Louisville & Nashville J-4 class 2-8-2 No. 1882 rests at Carrolton, Ky., in 1956. Charles B. Castner photo […]
Dixie Mikado
Zone & Region: Appalachia
Ed King’s book canonizes N&W steam
Rumors of the death of railroad fiction are greatly exaggerated. The veteran railroad journalist Fred Frailey made that clear a year ago with his “Seldom Willing,” an absorbing tale of an ambitious 1980s Midwestern regional railroad that outmaneuvered a far larger rival. When Fred told me his novel was coming out soon, I wasn’t sure […]
The Norfolk & Western Pocahontas Division layout in N scale
Facts and features Name: Norfolk & Western Pocahontas DivisionScale: N (1:160)Size: 36 x 36 feetPrototype: Norfolk & WesternLocale: southern West VirginiaStyle: walk-inMainline run: 290 feetMinimum radius: 18″Minimum turnout: No. 6Maximum grade: 2 percentBenchwork: tabletopHeight: 52″ to 58.5″Roadbed: corkTrack: code 80 flextrackScenery: extruded-foam insulation board and SculptamoldBackdrop: hand-painted on drywall Control: NCE Digital Command Control […]
B&O F7s with empty hoppers
Three Baltimore & Ohio F7s pass Bond Tower, about 10 miles west of Keyser, W.Va., on Seventeen Mile Grade, with empty coal hoppers in March 1951. Note the runaway track curving behind the tower. William P. Price photo […]
Beech Mountain Railroad shuts down
ALEXANDER, W.Va — West Virginia’s Beech Mountain Railroad appears to have reached its final chapter. Owner Carter-Roag, a subsidiary of United Coal, has returned its two leased SW1500s to LTEX (also known as Larry’s Truck & Electric); those engines had been brought in to move the stockpile of coal remaining after the closure of Carter-Roag’s […]
Mike Farrow’s N scale Norfolk & Western
Mike Farrow’s N scale Norfolk & Western Pocahontas Division layout is set in southern West Virginia during the 1970s and early 1980s. The 36 x 36-foot walk-in model railroad features a 290-foot mainline run, 18” minimum radius curves, and No. 6 turnouts. Among the items used to re-create the authentic Appalachian scenery were ground foam, […]
Mike Farrow’s N scale Norfolk & Western
Mike Farrow’s N scale Norfolk & Western Pocahontas Division layout is set in southern West Virginia during the 1970s and early 1980s. The 36 x 36-foot walk-in model railroad features a 290-foot mainline run, 18” minimum radius curves, and No. 6 turnouts. Among the items used to re-create the authentic Appalachian scenery were ground foam, […]
Program to offer photographers access on Western Maryland Scenic’s Georges Creek Division
CUMBERLAND, Md. — Gunnoe Media Group and the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad are collaborating to raise funds, coordinate special access, and host the first photo freight event on the Georges Creek Railway, the short line leased by the Western Maryland Scenic. Western Maryland Scenic announced in January it had signed a long-term lease to operate […]
CSX derailment in West Virginia leads to Capitol Limited cancellations
MAGNOLIA, W.Va. — A Monday afternoon CSX derailment in a remote area of West Virginia has disrupted operations of Amtrak’s Capitol Limited. The Monday derailment in Morgan County, W.Va., near the community of Magnolia, involved nine cars, four of which were carrying sodium hydroxide, a corrosive material that can cause severe skin burns and eye […]
Western Maryland Scenic to receive $200,000 in state funding for track work
CUMBERLAND, Md. — The Western Maryland Scenic Railroad has received a $200,000 state grant for track maintenance, the Cumberland Times-News reports. Funding will be used for tie replacement and ballast tamping on a segment of the railroad near Frostburg, Md., railroad CEO Wes Heinz told the newspaper. The railroad had been approved for $1.5 million […]
Western Maryland 2-10-0 pusher
Engine 1126, one of Western Maryland’s colossal class I-2 Decapods, assists a train upgrade at Helmstetter’s Curve west of Cumberland, Md., in May 1952. Ed Theisinger photo […]
Classic Trains Film Archive | Midwestern and Eastern U.S. cities, J. David Ingles Reel UNK2
Classic Trains Film Archive | Midwestern and Eastern U.S. cities, J. David Ingles Reel UNK2 – Ride along with J. David Ingles in this first installment of Classic Trains Film Archive! Through his vintage color footage, you’ll see Amtrak action in southeast Wisconsin and central Illinois, then ride along eastbound on the Amtrak National Limited […]
