Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

Robert McFarland
It sounds like Mr.Gilman was an employee or associated with the DSP&P.Mention should be made of Captain William Gray,who seems to be his partner and who ran the South Park(not to be confused with DSP&P)Eating House,which also is later mentioned as having been located at Weston.
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

ComoDepot
I remember some years back trying to track down Gilman, seems like he did work for the Railroad, and moved to BV due to his wife's health. From memory this was before 1885 when the Pacific Hotel Co took over.

My recollection was that there were 3 of them initially, some sort of partnership. I wondered if there was more than one Gilman, did not seem so but...

Could not work out how he was both a Railroad Employee, a conductor I think, and a Hotelier, did his wife actually run it?
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

John Schapekahm
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

ComoDepot
He went down to the Hot Springs with his wife in 1882 due to her health. In 1884 he moved from Deans to London Junction when working for the Railroad.

Does beg the question of what being a proprietor of several Eating Houses actually meant, the impression is that a Conductor job was more important.

Still not certain there were not 2 of them...

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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

John Droste
David,
what was the name of the railroad on the timetables dated 1884 that were found inside the section of wall which contained the ticket window?
Thanks,
John
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

ComoDepot
Rock ISland rings a bell, none were Colorado.
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

John Droste
Thank you David.
Rock Island does not sound familiar to me. I believe Bob had mentioned a different railroad.
I had thought Central Midland but I can`t find anything on that, except for a later railroad.
One historian of whom I have high regard told me that General Palmer had helped the Mexicans build a railroad by that name but I can`t find anything on it.
Did believe that it had the word Midland or Central in the name however.
Would you check and let me know, and if there were timetables from other railroads there as you suggest, the names of those too.

I am willing to spend the time looking for links. It will be through Palmer or Gould, I have that hunch at present.

Without my going searching, I thought Rock Island was around New York area!

John
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

John Droste
David,
just a quick look in wikipedia. The Rock Island had an interchange with the D&RG in Denver.
It does seem to give some creedence for the use of a TOB. Maybe.

I do wonder why the first photo of Como showing the Depot is thought to be 1883 considering that the Timetables were dated 1884, according to Bob Schoppe in the DSP&P group, 5th October 2014.

I wonder if this date was only an assumption!?

John
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

Chris Walker
This post was updated on .
John,
the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific reached Roswell (Nth Colorado Springs) in Oct 14th 1888 and used trackage rights over the D&RG to Denver. The CRI&P also obtained trackage rights over the UP(KC) line from Limon to Denver 1889.  Further reading of the attributions Tiv Wilkins states that the trackage rights over the D&RG were formerly relinquished in 1928  however the CRI&P had eliminated same from its track record in 1919 due to non-usage.
EDIT: source Colorado Railroads: Chronological Development  T. E. Wilkins.  Pruett Pub.1974 pg67

I am still contemplating a reply to your earlier post but how in heck do you visualise a bay window in one of the Como pictures?
UpSideDownC
in New Zealand
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: Train Order Boards and "Open Depots"

Chris Walker
In reply to this post by Jim Courtney
Jim, or Rick
can you enlighten me to the rationale behind the Beaver Brook TOB in your knowledge given that there was no passing track at Beaver Brook.   Any excursions to the Dance Pavillion would have to run up to Fork's to turn and stop on the way back unless there were more than one section needing to be "held".  I'm still swatting upon Rick's TO epoch and hope to have that understood soon.
UpSideDownC
in New Zealand
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

John Droste
In reply to this post by Chris Walker
It is the photo taken from the north.
The building is painted white or light grey and there is an electrical conduit attached the north wall, which came from the small building behind the depot. I will deal with that another day.
Yes, in the photo is a baggage trolley in front of the bay window. It should not be to hard to identify. The window glazing bars are just like London Junction`s and the bottom of the window is more or less the same hight as the trolley.
I am only describing this from memory now. You decide, does`nt bother me either way.

Regarding the Rock Island, wickepedia said that they interchanged with the D&RG, not the D&RGW. Loveland took over the D&RG in 1883, 'going on memory again', and had sold up or liquadated the D&RG by '1886?'

As I have pointed out a number of times before, I am not an expert on railroads. But I will look into the RockIsland matter further.
And as best I can, I am going to find out why it is thought that the first known photo of Como was taken in 1883. For obviously, with what I have come forward with and the 1884 Timetables and now the rock Island matter, it is worth asking the question, why 1883?

Andrea just bought two tickets to NZ for next March. Returns you will be pleased to hear. she is a Kiwi. Her aunty from Christchurch has planned a train ride for me within hours.

