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What are railway telegraphic codes?
Long before computer systems were introduced, signal boxes, stations and goods yards communicated with each other by sending telegraphs to ensure the safe and efficient running of trains. Telegraphs are a bit like an early form of text message and date back to the first half of the 19th century. They consist of electronic messages sent through wires suspended on poles often located at the side of railway lines.
A code representing the alphabet is created by the making and breaking of a circuit, however, communicating full and meaningful messages in this way is very time consuming and expensive. Although cost wasn't an issue for the railways (who utilised an internal system), many abbreviations and code words were introduced to speed things up a little and make sentences shorter. These codes are referred to as railway telegraphic codes.
The Great Western Railway was the first railway company to introduce such a system (between Paddington and West Drayton in 1839) with other companies soon following suit. By 1939, the GWR was using over 900 codes to represent anything from commonly used operational sentences to codes for specific rolling stock or loads. At that time, only around half of the codes used by the GWR were commonly recognised between railway companies who had each implemented their own versions. Because of this, harmonisation was very much needed and by 1943 was achieved.
Interestingly, most of the old codes used for wagons and loads are still recognised to this day either officially or as a nickname. CONFLAT, for example, is code for a flat wagon for containers and MINK is a code for a covered goods van. Some of the codes will even make you smile, LOUGH, is telegraphic code for shunting horse ill send relief, SNAKE is code for passenger brake van and TERMITE is code for third-class carriage.
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