I looked up Elizabeth, Burning Springs, and Creston WV on Google Maps and found them along the Little Kanawha River between Parkersburg and Grantsville. A little more searching produced 1. a 1913 abandonment notice and map: http://www.abandonedrails.com/Little_Kanawha_Railroad 2. a WV map showing RRs in 1913: http://www.wvculture.org/history/transportation/1913railroads.jpg 3. 3 postings about the LKRR in The Hur Herald: http://www.hurherald.com/cgi-bin/db_scripts/articles?Action=user_view&db=hurheral_articles&id=27657 http://www.hurherald.com/cgi-bin/db_scripts/articles?Action=user_view&db=articles_hurherald&id=10925 http://www.hurherald.com/cgi-bin/db_scripts/articles?Action=user_view&db=articles_hurherald&id=10924 If the LKRR had somehow managed to survive into the middle or end of the 1900s, perhaps a model of a modern era LKRR would have a western end interchange with the B&O or its successors at Murphytown and an eastern end interchange with the B&O or other RR in Grantsville. If the 8x8 water heater space allows it (that is, if tracks could go through the wall to staging to the left of the helix as marked in the track plan, pass along the bottom wall of the track plan inside the 8x8 space and exit eave space to the attic space by the cabinet where woo woo woo Lumber is currently shown), and if negotiated train space/kid space can accommodate a loop at the upper left end of the track plan by the stairs to connect tracks at the front of the shelf to tracks at the back, then it would be possible to have a giant loop that: 1. enters the attic space from staging in Murphytown (where track enters the attic space from the water heater space in the lower right corner (currently woo woo woo Lumber), 2. passes right to left in front of the right end window at the back of a shelf atop the cabinets (perhaps Davisville?), 3. passes right to left across the top of the trackplan at the back of the shelf (perhaps Elizabeth?), 4. loops to the front of the upper shelf about 9 or 10 feet from the stairwell, 5. passes left to right across the front of the upper shelf (to Burning Springs?), 6. passes left to right in front of the right end window at the front of the shelf (Creston?), 7. passes left to right above and in front of the door to the water heater space (Annamoriah?), 8. passes left to right in front of the relocated Avoca Mine (where the shelf bulges outward and where the helix is currently shown), 9. to reach the town of Big Bend? (Elizabeth in the current plan), and then 10. leaves the attic space into Grantsville staging in the water heater space. I'll try to post a drawing of this description.
If the Little Kanawha River Railroad had stayed in business until the later half of the 1900s, a model of it may have looked like this: GP30 HO 11x29 Little Kanawha River RR 2015-11-20 00.58.25 by ppuinn posted Nov 20, 2015 at 1:11 AM
I drew this plan up last night before I noticed Dave's response. The Mountaineer Division of The Chicopee Road is indeed heavily based upon what the LKRR started. The LKRR had the route surveyed through Grantsville and had the bed graded about halfway between Elizabeth and Grantsville, but ran out of money just east of Elizabeth. The B&O bought it out around 1933 and cut it back before WWII to Parkersburg. The modern day LKRR operates about a 2 mile section of this route. If the LKRR had been built completely, I believe it would have extended east past Grantsville and connected to the B&O at Glenville. The B&O would have eventually purchased the railroad anyway (as it had with many other short lines in WV in the 1920's and 1930's), probably dying a slow death by the early 80's like the Elk River Sub did. If I had a full basement to build in (higher ceiling for multiple decks, wider than 11' room, etc..) I would probably go with a Ravenswood to Glenville theme with a branch line or two. The Chicopee Road is conceptually a Class I with Chicago - Chesapeake through freights (through IC connection at Louisville, KY) and very short passenger trains (remember, no mail contract in Fall 1967) similar to Allen McClleland's V&O or the B&O Parkersburg Branch - Mountain Sub - West End. Unfortunately, the water heater space is accessible for staging, but entry is restricting. To clarify, the roof line drops down behind the access door to the same height at the door it self, so there is actually two solid surfaces to get through to access the large space: 1) The interior wall and 2) the false roof line. The roof line should be easy, as it is just a matter of cutting a hole out of a 1x6 roofing board, and I might not even have to do that. I'm still not happy with the smaller version of the yard at Elizabeth. I think there needs to be something here for the B&O interchange traffic, but since Ravenswood exists below, there isn't a need for a full yard here. (It would have been merely a water stop with a few extra tracks in the steam era). I should include some sort of reversing loop like Dave's plan (which I like, thanks Dave!). I'm not a fan of running through a scene twice, but it could work if the return track was covered in some visual-critical areas.
