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Q: What diesels to pull a 50s coal train? I’m building an “N” scale layout set in the 1950s. I plan to run two loops independent of the rest of the layout, up high, at the back. One loop will have a train running counter-clockwise, consisting of a locomotive and four loaded coal hoppers. When […]
Sometimes a discussion about prototype railroading can lead to a modeling project. A few years back I was talking with my longtime friend William Phalen in Crookston, Minn. During our conversation, I mentioned seeing a photo of a pile of grain doors by the Crookston Farmers Co-op Elevator. He said the doors were stored on […]
The Nickel Plate Road’s major components were all in place by 1949. The Nickel Plate, formally the New York, Chicago & St. Louis Railway, was conceived in 1881 as a Buffalo-Chicago project to compete with the parallel Lake Shore & Michigan Southern (later New York Central) of William H. Vanderbilt. To thwart rival […]
The Fairbanks-Morse H12-44TS locomotive was a familiar-looking unit with different internals. FM was a fierce competitor in the early days of dieselization, perhaps remembered most for its H24-66 Train Master, a six-axle 2,400 hp road-switcher that impressed almost every railroad it demonstrated on. Among its lesser-known successes were three specialized units produced […]
Industries in northern Ohio: The track and buildings are relatively level, but the walking area follows the contour of the ground. The entrance at the east is the highest, with the track and buildings being about one foot higher than the path. As you proceed to the west end, the path descends a little, so […]
Explore Gregg Condon’s HO scale (1:87.1) model railroad based on 1950s-era Milwaukee Road operations along the Shullsburg Branch in Wisconsin! You’ll enjoy following the action over the rails, plus all the realistic scenes, structures, and details modeled around and about the right-of-way. All of this is a pre-cursor to even more in-depth coverage of the […]
Explore Gregg Condon’s HO scale (1:87.1) model railroad based on 1950s-era Milwaukee Road operations along the Shullsburg Branch in Wisconsin! You’ll enjoy following the action over the rails, plus all the realistic scenes, structures, and details modeled around and about the right-of-way. All of this is a pre-cursor to even more in-depth coverage of the […]
Missouri Pacific 2-8-4 No. 1119 rolls a southbound freight over a new highway bridge at Austin, Texas, in 1948. Bruce F. Wilson photo […]
Workers load ice blocks into the end bunkers of refrigerator cars at the big ice dock at Roseville, Calif., on the Southern Pacific in 1948. Jim Morley photo […]
The Fabelmans’ Lionel trains have been the subject of some speculation lately. You may have recently seen the semi-biopic about Steven Spielberg’s life and wondered about the company that provided them. The movie was recently nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award. The man responsible for the toy train magic is Gary Rushton, owner of […]
Facts & features Name: Tygart Valley Division Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: Two rooms, 15′ x 18′ and 12′ x 20′ Prototypes: Proto-freelanced, Western Maryland Ry. Locale: West Virginia Era: Mid-1950s Style: Walkaround Mainline run: 160 feet Minimum radius: 30″ Minimum turnout: No. 6 Maximum grade: 2.75% Benchwork: Open grid Height: 45″ to 63″ Roadbed: Cork […]
Late in her life, New York Central 4-6-4 5403 races west from Mattoon, Ill., with nameless mail and express train 473 in September 1954. Philip R. Hastings photo […]
