Webb C. Ball is often mistakenly credited with creating railroad time service
and watch inspection as a result of an 1891 train wreck at Kipton, Ohio. As has
been demonstrated by the many earlier systems documented thus far, there
was steady evolution of time service systems since the beginning of the
railroads. The significant advance that Ball created was the regular
comparison, by the watch inspector, of employes' watches to a standard clock,
and recording the results.
When watches were checked, the deviation from standard time would be
noted. On some railroads it would be on the back of the employe's watch card
or certificate. Checking against the previous comparisons, if the watch's rate
was stable, but creeping slightly, the inspector might change the regulator
position slightly. If the rate was erratic or had a large steady change, the
inspector would probably not pass the watch, requiring it to be serviced prior
to again entering service. In-between the visits to the inspector, on almost all
railroads, the employe had to compare his/her watch against a standard clock
upon reporting for work and note the deviation from standard time, on the
back of the watch card, or sometimes on a case paper in the back of the case.
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