Charles heard of an HO layout in New Jersey that set a record and asks readers:

“Back in the early or mid 70’s, there was a very large HO lay-out in New Jersey, they had 501 hopper’s and 20 Deisels and set a worlds record. My question is has the record been broken as of this date?”

Paul from South Africa writes:

Some information from my part of the world – in South Africa the entire railroad system is run on narrow gauge. The only piece of standard gauge railroad that has been built is in Saldana Bay, specifically for the movement of goods for shipping – a very big Iron Ore and coal export harbor!

One economical implication of this gauge is that in South Africa most goods are now moved by road, this has caused an unprecedented rise in the cost of goods, especially inland.

After watching a series on American rail services on National Geographic satellite tv I have seen the positives of changing our entire system to Standard gauge.

Outeniqua Choo-Choo

One other piece of information I would like to share is the Outeniqua Choo-Choo (a steam locomotive driven passenger train). This was a tour that ran along the Cape South Coast.

Unfortunately this was stopped when a few years ago very bad flooding and land slides in the Cape damaged the line and the tour was stopped. I will be visiting the Cape soon and hope to find out a bit more about the possibility of re-opening this tour – it may be a long shot but let’s see what happens!

Michael has sent in this story:

My memories of trains are of when I was somewhat younger. I grew in Birmingham, England during the WW2 and to get close to a train was very rare as in England the railroad was fenced off. It was almost inpossible to get close or even see a train. Also, due to the war lads of my age didn’t receive toy trains. In my teens when I could go further afield my friends and I went to an old passenger station were one could see mainly goods trains going straight through with the odd pasenger train on it’s way to New Street Station.

It wasn’t until I came to Canada that I actualy had an electric train set of my own. A friend was cleaning out and came across two train sets, one a CP and the other a CN. Since then I have managed to get a Amtrack train which I hope to convert into a BC pasenger train. Since I came to BC my Trains have been boxed up as I have no place to build a layout yet. I have a system which I used for two trains on a 8’x4′ table but when I get all working again I hope to run four trains by having a separate level below the table.

Karen remembers getting a Hornby clockwork train set for Christmas when she was eight and writes:

My Swiss Grandfather who was a mad train buff and I used to watch trains all the time and he even worked with steam trains and on bridges in Australia.

Santa bought me my first train set – a Hornby clockwork set when I was 8, and that was a pretty unusual present for a girl in those days! I ran the thing off the rails! Since then, I have built lots of small model railways and I am currently working on one of Penzance, Cornwall England, circa 1950’s. My nephews have carried on the passion in our family.

Joe recalls trains on the Long Island Railroad and writes:

My best train memory is waiting for the Long Island Railroad to pull into Woodside Station. At that time of my life the Railroad was Steam Engines. I would look as long as possible for the smoke in the distance. We would board with windows open and the ride to Farmingdale. It was something I always looked forward to on weekends. I loved the sounds of the Steam Engine. I guess thats why my model railroad is all steam powered. Ocassionaly I will run LIRR Diesels but the sound of the steam still is best to me.

Ron has contributed this info about his layout:

I model in Australian N Scale and have a set of two Pilbara Rail locos and 106 ore cars.

I exhibited the rack at our model train show in June this year in Perth and the person who produced the ore cars for me added his 50 wagons (total 156) and the length of the train was 10.1 meters (33 feet) from lead loco to last car.

The two CW4400 Kato locos pulled it around non stop for two hours.

Congratulations Ron! And, thank you for sharing this with others.

John who made the wagons adds:

“And I tell you that they ran excellent for a home made casting too with Microtrains bogies! I was very surprised that they ran so well!”

A reader from the USA sent in this childhood recollection:

When I was four years old, in the mid 1950’s, I received my first Lionel train set. My father set it up on a board in the basement. So far this is a typical story for many of us.

Each year around the Christmas Holiday season we would go to our local hardware store where Lionel trains were sold and new items would be purchased and added to the display.

At eight, we moved to the country of central New Jersey. The display was put in that basement and grew as I began to purcase items and train sets that friends no longer wanted. With my bicycle, I explored the area and soon discovered the tracks where the mightly electric GG1’s would wisk passengers and sometimes freight between New York, Philadephia and Washinton, DC. I was mesmerized as I watched in awe as these trains whiz passed in the early evening, with the occasional blue sparks coming off the wires and the lights flickering in the passenger cars as they quickly went by reminding me of a giant toy train.

As I got older all the items were carefully packed and boxed away.

Many years passed. I live in the mountains of the Western US and those memories of growing up the East during the 1950’s have returned. The old trains were carefully unpacked and renovated. Many, many new trains were obtained for my dream layout. The new technology is indeed remarkable.

I am building a large garage of over 1400 square feet to house my train display depicting that era of the mid 1950’s, that end of steam and where diesel begin to dominate.

The electric Pennsy GG-1’s would still march on for many productive years. Now, as I day dream of the layout, I consult books and magazines and am amazed at the wealth of information. So, in several years I too will have the dream of a display fulfilled, depicting vignettes of the the mid-fifties, showing NYC, New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania on to Washington, DC, where many great railroads of the Eastern, United States once plied.

