Re: Morning Watch Smoke; September 30, 2005

Bernie wrote:
Sailorman Jack, I am not a nautical person, and have ofetn wondered
about the bell system used on ships. Is there any chance you would
explain it please? I would be veryy interested to learn about it.

Sailorman Jack writes:
The bell system is a particular way of telling time. It originated in a
period when most people did not own watches and most would not know how
to tell time from a watch even if they had one. Ships in the US Navy
and the Royal Navy still use this system as well as the modern system.
With the bell system, the day is divided into four hour watches. The
watch always begins as the old watch ends. Thus eight bells in the
midwatch would be the start of the morning watch. The morning watch
runs from 4 AM through 8 AM. 4:30 would be one bell, 5:00 is two bells,
5:30 is three bells and so on until 8 AM which is also eight bells. The
period between 4 PM and 8 PM is divided into two watches of two hours
each. They are called the dog watches: the first dog watch and the
second dog watch.

Fair winds,
Sailorman Jack
Port of Columbus

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Relevant Pages

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  • Re: Morning Watch Smoke; September 30, 2005
    ... Sailorman Jack, I am not a nautical person, and have ofetn wondered ... about the bell system used on ships. ... Is there any chance you would ...
    (alt.smokers.pipes)
  • Re: Morning Watch Smoke; September 30, 2005
    ... > Sailorman Jack, I am not a nautical person, and have ofetn wondered ... > about the bell system used on ships. ... Is there any chance you would ...
    (alt.smokers.pipes)