New England Telephone Stopwatch

[G-Man]

The following 1913 article regards supply issues within Western Electric and while it does not address what your stopwatch was used for it does show that it was not commonly used.

    Requisition calls for one stop watch The editor takes a chance and forwards the watch commonly used in part of the territory only to find that a split second Guinand watch is necessary and the one furnished must be returned. These little errors of omission contribute to the delays which we are inclined to charge to the other fellow and by careful and complete description on all requisitions trouble delay and correspondence can be saved. When edited the order tickets are written also the various shipping tickets and the requisition go to tile never again to be disturbed unless some question comes up. The current routines for handling the receipts and bills and credits whether from Western Electric or outside supplier are familiar to all and if followed carefully and promptly the final chapter which is the payment of the bill is soon a matter of history It may be interesting to know that the Supply Agent's office is not estab

[Sargeguy]

Interesting.  Mine stops at 1/2 second intervals but they are not marked on the face.  Does that mean it is or isn't a "split-second" stopwatch?  Either way it would seem that it pre-dates dials.

[Sargeguy]

The "Split Second" stopwatch is a different, higher quality model than the "100-Second Timer"

[Sargeguy]

Here's one use:

One on the Kicker The fact that a kicker may not always be a kicker is sometimes shown in the investigation of his criticisms of the service.  A subscriber complained of being overcharged on his toll connections.  A supervisor was instructed to time his calls and subscriber was furnished with a stop watch but still his timing did not agree with ours.  An agent who was sent to the station found that the subscriber's clerk in answering the toll operator allowed her to put the distant party on the line before he notified his principal.  The subscriber was not always prompt in responding the result being overcharges.   A suggestion from the agent was sufficient to straighten the matter out and no further criticisms have been received from this subscriber.   New England Telephone Topics 1908

What's a kicker?

[G-Man]

 Greg-

I also noticed the markings and wondered if they had anything to do with a watchmaker documenting periodic calibrations.

Perhaps someone on this list knows of a watch collecting group that can provide further insight as to their meaning. As I stated earlier it is a nifty piece and it would be nice to find out its intended use.

[G-Man]

Here's one use:

One on the Kicker The fact that a kicker may not always be a kicker is sometimes shown in the investigation of his criticisms of the service.  A subscriber complained of being overcharged on his toll connections.  A supervisor was instructed to time his calls and subscriber was furnished with a stop watch but still his timing did not agree with ours.  An agent who was sent to the station found that the subscriber's clerk in answering the toll operator allowed her to put the distant party on the line before he notified his principal.  The subscriber was not always prompt in responding the result being overcharges.   A suggestion from the agent was sufficient to straighten the matter out and no further criticisms have been received from this subscriber.   New England Telephone Topics 1908

What's a kicker?

In the vernacular of the day it was a term derived from a mule or horse that one needed to be aware of since they were apt to kick you are another animal. It was also commonly used to describe a customer who was a chronic complainer; one who "kicks."

[Sargeguy]

Alan Goldberg on the TCI listserv informs me that the Bell System measured call traffic in 100 second units, called CCS, with 36ccs equivalent to full usage in one hour, or "Erlang" on any given line.  The Erlang is named after Agner Krarup Erlang, a Danish mathematician who did statistical analysis of telephone traffic at the Copenhagen exchange while working for the Bell System in the early 1900s.  Erlang first published his work in 1908, so it appears that this type of watch was in use prior to 1908.

[G-Man]

Alan Goldberg on the TCI listserv informs me that the Bell System measured call traffic in 100 second units, called CCS, with 36ccs equivalent to full usage in one hour, or "Erlang" on any given line.  The Erlang is named after Agner Krarup Erlang, a Danish mathematician who did statistical analysis of telephone traffic at the Copenhagen exchange while working for the Bell System in the early 1900s.  Erlang first published his work in 1908, so it appears that this type of watch was in use prior to 1908.

Greg-

CCS and the Erlang unit as developed by the Bell System's Messr Erlang continued to be used over a century by telephone operating companies worldwide so it would not be a means of dating your watch even though it does appear to be a very early one.

I still suspect that it would be beneficial to consult with a watch collectors group who most likely could easily date it and decode the watch inspector's repair/calibration marks.

[Sargeguy]

I meant that this type of watch was in service by 1908 somewhere in the Bell System.  The reference to Guinand watches in 1913 and the type of lettering seems pre-WWI.  Erlangs are actually still used as a measure today if Wikipedia is to be believed, but I doubt they are still using stopwatches to measure them.

[Sargeguy]

I guess they were used for timing toll calls, at least for quality control purposes:

[Sargeguy]

Here is a side-by-side comparison of the two watches:

[Sargeguy]

The #119 "Traffic" stopwatch has a lower serial #117040 and an ink stamp "W.E.48" in green.  The dial face is bright white.  The hallmark is "C.L. Guinand Locle Switzerland"

The #11 "Toll Obs" stopwatch has a higher serial #141458 and an ink stamp "W.E.42" in red.   The dial face is yellowed with tick marks that go all the way to the edge.  The hallmark is "G.H. Guinand Switzerland"

[Sargeguy]

Side-by-side comparisons of the movements of each watch.  There are some minor differences:

[Sargeguy]

Found a SNET version, case only:

[Fabius]

I also noticed several marks scratched into the inside of the lid.  They were all the letter A followed by 3 numbers.  There is also a mark "W.E. 48"  Maybe this watch pre-dates the calcugraph?

Nice find! Those marks are service/repair record marks. Many pocket and some wrist watch cases will have these. Looks like the watch was serviced regularly. What is the name of the watch maker? I can't make it out. Appears to be a Swiss watch. You would think NET&T would have bought a Waltham watch with that company being located in their service area (Massachusetts). Maybe Waltham didn't make a 100 second timer.