Building 'round a trolley

I was wandering around the city earlier this morning and saw this. That's clearly not an actual trolley, just a trolley inspired structure for the entry. Looks alright. 

The Model Railroad Right of Way

[The Model Railroad Right of Way by Oliver Wilson Whitwell, published by The Modelmaker Corporation, 1935. I bought this well preserved copy a couple of weeks ago for $20 US]

But remember those good long articles by George Allen ... they were long and strung out but intensely interesting. However, there aren’t too many George Allen’s around and incidentally I wonder what became of him.

E. L. Moore wonders what became of George Allen in his sales letter for 1973’s Bunn’s Feed and Seed to Model Railroader.

[About a quarter of the book's pages are dedicated to excellent line drawings such as these of tunnel openings. To me, this alone makes the book worthwhile. Both US and UK practices are covered.]

Discovering, among other things, we would have to build three culverts, we searched high and low for data. Our files not only failed to reveal a single sketch, but neither of us were in the mood to spend a raw, cold Saturday afternoon measuring some out on the wild moors of Long Island. Then I remembered Oliver Whitwell Wilson’s Model Railroad Right of Way (by the by, where is he these days?)

George Allen in Chapter 7 of 50,000 Spikes: Getting into the Groove with a River, a Mill, a Swampy Swamp, a Few Culverts... and a Waterfall That “Flows” Without Water from the April 1942 issue of Model Railroader wonders what became of Oliver Whitwell Wilson.

[There are also many photos of Mr. Whitwell's International Midland Railway used to illustrate the concepts. That bridge across Devil's Gulch isn't representative of the high quality modelling shown in the photos, but I was rather attracted to its quasi-abstract style. It must have been a distinctive feature on his layout.]

... I discuss the right of way and its problems. In order that the book can be complete as far as it goes, bridges and actual buildings are not considered. It does include, however, the background of the picture, the landscaping, tunnel mouths, culverts, fences and many another incidental unit which should line the right of way.

Oliver Wilson Whitwell introduces what his book is about in the Preface.

Y and E, Rochester, NY, April 1922

This Rochester street scene did have a date penciled in the album: 16 April 1922. The internet tells me it was a Sunday.The elliptical sign hanging above the black awning in the centre of the photo says: Y and E. That stands for Yawman and Erbe. They were manufacturers of high quality file cabinets in Rochester that got their start sometime in the 1890s, and were a major, thriving company by the time this photo was taken. This scene seems an odd subject for a picture. Maybe it was that large window, or what was in the window, that was intended subject. I must admit that window is impressive and would make for an excellent feature on a model. 

Persistence of Memory

I’m slowing down a little on E. L. Moore related posts as I prepare to meet with a number of collectors and Mr. Moore’s step-son in the summer. In the meantime I’ve been wandering through old family albums and ephemera. I was rather surprised to see this drawing in the August 1974 issue of CARtoons by Jerry Barnett that I bought in some Scarborough smoke shop many years ago.

[Jerry Barnett's original from the Aug '74 issue of CARtoons. His looks like it's based on a '70s Ford Ranchero, not a Chevy El Camino like I used.]

Around 10 years ago when I got back into model building and model railroading I built this El Camino conversion (I’d do many things on this build differently these days, but I still like it). Imagine my surprise when I saw that old cartoon from ’74. All I can say is that I didn’t consult it before the build started, but I was sure surprised to see it again a few nights ago. I guess things stick deep in the memory and don’t let go.

A tall ship and a water-slide

The photos in this stash are a complete mystery to me. I only have suspicions about the when and where. Taking a guess, I'd say this one was taken, once again near Rochester, New York, likely on the shore of Lake Ontario, maybe sometime from the late 1910s to sometime in the 1920s. I have no idea what that large structure is off to the left of centre. For a minute I thought it might be the 'water-slide' like structure in the photo below, but on closer inspection one can see that that they aren't the same thing. The lower photo came from a different album, and the original is only around 5 cm by 2 cm in size!