A railroad watch is a timepiece built to meet railway requirements. It matters because one faulty watch could cause a crash, as one did at Kipton, Ohio, in 1891. After that, the rules on accuracy, jewels, setting and dial layout became the norm across most American railroads.
Where it comes from
Waltham and Elgin watches were already in railway service in the 1860s and 1870s. In 1887 the American Railway Association met and drew up a mostly uniform list of requirements. On 19 April 1891 two trains collided head-on at Kipton, Ohio, and several people were killed. One conductor’s watch had stopped for four minutes, and that delay led to the crash. Afterwards the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad made Webb C. Ball, of Cleveland, its chief time inspector. By 1893 most American railroads had adopted the standards.
What makes a watch railroad grade?
The rules covered the movement, accuracy, setting and the dial. Before 1895 the movement needed at least 15 working jewels. After that, it needed at least 17. The watch could gain or lose no more than 30 seconds between weekly checks. That is roughly 4 seconds a day. The time was changed with a lever, not the crown, so the watch could not be set to the wrong time by accident. The dial had to be open-faced. After 1908 the stem also had to sit at 12 o’clock.
Not to be confused with
A railroad watch is not simply a good pocket watch. A high jewel count alone did not qualify it. A hunting-case watch without lever setting was refused for railroad service, even with 21 jewels. The open face and the lever setting were as much a part of the standard as the movement inside. A fine movement in the wrong case, or one set from the crown, did not pass.
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