I noticed on a track plan (Inyo & White Mountain RR) that one structure is identified as a “whistle stop platform.” I’ve heard the term “whistle stop” before, which to me means a place where a passenger train stops only if necessary, as when a passenger wants to get on or off the train.
Neverthless, railroad employee timetables I’ve studied don’t use that term, rather the term used is “flag stop.” I presume this term arose for flagging or otherwise signalling the train to stop.
So, which term is correct (I go with “flag stop”), and how did the term “whistle stop” arise?
Mark
Flag stop sounds good to me, too. Perhaps a “whistle stop” is when the Conductor pulled the signal cord, calling for the engineer to stop the train so an unruly passenger could be put off. [swg]
Wayne
It depended on where the passenger was, not whether he was obnoxious. If somebody on board wanted off, it was a whistle stop. If somebody at the passenger shelter wanted to board, he would hang out the flag (sort of like that on a rural mailbox, but bigger) and the train would stop at the, “Flag stop.”
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
From a railroad rules standpoint “flag stop” is correct. From a colloquial use standpoint you could use whistle stop. When you give the train a signal to stop, it should whistle to acknowledge the signal. Thus whistle stop. Just like main line vs. main track. Railroad rules use main track, non-railroad people talk about main line.
A flag stop in today’s parlance is one where a train may stop to discharge or recieve passengers, but it is not mandatory that the train stop if no business is present. Amtrak still uses flag stops.
In older parlance a flag stop meant “stop on signal” and the signal in question was most frequently wielded by the passenger wanting the train to stop. This could have been a flag, hence the term flag stop, or another device such as a push button activated light.
Whitle stop was derived from the idea that a Conductor could instruct the Engineer to start or stop the train by used of the on board communication, which when pressed, blew a small whistle in the cab of the locomotive.
Nowadays, whistle stop is more likely to be used in election campaign terms, such as a “Whistle Stop Tour”.
BTW, the book “Santa Fe, Steel Rails Through California” contains an excellent series of photographs of an elderly woman using a flag to stop a San Diegan at a flagstop.
I can’t find the photo. What page is it on?
While thumbing through the book, I found three photos (pages 53 with John Muir’s home in the left background, 105, and 159 with a view of state highway 4, now a six-lane freeway) of the steel viaduct trestle crossing Alhambra Valley, about two miles west of my home. The book variously describes the trestle as “one of many steel viaducts spanning the deep ravines between Stockton and Richmond,” “Muir trestle near Glen Frazer,” and “Franklin Canyon Trestle.” Nevertheless, it is the largest ATSF bridge in the area, it is in Martinez while Glen Frazer is a spot along the railway a couple miles west up Franklin Canyon, and Franklin Canyon runs parallel to the railway immediately west of the bridge. The fact is, the bridge crosses Alhambra Valley while Muir’s home (now owned by the US Park Service) is a stone’s throw from it. There are at least three tunnels in the immediate area. Short ones are at either end of the bridge and further west is a long one near Glen Frazer breaking through into the Pinole area.
At the immediate east end of the bridge was Muir Station. It burned down shortly before WWII and was never replaced. Does anyone have an old timetable that indicates whether this was a scheduled stop or a flag stop?
Mark
Don’t have the page right now…I am away from the book. I’ll look it up. Station was Encinitas, I believe.
I found it. It is on page 118. Actually, there are two pictures, one with Mrs. McDonald standing in the middle of the track with her white flag facing down an 80-mph train, with a lone female passenger standing nearby. Thanks!
Edit – Actually there is a third photo; this one showing Encinitas train time table. Beside the several trains nos., there are “R” and “F” codes, with R denoting “flag stop to receive passengers for LA” and F “denotes flag stop.” It also says “use white flag to stop trains.”
Mark
PS - I’ve driven a Shay locomotive and found that its acceleration was excellent due to its gearing. Although I didn’t attempt it (it wasn’t my railroad and was pulling a trainload of passengers), maximum speed (well below 30 mph) could have been reached in a matter of seconds.
Gulph Mills on the Pig & Whistle in SE Penna was a flag stop in off peak hours. You would push a button that illuminated a lunar light signal at the platform and signaled the car to stop. Used it many times.
Note the signal at the platform in each direction in the picture:
http://www.svmetro.com/projects/img/gulph-mills-001-1024px.jpg
Mark Pierce wrote:
“PS - I’ve driven a Shay locomotive and found that its acceleration was excellent due to its gearing. Although I didn’t attempt it (it wasn’t my railroad and was pulling a trainload of passengers), maximum speed (well below 30 mph) could have been reached in a matter of seconds.”
The comment is on an old T-shirt sold at one time many, many years ago in San Mateo and was intended at that time, and again now, for its humorous effect. I can’t speak for the accuracy or validity of it.