Many railroad workers/conductors carried Minute Repeater pocket watches
The old pocket watches and now some of the grand complication wrist watches have the "minute repeater", which would "chime" out the time with a series of different tones. Why? Tough to look at your watch when it was pitch black or with little to no light:
"Developed in England during the 17th and 18th centuries, minute repeaters sound the time in hours, quarters and minutes—hence their name. Repeaters served a practical purpose: telling time in the dark. When streetlights were rare and matches and candles precious, chiming watches were a logical solution but not a simple one."
But a "minute repeater" watch is something I'd love to own one day, whether in wristwatch form or pocket watch. But alas, the price of these marvelous pieces is usually in the stratosphere.
edited to add: Ever wondered why Grandfather Clocks all chimed, and then made the transition to watches....
Here's a interesting video about these marvelous pieces of ingenuity.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfsuVut4tzU&ab_channel=RichardPerrettWatch maker