Contact information for more than 20,000 officials in the freight railroad, rail transit and rail supply industries. The new collectors 1 guide to pocket watches a brief history of timekeeping for much of human history, precise timekeeping simply wasnt that big of a deal. During the middle ages most heavy or bulky items were carried by water wherever possible. Railroad pocket watches o gauge railroading on line forum. Railroad pocket watches old pocket watches, railroad. This illinois hunter case pocket watch was special for a railroad company. The romance of the railroad adds value to the railroad.
Precision was now needed in this enormous industry. A large number of pocket watch collectors focus on railroad watches. The watch ticks for a while and then stops, needs servicing. I wanted to replace my swiss army pocket watch, which died after 20 years of hard use and is no longer made. Keep the nostalgia of railroad travel alive with your own hamilton pocket watch. The specific definition of railroad grade evolved quite a bit over the years. Immediate download and read free of charge encyclopedia of western railroad history book by clicking the web link above. Good pocket watches of high accuracy became badges of office for railroaders. Mintz believes railroad watches are more popular than regular pocket watches. First manufactured in 1893 for the railroad worker, its precision and accuracy exceeded the strict guidelines set for the industry. A quick reference cyclopedia of railroad information.
Hamilton 992b railroad pocket watch, hamilton railway special. When you shop for reasonably priced railroad pocket watches for sale on ebay, you. Having always been interested in trains, and in mechanical timepieces, this is a topic of considerable interest to me. But leversetting disappeared when watches moved to the wrist. A well maintained and adjusted watch kept in a fixed location at room temperature can reach accuracies normally only seen with quartz watches. A railroad employee bought the finest he could afford. Railroad pocket watches by gadfly thu dec 06, 2012 6. The longines railroad pocket watch longines media center. Hamilton grade 992b vintage railroadgrade pocket watch, 16 size, 21 jewels, chrome fully engraved case pmtime 4. The soothing, steady sway of motion rocks you to sleep as the train rushes down the tracks.
The railroad was incorporated in 1859, most of the financing for the project came from county government in san francisco, san mateo and santa clara counties following a threecounty election in 1861. The 16size watch has 23 jewels, motor barrel 1634902, and was adjustable to five positions. From there you need to dig into the history of the specific railroads to locate present owners and determine whether employee records still exist for. Railroad pocket watches archives the pocket watch guy. Antique hamilton grade 992 16s 21j railroad pocket watchruns great. Pocket watches for sale antique and vintage railroad. American history and world history can be found at historycental historys home on the web. Two trains, because of an engineers faulty timepiece, collided near cleveland, ohio with 9 casualties. Gold 1921 elgin bw raymond railroad grade 19 jewel pocket watch large 16s nice. Aside from the fact that there wasnt any way to keep accurate time thousands of years ago, there simply wasnt the need to do so. Great testimonies have actually been given for the encyclopedia of western railroad history book. A quality timepiece was an inseparable component of the uniform. This case would be great for 16 size hamilton 992bs, 950.
A railroad chronometer or railroad standard watch is a specialized timepiece that once was crucial for safe and correct operation of trains in many countries. The romance of the railroad adds value to the railroad pocket watch. Shop forand learn aboutantique railroad pocket watches. Following the disaster, a commission was appointed to adopt a universal set of timekeeping standards by all railroads. More than a century ago already, the swiss watchmaking brand longines brought its name and experience to the adventure of the railroad. Download pocket trains and enjoy it on your iphone, ipad, and ipod touch. Collect parts to construct all the different train types from steamers to diesels, and complete daily events to unlock special trains beyond imagination. Researching old railroad records to find family members. The earliest railroads reinforced transportation patterns that had developed centuries before.
A lesserknown longines tool watch, the rr280 pictured left provides a fascinating window into the world of railroad watches its development and evolution from late 19th century up until the mid20th. There are lots of books on business and investing book and also in the other categories. The hamilton 992b railroad pocket watch, hamilton railway special the hamilton grade 992b is a high quality antique mechanical pocket watch. Railroad pocket watches had to be accurate to keep trains on time, and you can stay on time when you use an antique railroad pocket watch.
The hamilton watch company made this model 950 railroad conductors watch around 1918. Your subscription to the pocket list of railroad officials includes. Free download encyclopedia of western railroad history. Railroads were at the forefront of the effort to standardize timekeeping in the late 1800s. Stop reading and start constructing your railroad empire in pocket trains. That is, until now, with the introduction of vortics railroad edition.
Research our special sections on diverse subjects ranging from presidential elections to naval history. I thought the gotham was a less expensive quartz watch that had the look of a railroad time piece. Beginning of a dialog window, including tabbed navigation to register an account or sign in to an existing account. These watches, generally made after 1900, often feature a pushlever setting, easytoread numbers, and a beautiful design. While millions of railroadquality watches were sold, the number was small in relation to the approximately 275 million pocket watches made in america. Among the brand names of railroad grade watches celebrated among railroaders. Hamilton model 950 pocket watch national museum of. Railroad grade pocket watches explained the vortic blog. Collecting railroad pocket watches few images are more iconic of the golden age of american railroading than that of the train conductor dutifully checking his pocket watch. Their high value and prestige, coupled with, in many instances, lower production. Pocket watch chains meant for utility pocket watches like railroad watches, for the most part, dont make much of a statement. Original hamilton railroad yellow gold filled bar over crown 16 size pocket watch case with glass crystal. As only one train can operate on a line of track, a train needs to own or buy purchased lines. A railroad grade pocket watch is simply a watch that was approved by a particular railroad organization for use by conductors on their rail.
Delving into the rich heritage of its long history, it presents the longines railroad pocket watch, a steel pocket watch inspired by the railroad models produced at the time of the railways expansion. From the creators of pocket planes comes pocket trains. On april 19, 1891, a great train disaster occurred that would forever change timekeeping on the railroad. Dealing in pocket watches for 20 years, mintz said he likes the style and the industrial history connected to the pocket watch and the fact they are older than most wrist watches. From the creators of pocket planes and tiny tower comes pocket trains. And, contrary to common belief, there were many regulations in place before webb c. Explore our complete time lines of major events in american history as well as world history. Historical maps and published histories can then help you to identify what railroad lines ran through that area at the time.
Where natural interconnection among navigable rivers was lacking, gaps in trade were likely to develop, most notably at watersheds. Manage and grow multiple railroads by hauling important cargo around the world. Seikos macvsog wristwatches in vietnam 19681972 duration. All the great american watch companies including waltham, illinois, elgin, hamilton among them responded with railroad pocket watches that had this feature. This was one of the most popular 16 size 21 jewel railroad watches. Railroad pocket watches collectible pocket watches. The first railroad in california, the sacramento valley railroad, began hauling ore, food, goods and passengers between folsom and the river docks in sacramento in 1856.
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