Re: 99 Years Ago April 29th on the SVRy

Railroad terminology can vary between railroads and regions of the country, and can be used in a generic yet corrupted way by those within and outside the railroad industry.

Related to this discussion, per the typical railroad rulebook a depot is almost always a station, a siding is almost always a station, but a station doesn't always have a depot or siding. As I mentioned before, the rulebook defines a siding. It also defines a station as "A place designated in the timetable." It makes no mention of requiring a station to include a depot or siding. This becomes very important when you apply the actual operating rules regarding the limits of authority. An authority of a train only extends from the last/leaving siding switch to the first siding switch, but not the main track in between switches. If a train was given a train order to run extra from Alder Springs to S-Wye then the extra train's authority would only extend from the east siding switch of Alder Springs to the west siding switch at S-Wye. Now if the order stated Hawley Spur, because it isn't a siding the limits would be the station sign. In all cases you would have to stay clear of a switch another train might use to enter or leave the main track.

In regards to S-Wye, it was more than likely within Yard Limits, and again many people confuse the rulebook definition of this. Yard Limits is a designated portion of the Main Track, the other tracks in the yard are Other Than Main Track unless one of them is a siding. Again, this is important as to the limits a train can move and when flag protection is required. It is possible for a dispatcher to indicate that a train use another track to make a meet, but unless one is specifically indicated, a train need only clear the main track without exceeding its movement authority. So can a train use a spur to clear the main - yes. Could a spur be designated as a "siding" in the timetable, yes but not likely though a branch was often used to meet trains. For example, the dispatcher might have known he was out of room and ordered a train to use one log of S-Wye to clear the main, and because it was within yard limits it would be easier to back in or back out assuming the train length kept it within yard limits as not to require flag protection.

The ticket is interesting. When I worked for Amtrak, I was assigned a ticket punch that was registered to me. On a train, you could tell who punched the ticket if there was any question. The most important use, at least in Amtrak's eyes, was during an audit if there was a cash fare ticket in the train pouch there had better be a corresponding copy of the ticket showing the cash was remitted to Amtrak by the conductor. Not turning in cash for tickets issued was an automatic "You're fired!" for stealing. Whiel the ticket might have been issued by the Sumpter agent, the same form would also have been used by the conductor to issues a cash fare. This might have been a two part ticket with a paper copy being submitted to S.S. Landis, General Freight and Passenger Agent who would then audit the agent or conductor's cash remittance. Notice nothing is actually written on the ticket, the puch pattern identifies who issued it.

The more obscure passenger stops without a manned depot probably were listed in the timetable as a flag stop.