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Railroad Lamps
Railroad lamps are distinguished from lanterns by both
function and design. Lamps were generally intended to be stationary,
were generally made of a sheet metal or cast metal body, and used lenses
to amplify light from an interior light source. Lanterns were designed
to be portable and used globes which were surrounded by a metal frame.
A wide variety of different lamps were used by the railroads, including
semaphore lamps, classification lamps, train order lamps, bridge lamps,
marker lamps, and switch lamps. This page provides a brief look at some
of major lamp types used by railroads. Note that you can also find pictures
of lamps in our historical catalog pages -- see
Library -- and a brochure on lamp
maintenance.
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| Above Left. An Adams & Westlake Model #270
marker lamp marked "G.N. Ry." for the Great Northern Railway.
This type of lamp was usually used on the caboose at the rear of
the train. Above Center. An Adams & Westlake Model #169
switch lamp with a bellbottom base and marked for the Union Pacific
Railroad. Note the two narrow cylinders coming up from the base,
which indicates that this lamp was attached to the switch stand by
a "fork mounting". Above Right. A train order lamp
made by Adams & Westlake and marked O.E. Ry. for the Oregon Electric,
an interurban operation. The train order lamp had two lenses on opposite
sides of the lamp body. |
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Above Left. An Adams & Westlake
semaphore lamp. Although this particular example represents a common
style of semaphore lamp used by North American railroads, it was
actually used in Argentina, having been manufactured under patent
arrangements by a British company. Generally semaphore lamps had
one lense. Photo courtesy of Luis Paupy. Above Center. A
classification lamp marked for the New York Central Railroad. This
may have been used either on a locomotive or tender.Photo courtesy
of Mike and Julia. Above Right. A
lamp which resembles a small semaphore lamp with a single amber
lens and marked for the Union Pacific. The small size of this lamp
and the amber lens suggests that it was a slow-order lamp used
to indicate work at trackside. Update: A former Canadian
Pacific employee emailed us with the following: " I
suggest it is probably a Yard Limit sign lamp as ones almost identical
to the one pictured were used on the CPR for that purpose. When
I was a boy the CPR finally installed block signals on the transcontinental
mainline through my home town of Salmon Arm, B.C. and after that
the Board of Transport allowed them to remove the oil lamps from
the Yard Limit signs but there use continued where there was no
block signal system e.g. branch lines, secondary mailines. The Yard
Limit sign was a yellow. diamond-shaped sign with "yard limit'" in
large letters and a circular hole behind which the single
lens yellow lamp was mounted and through which the light shone. It
stood on a metal post about head high. Of course the specific style
varied from railway to railway." [Thanks to Doug Turner] |
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| Above Left. A marker lamp manufactured
by Dressel with a tag marked "B.& O. R.R." for the
Balitimore & Ohio Railroad. Some railroads painted marker
lamps safety yellow rather than the traditional black color. Above
Center. A crossing gate lamp manufactured by Dressel.
Photo courtesy of Bill Tarbox. Above Right. An
unusual Canadian Pacific Switch lamp made by Piper. Photo
courtesy of Lakeside Antiques, Kaslo, B.C. |
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