Signals
Dutchess Rail Trail sign about train signals . CLICK HERE for larger view
Train engineers need to know if the tracks ahead are clear. In the 1800s men were
hired to stand at intervals on the tracks, known as blocks, and use a stopwatch to
determine the time between trains, and then signal the oncoming train to slow down or
stop if needed. They went from using hand and arm signals to using flags and lanterns.
Ed Ross cartoonist
Beacon Historical Society Collection
Courtesy of B.L. Rudberg
This did not always work, as there was no way the watchmen could know what was
happening past where they could see. Things improved in the mid 1800s with the use of
fixed mechanical signals and communication through telegraph.
The most common mechanical signal is the
semaphore signal. A semaphore is a tower
with a pivoted arm or blade that can be
inclined at different angles. A horizontal arm is
the most restrictive indication, meaning danger
or caution. To enable trains to run at night in
the 1800s, a permanently-lit oil lamp provided
the lighting for colored lenses on the arm that
altered the color of the light. The driver,
therefore, had to learn one set of indications
for daytime viewing and another for nighttime
viewing. The arms were controlled by a system
of pulleys and wires so the signal could be
controlled from a distance, such as from a
signal tower. Automatic signals were installed
on the entire Maybrook Line by 1926.
Example of an early semaphore
Photo: Dave Newell
To the left you can see a semaphore in use on the Maybrook Line
Collection of B.L. Rudberg
The introduction of electric light bulbs made it possible to produce color light signals,
which were bright enough to be seen during daylight. The signal in the photos below
was used to communicate with westbound trains to let them know if they had to stop,
use the passing siding, or proceed. Passing sidings are low speed tracks which are
parallel to a through line and allow trains traveling in opposite directions to pass. There
was a passing siding between the east side of the Poughkeepsie Railroad Bridge and
the North Grand Avenue crossing.
Pre-restoration, “search light” signal
made by the General Railway Signal
Company of Rochester, N.Y., c. 1945
Restored CP-Grand Signal Lights, c. 2011
Photo: Dutchess County Department of Planning and
Development
Photo: Dutchess County
The CP-Grand (Control Point – Grand Avenue) signal could show four indications.
Originally the signal had the two high signals, as it does now, and a “dwarf” signal much
lower to the ground. Red on all lights meant STOP, and the train could not pass without
permission from the Maybrook Train Dispatcher. Red on the two high signals and yellow
on the dwarf signal meant that the passing siding was to be used, but the engineer
should be prepared to stop at the next signal. A yellow top signal, red on the second
signal and red on the dwarf signal meant that the main line was to be used, but the
engineer should be prepared to stop at the next signal. The All Clear signal was green
at the top, red on the second and red on the dwarf signal. This told the engineer to
proceed on the main line at normal track speed to the next signal, located on the east
side of the Poughkeepsie Railroad Bridge.
These restored signal lights, turned back on for the first time in almost 30 years, mean,
“Approach on the main track, but be prepared to stop at Morgan Lake.”
For more information:
Twenty Five Years On The N D & C, Bernard L. Rudberg
Hopewell Junction, A Railroaders’ Town, B. L. Rudberg
kinglyheirs.com
rrstuff.com
dutchessny.gov