TELEPHONE CIRCUIT

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Bluefield Daily Telegraph
January 20, 1912

THE GRAHAM DAILY NEWS
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TELEPHONE CIRCUIT
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Will be Used in Running Trains Along the Clinch Valley

The Western Union Telegraph Company has a force of wiremen here for the purpose of stringing a telephone circuit over the Clinch Valley from Graham to Norton for use by the Norfolk and Western.  The circuit will be used in conjunction with the telegraph instrument in running trains over the road.  This arrangement has been in use on the main line of the Pocahontas division for several years.  Telephone circuits have just been completed and installed by the railroad on the Simmons and Widemouth branches.  The 'phones are used principally for the transmission of train orders.  Message work is handled by the telegraph almost entirely.  It is claimed the railroad is having the additional facilities provided in order to be able to handle increased traffic over the Clinch Valley anticipated with the completion of the Cedar Bluff cut-off, which is only a few month off.  Railroad men here predict that the Clinch Valley between Graham and Cedar Bluff will be
 quite as important a piece of track when the connection is made with the Iaeger branch as any other section of the great Pocahontas division.
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Gordon Hamilton


August 21, 2011

Nice article, Gordon.  Does anyone know when telephone circuits were introduced on other divisions?  Also, did Western Union own the lines and equipment, or the N&W?

Good morning,

Frank Scheer
f_scheer at yahoo.com