Winston Salem District Signals

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Ben:
Prior to TC installation, the W-S district had 19 passing sidings from Roanoke
Terminal to North Winston which averaged 3574 feet in length.? There were
15 day telegraph offices plus Payne (24/7), so during the day, there was an
operator every 7.4 miles.? After TC, nine sidings were removed or shortened,
but seven passing sidings remained - Boone's Mill, Starkey, Henry, and
others.? They became designated "storage tracks" in the timetable.? What's
the significance of a storage track ?? I don't know.? Apparently N&W felt
it wasn't necessary to provide power switches and signaling for these short
sidings.? By 1972, the telegraph offices had been reduced from 15 to 9 and
that's how N&W got the economic justification to install traffic control.

As far as the signal at the north end of Henry being a controlled signal --
remember -- a train can pass a stop-and-proceed (or restricting) signal and
proceed at restricted speed.? North of the signal at Henry, there are?three
back-to-back 10 degree curves and then the ruling grade (1.53%) to Ferrum.
If you have a set of?pusher units returning light from Belews Creek with a one
man crew and it's following a train grinding up the hill, it's not exactly the
safest practice.? Remember the definition of restricted speed ?? "Able to?
stop?short of? etc., etc. etc."? It's probably as quick to hold?a train at the
bottom of Ferrum Hill than it is to allow it to follow at restricted speed. Safer too.

Henry had been home to Blue Ridge Paints.? It was one of eight companies that
supplied paint to N&W for hoppers.? After TC, apparently the signals at the
south end remained, but weren't able to display a "STOP" indication.? A
local doing "one-in, one-out" switching at Blue Ridge Paints would have had
to follow the procedure for passing a "STOP" indication.? That's one person's
interpretation.? I wish Henry Nase was still around.
???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Harry Bundy
????
?? 
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