Railroad Watches

Railroad watches include not only the antique railroad pocket watches but also Elgin, Hamilton, the Ball watch, and Illinois pocket watches among many others.

Historically speaking, the railroad pocket watch symbolized the Golden Age of American innovation and expertise. The safety of thousands of individuals in many ways depended entirely on the perfection and exactness of this particular timepiece. A two or three minute discrepancy between one engineer's watch and another several miles down the line could preclude a collision of monumental proportions (as in the tragic train crash of 1891).

Upon the heels of this tragedy and other close mishaps, a commission was formed to establish consistent standards to be administered by all railroads. Accurate timekeeping was essential to the railroads working safely, so in 1893 the General Railroad Timepiece Standards were adopted. Thus the Railroad Pocket watch was born--and became the epitome of engineering, durability, and accuracy.

Railroad watches are enjoying a renaissance today as many watch collectors and watch enthusiasts hearken to the precision, craftsmanship, and the romance of the railroad era that were captured in these antique pocket watches.

Here is an excerpt from watch collector, Barry Goldberg, describing the major developments and intricacies of this special watch:

"Many collectors feel that American watchmaking reached its pinnacle with the invention of the railroad watch. In an effort to meet the stringent and rigorous demands of the railroads, where the incorrect time could and did prove disastrous, American watchmakers were called upon to make a watch that was incredibly reliable and incredibly accurate -- far more so than any watch previously being manufactured. And they met the challenge! Following years of development, by the turn of the 20th century American watch factories were producing pocket watches of unsurpassed quality. Watches that would lose no more than 30 seconds per week. Watches that were specially adjusted to keep accurate time no matter what position in which they were held, and in both cold weather and hot. Watches where all the major wheels were jeweled in order to prevent wear from long hours, days, years and decades of constant use.

The main requirement for a railroad watch was, of course, that it be accurate. Throughout the twenty years from 1890 to 1910, the various railroads' watch standards evolved, demanding more stringent adherence to safety and good timekeeping principles. Although minor local differences remained, they became uniform enough such that the watch companies could build, at reasonable cost, both 18 size, and later 16 size, watches that would be accepted on any railroad. By the 1930's, however, only size 16 watches were approved, and these watches had to also have at least 19 jewels, be lever set, open face and adjusted to five positions, temperature and isochronism [i.e. the watch couldn't gain or lose time as the spring wound down].

In addition, many pocket watches that were officially approved were actually made to higher specifications than required for a "railroad grade" watch. Many companies produced extra fine railroad watches that had 21-23 jewels [sometimes more!], that were adjusted to six positions instead of just five, and even had extra "wind indicator" dials to let you know how much the watch was currently wound. These watches are especially prized by many collectors as being the absolute best of the best."

-- from The New Collector's Guide to Pocket Watches, © 2000 Barry S. Goldberg