Another thought, If I can get permission from the planning board (wife) to remove the cabinets and bench at the window on the right, then we're are looking at a totally different ball game.....two full size decks as opposed to 1-1/3 as I have drawn now.
Taking her out on the town. Money for a shopping spree. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free
Well, that was easy... I brought up the idea of "relocating" the bench and cabinets to another part of the space. "OK, dear." (she knows what I have in mind) So almost everything posted above is out the window. I'll be offline except for my smartphone for the next week until internet is set up at the new house. Back to the drawing board then.
Sweet! Those were simple negotiations. Still something sweet for you sweet should still be in order. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free
Don't worry, she'll use it against me for something eventually. Sent from my PantechP8010 using Tapatalk
I'm wondering how much a problem sharing space with a play area for a 3 year old will end up being. I don't object to using plexiglass doors on the bottom level that are closed when he is around and open when I'm operating Shouldn't need that for the upper level at 48" height, it will still be a while before he could reach that high... by that time he could be involved enough and old enough (around 5) to know how to handle trains that size.... not as touchy-feely as a 3 year old.
By age 5 my son was being very careful with delicate models. He wowed a few old heads that got scared when he went to put a train back on the racks that derailed. They couldn't believe how gently he handled the train. All it takes is a little training. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free
Yes, by 5 he should be good. My oldest boy drove trains around for hours, switching power out, cutting cars, etc. I would bring a 2.5 x 4 layout to the railshows and just let him operate! Kept him busy and had a constant crowd of folk watching this little guy go!
Are you cantilevering the benchwork? Even at 5 I was sorta clumsy as I recall. At least when I wasn't playing trains, ha. Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
Plexiglass will be costly and hard to work with, will require a more complex mechanism for holding it in place, such as hinges or channels for sliding...and the temptation will still be visible. Velcro strips holding fabric skirting at the top AND bottom (and side?) will be a lot cheaper, will hide the temptation, and will be much easier to work with, but doesn't address the fundamental issue: you would like the little engineer to handle the big boy trains gently. Would you and your wife be willing/able to fund two RR empires: a wooden train set for him and an HO layout for you? This would provide more kid friendly (i.e., sturdy) trains for him to play with as he and his age-mates who will inevitably visit learn how to handle them properly. As he grows, you can introduce him to HO trains and provide some HO track and rolling stock for his own town/RR located below yours at 24 or 36 inches, where he runs trains through scenery he has helped make, on track he has helped lay down, and switches out cars at industries he has helped build. Eventually, there will be a merger of the two RRs. My grand-daughter is 4 and a half, and visits us 4 or 5 times a year. She loves the wooden train set she has at home, and we provide a duplicate set which she plays with when she visits us. But she also wants to play with my N scale trains alongside my nephews, who are teenagers... so I set up a section on my layout with less delicate scenery and structures at a height she can reach, and provided some rolling stock for her to play with. The first time she was pretty rough, but she quickly learned Grampa's trains were fragile and needed to be handled a little differently than her wooden trains. Your little engineer will learn, too.
Yes as they grow, Bachman has a nice easy to use Thomas set.i built a small loop for my son to run Thomas on when he was 5 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk - now Free