John
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: Train Order Boards and "Open Depots"

Doug Tagsold
In reply to this post by Chris Walker
A train order station is a location where the dispatcher, using the agent to copy his order and pass it on to the train crew, can give a train an order.  The train order board is the way the agent signals to the oncoming train that there is an order for that train.  IF the order board is set to red, the train crew knows they must pick up an order there before passing that location.  

Best timetable / train order practice was to give a train an order to meet another opposing direction train at a location "before" the place of the actual meet.  Example: A westbound train at Beaver Brook could possibly receive an order to meet an eastbound train at Idaho Springs at Forks Creek.  Both trains get a copy of this order before they arrived at Forks Creek.

The order would be written like this:

To: Extra 71 West at Beaver Brook
      Extra 70 East at Idaho Springs

      Extra 71 West meet Extra 70 east at Forks Creek

                                                       DPT (dispatchers initials)

Doug Tagsold
Blissfield, MI
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

Chris Walker
In reply to this post by John Droste
John,

I go to a lot of trouble to identify by attribution, add call numbers and link to each photo in all my posts.  Surely you could say exactly which one instead of relying on your memory, even if it was something like the "3rd picture" perhaps.  It's just not that hard to do you know and courteous too.

I still haven't worked out which "1890" picture of Como that you saw the TOB in yet.  Now I'll take another Punt on your "from the North" with the Bay Window " just like London Junction`s"

Is that what you see in this picture? A Bay Window?

from Park County Archives
UpSideDownC
in New Zealand
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: Train Order Boards and "Open Depots"

Chris Walker
In reply to this post by Doug Tagsold
Thank you Doug,  always nice to see  a new member too.
May I assume that in your hypothetical Order that the Extra 71 has already left Golden without knowledge of having a meet with the Extra 70?  and this is a change order, and the illustration of how such is handled?    
UpSideDownC
in New Zealand
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

John Droste
In reply to this post by Chris Walker
Yes Chris,
I should have been more considerate perhaps.
I am not sure what is going on there, thought it could be a "rack" on the end of the baggage cart but the vertical bars seem to go all the way to under the depot eaves. Way way above head hight to be loading up baggage that high.
What do you think is going on there? Look like London Junction window to you?

I have often wondered about the guy in the foreground facing the camera, hands seem to be in pockets. Who is he?
I believe that I have seen him in several photos. With his foot on the pilot plow of the 209 in front of the Pacific Hotel. Walking in front of the camera away from the engine that seems to be derailed on the second or third track in front of the depot. Also in another show in front of the depot near the 'vestibule.'
He must have been the station master or something?
Seems to have a similar stance in each photo.
Don`t ask me to find the photos. The one where the engine seems derailed is in the DPL, I remember. Snow on the ground.

John
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: Train Order Boards and "Open Depots"

John Droste
In reply to this post by Doug Tagsold
Doug,
when I get that far and I am having train operating sessions between my Denver D&RG station and the same building in Como, I will try to devise a train order board system to go with it. Denver South Park & Rio Grande RR. I am building in dual gauge so could even have some Rock Island stuff. Somebody in the P48 group is selling same at this present moment. But I`m broke at the moment.

John
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

Chris Walker
This post was updated on .
In reply to this post by John Droste
John Droste wrote
Yes Chris,
I should have been more considerate perhaps.
I am not sure what is going on there, thought it could be a "rack" on the end of the baggage cart but the vertical bars seem to go all the way to under the depot eaves. Way way above head hight to be loading up baggage that high.
What do you think is going on there? Look like London Junction window to you?

I have often wondered about the guy in the foreground facing the camera, hands seem to be in pockets. Who is he?
I believe that I have seen him in several photos. With his foot on the pilot plow of the 209 in front of the Pacific Hotel. Walking in front of the camera away from the engine that seems to be derailed on the second or third track in front of the depot. Also in another show in front of the depot near the 'vestibule.'
He must have been the station master or something?
Seems to have a similar stance in each photo.
Don`t ask me to find the photos. The one where the engine seems derailed is in the DPL, I remember. Snow on the ground.

John

Nope, no way do I see a Bay Window.  
It looks like behind the end-racks of the Baggage wagon which only go to about head-height by the way, there is no Stormcloset over the first door as we see in the last years of operation, thus Door/Window/Door/Window in quick succession just like was shown from the opposite direction in the Greg Kazel collection photo, the 4th picture of Como in the First Post of this thread.

