The early days of the American Industrial Revolution were filled with hope. The country was growing and advancing, the future looking bright ahead. With this new period of industrialization came the railroad. Admittedly, it was not a perfect system. There were many catastrophes on the rails. Lives, cargo and property was damaged or lost. The worst of the crashes occurred at Kipton, OH in April 1891. Killing eight people, this wreck was the catalyst that would change the way railroads kept time, ultimately changing time standards for all of the U.S.
After the Kipton crash, the railroad realized it was necessary to enact some changes regarding the way in which railroads and railroad workers kept accurate time. many of the crashes that had occurred, up to this point, might have been avoided if it were not for faulty timepieces.
By 1893, Mr. Webb C. Ball had put the new standards in motion, creating the Railroad Pocket Watch. Many other watchmakers would follow suit, creating watches that met these new standards. By 1908, nearly all pocket watches included the following specifications:
• American Made; foreign pocket watches were not acceptable for various reasons.
• The winding stem was to be placed in the 12 o’clock position.
• Open-faced.
• The dial had to be white with black Arabic numerals and designations for each minute.
• Each Railroad Pocket watch had to keep accurate time within +/- 30 seconds per week.
• Temperature compensated to handle extreme differences in temperature often encountered by those working the railway.
• Size 16 or 18.
• Must contain 17+ Jewels.
• Adjusted to 5 positions and contain a lever set.
• Components included Swiss movements: Double roller, patented regulator and steel escape wheel
A list of acceptable pocket watch brands was compiled and those working the railroad were required to carry one of these at all times. they were subject to regular inspection and failure to adhere to these standards would often result in harsh punishments, including job loss.
Aside from the pocket watch standards, the railroad set up time zones as an added precaution. These same time zones would later be officially adopted by the United States.
The Railroad Pocket Watch standards did help to substantially decrease train accidents. While these events still occurred, even to this day, the railroad was successful in preventing those which happened simply due to inaccuracies in timekeeping.
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