My collection is rapidly growing, anticipating when they will be rolling down the rails. As I research, I have learned how much rail transportation has contributed and advanced civilation of not only America, but the rest of the World!

Warwick sent in this amusing story from his days growing up in Hastings New Zealand:

This particular bunch of railway memories are from my days as a Dominion Newspaper paper boy approximately 50 years ago.

Our depot was right across the road from the old Hastings Station and yards and as we often had time to kill whilst waiting for the morning paper car to arrive it was a natural playground for us all.

Many are the antics we got up to which would horrify the Politically Correct Brigade of today!

A favourite pastime was to let the brake off empty 4-wheel open wagons and all push hard to get it rolling then jump aboard and ride it until it ran out of momentum or came up against other rolling stock or a concrete buffer block.

Another caper we used to enjoy was all riding down the platform on one of the postoffice mail trolleys, which had two wheels in the middle and one at either end making them impossible to steer if everybody was on board! This came to an end when an out of control trolley careered onto the tracks, braking an axle in the process. I remember our meagre pay being docked until the cost of repairs by the postoffice were met!

Other pleasant memories include having a sausage cooked for me in the cab of an AB loco by a kindly fireman on his shovel in the firebox, placing pennies on the track for oncoming trains to flatten and listening for trains still out of sight by placing ones ear on one of the rails.

Perhaps the best rail memory of the time was watching the annual Blossom Trains arriving. They came from Wellington with hoards of passengers up for the weekend and were hauled by two J or K class locos.

By looking south down the tracks the vast cloud of steam and smoke could be seen long before the train itself came into view.Their arrival was very spectacular as they came charging in, not slowing until the engines and some of the carriages were well past the station and over the next railway crossing. This they had to do due to the sheer length of the train.

A real cross section of society came up on the blossom specials and it was an eye-opener to us relatively small-town boys to see the sort of people getting off the train .

Sadly we all have to grow up. They pulled down the grand old wooden station building to be replaced further up the track with a small characterless modern building. Also they moved the shunting yards further out of town and eventually the Special Blossom Festival Trains were discontinued. Good fun while it lasted though………

Larry remembers the day he rode in the engine cab and writes:

Once my Dad let me ride in the engine cab with him while the coal tender was re coaled. He held me in his lap while he maneuvered the engine under the coal tipple. I was about 5 yrs old. This was one of the times I remember along with other times of going to the watering place to refill the reservoir where chemical balls were put in. I assume these were to treat the boiler water.

We traveled by train of course as Dad got passes at no cost. Our trips to town, vacations etc.,were on passenger trains and of course this was after WWII and during the Korean War so many soldiers traveled by rail also and they would give my brother and I “V” nickels and dimes along with “peegees” (wood marbles). I have some of these coins tucked away.

Imagine this scene depicted by Kerry and how it could be recreated on a model railroad layout:

When I was a little lad, I would watch the interaction of the cows to the north field and the 5:50 steam train. When the cows had been milked (around 5:30) they would wander to the fence by the tracks. When the train came by the whistle would be really be blowing for a long time as it was crossing a road crossing and coming into the station.

The cows would run toward the barn and as soon as the whistle ceased they would wander back to the fence. This would be constant pattern of behaviour every day at this time as long as the cows were in the field. It was only with this train that this would occur – no other trains would bother them. Even when diesels would run at this time, the cows would not react. Occasionally when a steam train would operate as an excursion and pass by at this time the cows would behaviour and provide us with fond memories and wonder what made them act this way

Jack remembers trains on the Missouri Pacific Railroad and writes:

I have always had a love for trains, especially the old steam engine engines. I was 12 years old, when we moved to the farm, just out side of town. The Missouri Pacific Railroad ran the Belmont Branch through a field about a quarter of a mile behind the house. In the back yard sat an old wash house with a dog house beside it, and that sat next to a large maple tree. I would hear the train coming, and would make a run for the the wash house roof. I did this by jumping first on the dog house roof, then leaping for a limb on the tree, and swinging on to the top of the wash house roof. Then I would start waving as big as I could. What a thrill when the engineer or fireman would see me and wave back. It certainly made my day each time.

Larry has a great story from the late 40’s – early 50’s to share:

We lived in the Ky., Tn., & Va. area, all within 25 miles of Cumberland Gap during the late 40’s and early 50’s. My Dad was working on the L&N RR in that area,(as was both Grandfathers, who retired from the L&N).

At the time of my birth he was at a recoaling depot at Chasha Tn. The small “house”, we lived in was along the a siding two rails from the main line. Our house was actually two wood boxcars side by side joined together to form a 4 room house. This was typical for 3 or 4 other houses for RR employees. Our front porch was about 3-4 ft. from the nearest siding track.

Dad was an Engine Watchman as steam engines had to be kept with the firebox banked and ready to get a head of steam-up.

The engines were swapprd out at these stations to reduce time of recoaling. It was his job to re-coal, water and add sand to the engines and keep them ready for the next change-out. This included turning them around on the “Y” if necessary.

The houses were heated by coal stoves and had no water heater, so when my Mom washed clothes, Dad would run an engine up to the house and drain boiler water off into galv tubs.

We lived there until I was 5 yrs old then he was transferred to Pennington Gap, Va. and then back to Pineville, Ky. where they had originally began working on the RR prior to WW II.