I have my grandfathers Hamilton railroad watch, that he used as an engineer on the NYS&W. Up through even the 1950's, he and his coworkers were required to have the watch professionally serviced every x amount of time, to ensure that it was accurate. The railroad ran on precise timekeeping. I am assuming that this died as radio, central dispatching, the slow disappearance of passenger trains, and others factors crept in during the 1950's, '60's and onward.

I have heard that there is significantly more folklore about this that I have never looked into. Do UP and BNSF even care anymore, or is it all about the radio call that basically says "go!"