High to all,
When did railroads start using Rule 17 lighting ? Was it in the deisel era or early steam ?
Just curios, Truck.
Rule 17 appears in Peter Josserand’s Rights of Trains, a 1959 rewrite of a 1907 original. The original rule almost certainly dates from the 19th century.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Rule 17 presumably changed at some point (It is the rule that mandates a headlight to be displayed, and specifies when it is to be dimmed). I have read criticisms of some model photos that show a steam locomotive’s headlight on in broad daylight. The original Rule 17 referred to headlights having to be on only at night. At some point, perhaps the transition era, the rules changed to mandate a headlight on during the day as well.
I am not sure how the dimming aspect of Rule 17 worked in the steam era before the headlights were electrical.
I recall someone running a photo of a steam locomotive in Trains magazine that pretty clearly showed the headlight on a steam locomotive during the day – but it was revealed in the caption that this was actually an incredible coincidence of a double exposed negative where the light from one exposure just happened to be exactly where the headlight was on the second exposure.
Dave Nelson
Here’s an example of an earlier version of rule 17, from the Santa Fe’s 1927 Rules and Regulations, Operating Department:
"17. The headlight will be displayed to the front of every train by night. It must be concealed or extinguished when a train turns out to meet another and has stopped clear of main track, or is standing to meet a train at the end of double track or junctions. It must be dimmed while standing in stations where yard engines are employed.
“17(A). When an engine is running backward a white light must be displayed by night on the rear of the tender.”
The illustration accompanying 17(A) in the book shows that this rule could be satisfied by use of a white lantern.
Also note the rule for yard engines:
“18. Yard engines will display the headlight to the front and rear by night. When not provided with a headlight at the rear, a white light must be displayed. Yard engines will not display markers.”
Notice that no mention is made of turning the headlight on or off depending on the direction of travel, an artifact of model railroading.
I believe rule 18 was changed because I never seen a yard engine without its lights on…I know when I worked as a yard brakeman on the PRR the lights was on and dimmed when we took a break regardless if it was day or night…