Altoona Yard 1946-1957

[jaygee]

T'was a million or so years far removed now, but back when the PRRT&HS first fired up ( They were the PRIA back then)   the guys brought out in the flegling Keystone magazine ....a complete set of the Altoona yards / works plans.  This was done across several issues, given the size of the whole thing. It was a monster in every sense of the word!  Imagine a scene taking up an entire acre in HO scale, and that's folded over several times.  IIRC, there were several duck unders in this operation, and I've wondered if just maybe the mysteriously missing 6435 might have been stashed in one such tube. Pennsy was not known for doing things on a small scale !!

[Firelock76]

Wow, modeling the Altoona yard in HO?  Man, dat's gonna be one BIG model!  Doing the N&W's Roanoke yard in N scale would involve a layout 160 feet long!

OK, we know you're not doing ALL of it.  Best of luck all the same.

By the way, I love that march Frederick the Great wrote for you, "Alte Dessauer."

[Juniatha]

Modelling Aloona yards - wow , I'd like to see the mansion that can accomodate an HO (?) model railroad set-up of *that* magnitude !

For a steam lover the difference between the former and the latter year meant *all* the difference between thrilling and boring since the time span comprised the years of transition from *real power* to 'the other thing' , it also saw the Studebaker 'coming or going' coming and going and it covers the years from Ford's chubby Crestline to the advent of Virgil Exner's flashy Chryler fin cars .   Unfortunately there never was a time when in a 300-C you could have paced a T1 at full cry racing down the high iron West of Crestline ...

Wished they could have lasted to see the Challenger appear .. the Dodge , that is , and in plum crazy violet-blue metalisée for sure with cherry blossom white interior .   T1 by then equipped with proper double Kylchap , valve gear troubles solved and railroad track alignment upgraded , 426 Hemi Chally with a free R/T exhaust :  pacing the big steam loco alongsides windows down at 120 mph , from inside the car which engine would have drowned which one ?  could it have been *the* challenge to remember for lifetime ?

Imagine ..

Juniatha

 

[The Old Dessauer]

Thanks for the reply!

 

[ndbprr]

If I recall correctly the historical society published an issue of the Keystone with a blueprint of altoona and a diagram and description of the buildings. Might still be available from the society.

[The Old Dessauer]

Thank you so much, Ed!

[gmpullman]

Here's one good place to start:

http://www.billspennsyphotos.com/

Lots of Altoona history here including local scenes around the town. He offers a 10" x 45" circa 1946 track diagram if you are interested.

http://www.billspennsyphotos.com/apps/webstore/products/show/1232754

 

This site may be of some help as well:

http://www.altoonaworks.info/diagrams.html

Good Luck, Ed

[The Old Dessauer]

I didn't know exactly which forum to post this in so I apologize if it's in the wrong place. 

I am modeling Altoona Yard circa 1946-1957.  I'm specifically looking for detailed photographs and schematics of the steam locomotive servicing facilities there.  Roundhouses, turntables, coaling towers, water tanks, standpipes, ash pits, etc...I could really use good quality photographs of the above. 

I would appreciate it if someone could point me in the direction of any resources that would be of use in this endeavor.  I am aware of a series of book called Pennsylvania Railroad Facilities in Color by Robert J. Yanosey, but none of them seem to feature Altoona, unless I misread the excerpts from the covers. 

Regards,

The Old Dessauer