The Griswold Signal Company was an American company focused on

railway signalling Railway signalling (), or railroad signaling (), is a system used to control the movement of railway traffic. Trains move on fixed rails, making them uniquely susceptible to collision. This susceptibility is exacerbated by the enormous weight ...

, based in

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

. Founded by Minnesota native Franklin Wolcott Griswold,Griswold Signal Co - inventor obituary
on ''The Star Tribune'' of Minneapolis, Minnesota, 8 Jan 1992, page 18 the company manufactured

traffic signal Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – also known as robots in South Africa, Zambia, and Namibia – are signaling devices positioned at intersection (road), road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order t ...

s and railroad

level crossing signals Level crossing signals are electronic warning devices for road vehicles at railroad level crossings. Level crossings can be operated in various ways. In some countries such as the UK, the warning devices are more often than not activated by remo ...

History

Beginning

Griswold got his start in 1923 with the invention of the "American Bobby," a

traffic sign Traffic signs or road signs are signs erected at the side of or above roads to give instructions or provide information to road users. The earliest signs were simple wooden or stone milestones. Later, signs with directional arms were introduc ...

designed for placement in the middle of an intersection that would collapse if struck by a vehicle. Signs were nicknamed after London traffic control officers with its red and green lights visible in all directions.CityDig: Should I Stop or Should I Go? Early Traffic Signals in Los Angeles
by Nathan Masters on ''Los Angeles Magazine'', January 4, 2013 Many ''bobby'' signals were sold to municipalities throughout North America; this led to the development of the rotating banner signal.

Development

In 1927, Griswold introduced the rotating banner signal. This was a unique combination of highway flasher and rotating

stop sign A stop sign is a traffic sign designed to notify drivers that they must come to a complete stop and make sure the intersection (road), intersection (or level crossing, railroad crossing) is safely clear of vehicles and pedestrians before contin ...

(similar to a

school bus A school bus is any type of bus owned, leased, contracted to, or operated by a school or school district. It is regularly used to Student transport, transport students to and from school or school-related activities, but not including a charter ...

stop sign). An approaching train would trigger not just the requisite red flashing lights and bells, but a mechanism that rotated a yellow stop sign ninety degrees to face traffic as well. (The signs eventually changed to red).Griswold rotating rail crossing signal
on Trainweb.org This type of signal was relatively common throughout the Midwestern United States, where state regulators required use of the design. Some were also installed in the Western United States, especially along the Great Northern,

Milwaukee Road The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), better known as the Milwaukee Road , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States, Midwest and Pacific Northwest, Northwest of the United States from 1847 ...

, and

Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the names ...

. The firm purchased

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

–based

Magnetic Signal Company The Magnetic Signal Company was an American company based in Los Angeles, California, focused on railway signalling. The company was the manufacturer of the ubiquitous "Magnetic Flagman" wigwag railroad crossing (or level crossing) signal, seen a ...

in the late 1940s and moved production to Minneapolis. Magnetic Signal is the company credited with the invention of the wigwag grade crossing signal once common throughout

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. "Railroad Accessories Corporation" (RACO) merged with Griswold Signal Company in 1964. Manufacturing of crossing signals continued in Minneapolis. In 1971, RACO and Marquardt Industrial Products merged to form

Safetran Safetran Systems Corporation was an American company that manufactured switch machines, railroad wayside signal systems, rail transit signaling and rail-highway level crossing active warning systems. The company was a major supplier of freight/ ...

. Management, sales, and manufacture of crossing signals continued in Minneapolis until 2000, when the division moved to Kentucky.

Surviving signals

As of November 2016, there are only half a dozen known Griswold signals still in service along active rail, all in Minnesota, none with rotating stop sign signals. The last pair with an operating banner protected 22nd Ave NE in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Griswolds in

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, Washington, Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia ...

, and

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

, were both removed circa 2010.

References

External links

Griswold Flashing light
on Trainweb.org
Minnesota's Griswold Banner Signals
- List of all known remaining Griswold crossing signals in the state of Minnesota {{Railway signalling manufacturing companies based in Minneapolis Railway signalling manufacturers