The United States of America, Including Hawaii

This chapter is based strongly on earlier research by authors in the USA, complemented by additional information in lists by the British Admiralty. The first time ball in the USA was at Washington, DC in 1845. It was operated by the Naval Observatory, but it was intended as a signal for public use. The US Navy had a policy of purchasing only high-quality chronometers and rating them carefully before issue to the fleet. Later, long-distance electric telegraphs were developed to provide signals for mariners along an extended coastline. In 1880, only the signals in Boston, New York and Washington were intended specifically for mariners, but the number increased greatly after 1900, with signals around the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, the Gulf of Mexico and the Great Lakes. Unusually, the official time signal for Honolulu in Admiralty lists from 1898 until the 1920s was a whistle, close to the main berthing facilities.