SAL Dispatchers

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How many dispatchers were on duty and what territories did they control (including which by CTC/TCS)on the SAL in the 1960s at the offices in Atlanta, Jacksonville and Tampa?

-- Glenn J. Fisher (gfish@supernet.com), August 18, 2002

Answers

I'm not clear on the SAL DS from Tampa, but I would venture to guess the other dispatcher would cover the SAL "back door" into Tampa, via sulphur Springs, Brooksville, that paralleled the ACL West Coast Sub until it crossed at Archer and wound up at the SAL yard at Gainesville then tied back into the SAL main at Waldo...I would also venture a guess that this was TT/TO operation. If you can find an old (old...ofcourse it would be old) SAL employees TT, that would reveal the location of the DS offices (Std clocks, bulletin books, train registers, etc.)

-- Walt Rogers (wjriii@verizon.net), September 05, 2002.

Thanks so much, Walt, for your detailed answer to my question. Can I assume from what you write (others, please help out here)that on the SAL in the 60s there were two dispatchers on duty at Jacksonville. One covered the Tallahassee sub to Chattahoochie, the other from Baldwin to Miami. I'm not as clear on the dispatchers at Tampa. Were there two on duty(Main line from Wildwood to Tampa would be one, what would the other cover?)? Any help would be appreciated.

-- Glenn J. Fisher (gfish@supernet.com), September 04, 2002.

From my working in the Tampa - Jax former Territories, I hope the following might help to answer your question. Ex-SCL Jacksonville division with the Div office at Warrington St in jax had 3 or 4 Dispatchers working the Div: Tallahasse Sub, Jax to Chattahoochie-CTC/Absolute Block. Ocala Sub, Mattox to Croom-TT/TO and Absolute Blocks. Baldwin Sub, Baldwin to Miami-CTC. West Coast Sub, High Springs to Z-hills and Vitis to Lakeland-CTC(north of Dunnellon was TT/TO and Abs Block into High Springs). All of the branch lines were handled by the DS covering the Main and ran TT/TO.

Ex-SCL Tampa Division was located at 40th St and Adamo Drive (with a nice static display of ACL 250 (4-6-0) used in pass service. The senior managers liked to have displays like that. When Fla DOT built the Crosstown, to avoid a protected wetland area, the Crosstown route skirted the wetland area and caused the demolition of the Old ex-ACL Division Offices and were relocated to 5656 Adamo Drive adjacent to the Yeoman railyard. There were 2 Main Line Dispatchers: Jax - Tampa via Sanford, Lakeland, TUS-CTC Tampa to Benson Jct. then ABS into St Johns. Later ML upgrade work improved the track, lengthened some sidings and converted the ABS into TCS(CTC). Z-hills to Yeoman, then Gary to Sulphur Springs, then Uceta to E Tampa-CTC. North of Sulphur Springs to Brooksville, Sulphur Springs to St Pete, E Tampa to Bradenton/Sarasota were all covered by 1 Absolute Block just past the TC limits, then TT/TO (TimeTable/Train Order) Also to cover the BV territory, there was 1 DS at Mulberry in the old ACL station just north of the Mulberry crossing(ex ACL BV Sub and ex SAL Valrico Sub.) That territory was operated by Absolute Block and verbal authority. Sorry, don't know about the Atlanta territory.

-- Walt Rogers (wjriii@verizon.net), September 04, 2002.


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