Does anyone on the Central of Georgia net have any copies of the company approved watches for use by those employees required to carry one? I have the 1978 L & N regulations available.

-- C. N. Lloyd (cnl@alaweb.com), December 19, 1998

Answers

Myself, I also have yet to see any information concerning specific details of the Central's watch requirements. I do have a number of copies of regulations for other companies that subscribed to both the Ball and National Railway Time Service, in addition to Ball's regulations as printed in trade papers (watchmakers). I have the regulations of watches that Ball put out for the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy which were likely the same rules the Central observed as the time service companies used a uniform standard by the mid twentieth century. If you are interested in the applicable Ball regulations, e-mail me and I'll be happy to mail a copy of them as the regs are too lengthy to post.

As for specifics on the Central, there is unfortunately a high possibility that they do not exist anymore. An acquantence of mine was looking for similiar information concerning the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe's time service requirements. He happened to know the retired Chief Watch Inspector and called him just shortly after the gentleman's retirement. To his dismay, he learned that upon the man's retirement, the Time Service Department was closed and all of it's records destroyed by the company. That might well have happened to the Central.

Along other lines, I also have regulations for the L & N (1892) and the National Railway Time Service regs (7/01/41) for the following lines: Atlanta and West Point Rail Road Company, the Western Railway of Alabama, and the Georgia Railroad if anyone is interested.

-- Alan Walker (envlink@voyageronline.net), December 20, 1998.

The Central of Georgia Railway subscribed to the Ball Railway Time Service, of Chicago, IL, which set the standards for railroad watches for the its subscriber companies and oversaw the inspection and maintenance of the watches of the employees of those companies in train service.

I have never seen a booklet outlining the standards for watches on the Central. I believe, but am not certain, that the Ball organization put out one set of standards for all its member companies. I'd love to see the L&N standards you mention. As information, the NS standards are printed in the operating timetables along with a list of accepted watches.

Bob Hanson

-- Robert H. Hanson (RHanson669@aol.com), December 20, 1998.