Railroad-grade lever pocket watch built to Ball's inspection specification · United States
Ball Official Railroad Standard Watches (representative series)
Partially verifiedWebb C. Ball established time-service inspection systems for American railroads following the 1891 Kipton, Ohio train collision attributed partly to a stopped watch, and the Ball name became closely associated with the resulting railroad-grade specification rather than being itself a manufacturer of movements.
Technical facts
- Specification
- Typically 17+ jewels, adjusted to temperature and multiple positions, lever-set, per the general railroad standard
- Movement sources
- Commonly Hamilton, Hampden, Waltham and Illinois, among others, depending on period
Historical significance
- Webb C. Ball established time-service inspection systems for American railroads following the 1891 Kipton, Ohio train collision attributed partly to a stopped watch, and the Ball name became closely associated with the resulting railroad-grade specification rather than being itself a manufacturer of movements.
- Because Ball-branded watches used movements from several different manufacturers built to Ball's specification, any individual example's manufacturer, grade and specification should be confirmed from the movement itself rather than assumed from the Ball name on the dial.
Sources & references
- NAWCC Bulletin, articles on Ball Watch Company and railroad time-service history
- Ball Watch Company, published historical inspection-rule material
Where sources disagree, the disagreement is stated rather than resolved silently.