![]() ![]() From that day on, I knew I'd have to have one of those wonderful watches, and that like my grandfather, and father, I would be a CPR man one day.īut where did those watches come from, and why? As most know, the great North American railroad watch became an institution after a fatal crash in 1891, which was caused in part by the stopping and then restarting of the engineer's watch, which caused it to be 4 minutes slow. What really caught my attention at the time was the engineer's big gold pocket watch, firmly attached to his bib overalls, and how he explained to me how important that watch was to keeping his train running safely. What a thrill to be lifted up into the inner sanctum of the cab and sat down upon the right hand seat. ![]() ![]() I can still remember standing next to those giant driving wheels, amidst the swirl of steam and the smell of coal smoke, as my grandfather introduced me to those gods of steam, then engineer and the conductor. I can remember, as a young boy, being taken by my grandfather to see the train coming in at Windsor Station in Montreal. When one thinks of the glory days of railroading, there are two images that inevitably come to mind, those of the steam locomotive, and the conductor with his gold pocket watch.
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