Old Time Trains

Telegraph Call Signals

The earliest way to identify each point along a line was by a two letter alphabetic code. These letters would be sent over the wire by one telegrapher to another to call his attention to a pending message. These codes were indicated in the employee time table. Further letter indicated when the station was open for train order purposes. D= Day N=Night and meant both afternoon and night shifts. If a station did not have a code it was not manned by a train order operator. Such stations were often just flag stops that were looked after by a caretaker, usually a local person paid part time to show up ahead of train time to unlock the station for passengers and/or accept small LCL shipments or just to keep the place clean.

JU Junction (West) Toronto Depot

JD Junction Diamond

J Lambton Yard Office

Interestingly, when teletype circuits were installed in the early 1950's to transmit train consists, these same two letter codes were used between yard offices all across the system. Lambton Yard Office became JU. Parkdale Yard Office was RK.

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Old Time Trains © 2009

Telegraph Call Signals

The earliest way to identify each point along a line was by a two letter alphabetic code. These letters would be sent over the wire by one telegrapher to another to call his attention to a pending message. These codes were indicated in the employee time table. Further letter indicated when the station was open for train order purposes. D= Day N=Night and meant both afternoon and night shifts. If a station did not have a code it was not manned by a train order operator. Such stations were often just flag stops that were looked after by a caretaker, usually a local person paid part time to show up ahead of train time to unlock the station for passengers and/or accept small LCL shipments or just to keep the place clean.

JU Junction (West) Toronto Depot

JD Junction Diamond

J Lambton Yard Office

Interestingly, when teletype circuits were installed in the early 1950's to transmit train consists, these same two letter codes were used between yard offices all across the system. Lambton Yard Office became JU. Parkdale Yard Office was RK.