Willis Lamm's
Traffic Signal Collection

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Marbelite "Dog House" Signal

"Dog house" is a name applied to signals that had two columns of yellow and green signals below a single red head. Dog houses are most commonly used to indicate protected left turns. Originally, most protected left turns either involved a separate signal (drivers could only turn left on a green arrow) or a fourth signal section would display a green arrow to indicate when a left turn was protected. In the four section display, the green arrow might overlap a green ball or be a separate display. (See Old Timey Protected Left Turns.) Over time, traffic engineers decided that a yellow display should be added to warn drivers that the protected left turn movement was ending. The addition of a yellow arrow meant that a 5-section signal was required.

Five sections produced a pretty long signal that was problematic in some span wire and mast arm configurations, so the idea came about to place the through and left turn sections side-by-side under the red section. This particular dog house signal is interesting since the red section is actually older than the lower sections. It is a later version of the TD-19260 section, similar to the flat top except with a recessed top and drain slot. The lower sections are early type TE-19408. Please note: To see some of the features described you may have to click on an image to bring up a larger copy in a new window. Some views were taken prior to restoration in order to show the details more clearly.