I thought you knew the Como Depot better than anyone-else?

and I bring your attention to an edit to the info in this previous post concerning your CRI&P questions.
http://c-sng-discussion-forum.41377.n7.nabble.com/Desperately-Seeking-Signals-The-Saga-Of-The-Train-Order-Board-tp6678p6744.html

As for Depot Loungers, there are a hundred ways of striking a pose waiting for a train and they all look the same, except at 2AM.  The glare of the Headlight at that time seems to make them shy away.

I think I am at risk of belabouring the point here, so the last time.

John Droste Wrote: Sorry, but I could not understand the significance of presenting the image of the Union Station and the German House!
I posted Mal's picture as an illustration of the very first signals controlling the 19th Street crossing.  If anyone else has a photo of such early signals I'd very much like to see same.
This is the first such Early West picture I have seen of such signals.  Note these are the forerunners of Semaphores of the types we know today but Paddle boards with a lamp.  
In both photos presented of 19th Street, there are a number of key features that were cross-checked by the Sanborn Map.
The lodging establishment is the actually the "Sherman House", and shows in both pictures, serves as a "locator", to key the intersection into both pictures and the Map for the viewer.


Another major facet of the inclusion was to show the distance from the 19th St. to the Tower of the new Union Depot where WHJ took the photo of 19th and Wynkoop.  
I also included the WHJ picture of #42 on the Kenosha grade with Webster in the background and an enlargement of the Webster Depot in the valley below.
I've used Google Earth to find that the distance in the Webster picture is some 1400-1500 feet away depending where on the curve above the valley the Mason Bogie was stopped, and from the Centre of Union Station to the corner of Wynkoop and 19th is just under 1000 feet.  
My eyes easily spotted the TOBoard on the Webster Depot, but can't make out any signals in the UP/KC/D&RG trackage in the background NOR any type of Signal on the end of the building you're claiming to be the prescient Como Depot.
At this distance one can clearly see the Stovepipe on the building roof, the diameter of which couldn't be any more than 12inch most likely 9inch.  
If you look at all the trackside pictures of a TO Board presented at in the initial post of the thread, correlate the size of the banner or paddles against the Brick Chimneys present on such Depots and the distance above the ground in relation to the track.

Railroad Signals are by design, of proportions sufficent to ensure Clear and Concise indications are presented to the Train crew.  These must be able to be recognized at some distance to permit safe operation, after all that is why Signals were developed.


John Droste Wrote:
On the other hand, I do believe this is a TOB in this photo
I do not take it as a coincidence that I would find what looks like a Station order board in the location where I was expecting to find it.
Although I accept that the railroads in question did not have TOB`s along country stations for some time. I do have to question procedures in Denver.
Could it perhaps be that the TOB as I see it in Denver was not to divert trains into the spur but to stop trains on the 3 rail in Wynkoop Street?


I really must be blunt here and say you're grasping at straws perhaps imagining this Signal based on the fact that these were indeed most common, a defining icon of narrow gauge Depots that every model railway has.  You desperately need to see the signal to back up your theory therefore it must be there.
Both Rick Steele and Jim Courtney have provided descriptive narratives to my photo essay on the exact use of the TO system, something I can't relate to as it wasn't used here as such, a system that was the forerunner to the modern Track Warrant Control to which I drove trains under.

We have tried to point out that there seems to be no rationale behind the location and for use of a signal that you see.
Can you explain just how this fits into operation as you see it given for at least the next 5 years there won't be any out on the DSP&P, CC and D&RG lines in the very places that this type of Signal was invented for.

Plain and simply put, your vision is just a bit ahead of the times.

Good Night.
UpSideDownC
in New Zealand
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

ComoDepot
In reply to this post by Chris Walker
In that photo the Depot has lost the platform, has a metal roof and the chimneys are missing a few layers of brick. Also look at the syle of clothing.

Post 1910.
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: Train Order Boards and "Open Depots"

Doug Tagsold
In reply to this post by Chris Walker
That would be a correct assumption.  Speaking for "extra" trains, the initial running order they receive would be an order like this:

To: Engine 71 at Denver at Denver

Engine 71 Run Extra Denver to Silver Plume
   
                                                   DPT



By the rules, a train's initial running order is from their originating point to their terminating point.  Additional orders setting up a meet with another train can be given with the original running order, or can be given later at an intermediate train order station, when the dispatcher has a better idea of where the two trains should meet without causing either one a major delay.

Doug Tagsold
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Re: Desperately Seeking Signals: The Saga Of The Train Order Board

John Droste
In reply to this post by Chris Walker
Well Chris,
it seems that I do not know the Depot as well as you do.
Congratulations to you.
John
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