Tomkat, your models are exceptional!
Oh, and I almost forgot, this is the elevator in Hobbs, Indiana......
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Picture057.jpg
And this is the station, though it's been moved to the Indiana Transportation Museum now.....
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/afh.jpg
Fuel company
Grain Elevators
Small stations
Seed & Feed
Yes Philip; You are right, and I had just said to my wife as we looked at the picture that I had copied of it, that I bet after it had been a stable that it would have been used as a fire hall before being converted into a commercial bldg. Great minds think a like.....LOL.
Johnboy out.......................
from Saskatchewan, in the Great White North..
We have met the enemy, and he is us............ (Pogo)
Johnboy,
I love that one too! I thought it would make a great firehouse.
Philip; I just love that old livery stable. What a great conversion of a building.
I will keep that picture and hope some day to get around to model it. WOW.
Johnboy out.....................
Jaws, I'm glad you found them helpful. I thought this town had some nice generic buildings so thats why I took the pics. It was really a study for me, but if you all are liking it, all the better.
This one shows the other side of the same building (the tall one) and if you look close (I know, the lighting isn't good) you can just make out the words "U.S. MAIL" across the top of it, real faded. I don't know the history behind it, but it's interesting all the same.
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-16-070.jpg
http://faculty.simpson.edu/dick.tinder/www/VTWIMuseum/Indianola/Indianola.html
I hope that link works. Its for the Rock Island Technical Society memeber Dick Tinder. It is a story and photo essay of the trip from Short Line Jct to Indianola Iowa.
Shows a lot of neat small town shots. Has your grain elevator farm implement dealer and other small town items.
Yes we are on time but this is yesterdays train
Cudaken has some nice pics of Alton, IL. Some of the buildings date back to the mid 1800's. Definitely a midwest river town.
http://s83.photobucket.com/albums/j284/cudaken/
A little different looking terrain than the Ozarks, although the architecture of the buildings doesn't look much different than Branson did in the early '70s when I was last there.
Rotor
Jake: How often does the train go by? Elwood: So often you won't even notice ...
Butler bins:
And check out this website for photos:
http://www.brucemartin.com/portfolio.html
Anhydrous ammonia tanks on wheels are very common in small Illinois farm towns.
Dave Nelson
pcarrell wrote: Thank you, but you're way too kind!One thing I should have mentioned......these older buildings tend to have a lot more architectural details then the newer ones. This building here for example ( http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-076.jpg ) has some rather ornate brickwork across the top. But look closer...... http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-075.jpg and check out that tile inlay..... http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-074.jpg . It's those kinds of details that would take a model to the next level.
Thank you, but you're way too kind!
One thing I should have mentioned......these older buildings tend to have a lot more architectural details then the newer ones. This building here for example ( http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-076.jpg ) has some rather ornate brickwork across the top. But look closer...... http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-075.jpg and check out that tile inlay..... http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-074.jpg . It's those kinds of details that would take a model to the next level.
Philip,
The smaller building to the right illustrates an attempt to "modernize" an older structure with a shake shingle awning. I have seen this done in several small towns.
In the southwest where the sun can be very intense, every building on the block may have a permanent awning, usually a flat panel with steel rods holding it to the facade at an angle.
The water tower that you show in several of your pix is a dominant feature of small towns and is usually located somewhere near the railroad. The Fortville tank is a more modern design but many small towns still have the older style with a conical roof. I have both types on my layout.
In one picture there is a tornado or air raid siren in the distance next to the tracks. One of my water towers has a tornado siren attached to a cross brace, something I saw in a Kansas tornado belt town.
John Timm
Also consider a farm equipment dealer,requires a team track,Bulk plant for gas ,oil, and barreled products,fertilizer dealer,tank cars for ammonia in modern days, box cars full of bagged goods 30 or more years ago. Feed mill or feed dealer. modern days maybe a plastic pipe factory with business for tank cars and covered hoppers full of pellets. thats all I can think of for now.
Phil, and everyone else_
Thanks a million, these pics help a lot! Phil, thats like a Pie-load (sorry, couldn't resist) of Pics!!! Amazing Photography!! you should consider sending those in to Trains magazine. Wow! thanks!
"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." - Jim Elliot Visit my blog! http://becomingawarriorpoet.blogspot.com
Phillip,
Thanks for the very complete photo "tour" of a small town.
When I started planning for my current layout which depicts a small-medium size town in Kansas / Oklahoma / Texas, like Phillip I drove through the area with camera in hand. Lots of local folks could not understand why I cared enough about their little town to take pictures of it, but in any case I made up an album that was very helpful later for building, painting and weathering typical structures. It also helped to produce appropriate signs and other details like street lights, traffic signals, etc.
Since these places tend to change very little over time, the stuctures of today are likely to be basically the same as those of 1950 or even 1920. The differences will lie in details like usage, signage, additions and remodeling, especially of the facades over time. For instance, most stores downtown look much the same on the second floor or above as they did in the past. The changes are seem in the storefronts.
The local bank has probably added an ATM and a drive-thru. There is likely a computer store or Radio Shack franchise. The coffee shop is still there, but on the edge of downtown there is a Pizza Hut.
The biggest enterprise in town is probably the local elevator. Over the years it has added more modern bins or concrete silos while retaining much of the original galvanized metal-clad structure. I added a co-op conveniece store out front.
If you have a particular area or town in mind, I recommend a Google search. If there is a local chamber of commerce, there is likely a website with pictures of the downtown, local industries, schools, the court house and other public buildings.
Just some thoughts and ideas on the subject...
Oh it's definately era dependant. To a certain extent it's also road specific too.
My pics would be for a modern small town along the old Nickle Plate road, but there's a lot of generic info that you could get from the pics too.
I think it really depends on what era you're modeling. I'm modeling the 1970's and from the overhead shots and talking to the station agent there was a fuel dealership, several grain coops, and fertilizer dealers(tank cars and boxcars). Next town over included the same plus a cement dealer. During this time there was the once-a-month or seasonal shipments of lumber, farm implements, and other items to the freight dock. One interesting thing was the railroad TOFC that would come through a couple times a month to deliver trailers to the TOFC dock and railroad freight house. They in turn would deliver LCL traffic to the area towns. This is on the Missouri Pacific in Northern Kansas.
Nate
I live near the small midwestern town of Fortville, IN and I have a few pics that might help.
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-073.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-070.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-071.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-076.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-21-072.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-16-071.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-16-072.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/4-16-073.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/Captured2006-8-500000.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/Captured2006-8-600000.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/Captured2006-8-600001.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Fortville%20Town/Captured2006-8-600002.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/IMG_1856.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/FortvilleIN12-22-070.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/5-27-077.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/5-27-078.jpg
Some of the sidings in the area still have some signs of the past showing......
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/Picture010-1.jpg
Fortville's depot is long gone, but the next town up the line, Ingalls IN. converted theirs to a post office and it's still there.
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Prototype%20Train%20Photos/8-6-07IngallsTrainStation1.jpg
Do these help any?
If there's something specific you're needing a pic of I might be able to help with that. There are several small towns (some bigger then others) with rails passing through them around here.
Hey all, I'm planning a small town on my layout with a grain elevator and depot. what else would you expect to see, details etc.
Thanks!