to be a pocket watch, Be open face, Plain white dial, bold black hands, and bold Arabic numbers, Have the winding stem at 12 o'clock, Have a minimum of 17 jewels, a double roller, steel escape wheel, micrometric regulator and grade on back plate, Temperature compensated for 34 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and Keep time accurately to within a gain or loss no more than 30 seconds a week. 

The pocket watch size had to be an 18 or 16 based on the Lancashire Gauge. 

The watches were made by a number of companies, all American, that used the standard.   It would not be until 1936 when tariffs were reduced that Swiss watches would be used.  The main American Watch companies used were the Ball Watch company, the Illinois Watch Company, the American watch company, the Elgin National Watch company  and the Hamilton watch company.

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