Operations - Train Orders

I just got a small stack of NH train orders which provides some insight to the era. All of them at Berlin, CT. 

Order No. 162

Dec 21, 1942

To C+E Eng 3013 at Berlin

Eng 3013 run extra New Britain to Plainville

Complete 1.06 AM

Order No. 20

Dec 21, 1942

To C+E 3010 at Berlin

Eng 3010 run extra Berlin to North Haven

Complete 7.53 PM

Order No. 22

Dec 21, 1942

To C+E 3011 at Berlin

Eng 3011 run extra Berlin to North Haven

Complete 8.34 PM

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Order No. 111

Dec 28, 1942

To C+E Eng 356 and 3010 at Berlin

Eng 356 run extra New Britain to Westfield

Complete 3.29 AM

Order No. 112

Dec 28, 1942

To C+E Eng 3011 at Berlin

Eng 3011 run extra New Britain to Plainville

Complete 6.19 AM

Engine number 3010 is addressed in the first order, presumably they received their own orders as well. Engine 356 is a K-1 mogul, so I doubt it's double-heading with 3010, but it also seems odd that a Mogul would be working at 3.29 AM. 

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Order No. 108

Dec 29, 1942

To C+E Eng 3008 at Berlin

Eng 3008 run extra New Britain to Westfield

Complete 3.53 AM

Order No. 111

Dec 29, 1942

To C+E Eng 3010 at Berlin

Eng 3010 run extra New Britain to Plainville

Complete 6.11 AM

Order No. 35

Dec 29, 1942

To C+E Eng 3012 at Berlin

Eng 3012 run extra Berlin to North Haven

Complete 4.48 PM

Order No. 38

Dec 29, 1942

To C+E Eng 3008 at Berlin

Eng 3008 run extra Berlin to North Haven

Complete 7.32 PM

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Order No. 28

Hartford February 1, 1943

To C+E Eng 3013 West at Berlin

X C+E Eng 3008 West

Restricted speed over Cherry Street crossing

Third crossing West of Meriden Station account gates broken

Complete 6.31 PM

Order No. 30

Hartford February 1, 1943

To C+E Eng 3008 at Berlin Conn

Eng 3008 run extra Berlin to North Haven

Complete 6.29 PM

All of these are on Cedar Hill to Holyoke (NY-x) or the reverse (YN-x) with J-1 Mikado locomotives as power. The Form 19 form number is From 1314-1.

The Superintendent is WHB

The Train Dispatcher is (illegible), EWR, HFR (might be HSR) or RHC

3008 and 3010 are on more trains, obviously with a very small sample size, but if/when I get to modeling the J-1s, these may be the two I build.

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One oddity is the train order numbers themselves. According to Rule 203 "The orders must be numbered consecutively each day, beginning at midnight." This is the rule in every NH Book of Rules I have, from 1907 to 1956.

But you'll note that in multiple examples above that it appears that's not followed:

Dec 21, 1942

1.06 AM - Order No 162

7.53 PM - Order No 20

Dec 28, 1942

3.29 AM - Order No 111

6.19 AM - Order No 112

Dec 29, 1942

3.53 AM - Order No 108

6.11 AM - Order No 111

4.48 PM - Order No 35

7.22 PM - Order No 38

In all cases it appears that the sequence restarts at some point in the morning. Perhaps when the first trick starts at 8.00 AM?

Another question that is raised is that all of these orders are listed At Berlin. But Berlin it not listed in the Employee Timetable under "Day Train Order, Block and Interlocking Stations Open" which would imply it is not a Day Train Order, Block or Interlocking station.

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Order No. 36

May 4, 1946

To C+E Eng 0604 at Berlin

Eng 0604 run extra Berlin to North Haven

Complete 7.56 PM

This is also for the YN-x train but by now it's DEY-5 (S-2) 0604. It's nice to see confirmation that these locomotives are handling this job in May of '46. Further proof that if I want to run all steam I would need to go back to 1945.

The Form 19 is now Form 1314-2, the difference being that the the header no longer includes "The New York Connecting Railroad Company"

Superintendent is still WHB, the operator is EWR again.

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Train Order No. 412

Dec 23, 1968

To C+E Engine 1400 at Berlin

Engine 1400 run extra New Britain to Berlin

Complete 10.50 AM

This is a jump of more than 20 years, about a week before the New Haven is folded into the Penn Central. The order numbers are much higher because the Hartford Division had been eliminated in the early '50s, so these are now New Haven Division orders covering a larger territory, so more total orders for the day. 

This is a DERS-5 (Alco DL-701) and is most likely still the Holyoke freight.

The Superintendent is now DGW (could be DGM), and the Train Dispatcher is HEL.

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Clearance Form A

9.02 AM Dec 24, 1968

To C&E Extra 1228 East at Berlin

I have one orders for your train.

No 408

Block Clear

Train Order No. 408

Dec 24, 1968

To C+E Engine 1228 at Berlin

Engine 1228 run extra New Britain to Plainville

Complete 9.01 AM

This is the only one with a Clearance Form A attached. It verifies that Order No. 408 was the only order for the train at Berlin. It's a DERS-4 (GP-9).

If orders still started with Order No. 1 at 8.00 AM, then more than 400 had been written in the first hour of the day! It's now Form 1314-3, with the major change being the elimination of the line:

X......................Opr.;..........................M.

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Train Order No. 420

Dec 26, 1968

C+E Engine 1208 at Berlin

Engine 1208 run extra New Britain to Plainville

Complete 10.12 AM

Another DERS-4 (GP-9). Like several of these, it gives orders only as far as Plainville, where they would have received orders to continue towards Westfield. Some of the earlier orders go all the way to Westfield. 

The Superintendent for these last two is still DGW, but the Dispatcher is EWR again, covering 26 years.