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My railroad came into being as a direct result of WW II. The logging lines extending east out of Headquarters, ID (The end of the line for the Camas Prairie owned jointly by the UP and NP) were carried beyond the first mountain range and joined with rails used for servicing mines west of Butte, MT. These rails were extended until they met to form an additional carrier across the western mountains to help with the flood of traffic generated by the war. The line ( eastern end) interchanges with the Milwaukee Road at Deer Lodge, MT. The name of the road is the Franklin, Ashton, Korinth and Empire (FAKE)). The line owns boxcars, flatcars, hopper cars, tank cars and cabooses. The motive power comes from all over the US, assigned to the road by the War Emergency Transportation Board as larger roads received new locomotives. The assemblage of cars are also hand-me-downs from other railroads. Due to the tight curves and steep grades inherent in the initial railroads, the largest rigid wheelbase locomotive on the line in a mid-sized mikado. There are several 2-6-6-0 locomotives on the road, smaller articulated units that initially were operated on the Denver and Salt Lake. The dominant wheel type is the 2-8-0 with a number of 2--6-0 loco's as well. The road does not interchange with the Camas Prairie on the western end, but has obtained operating rights over their track to an interchange with the UP in Oregon. Blocks of reefers operate over the line, as do stock cars carrying steers to slaughter. The occasional troop train is diverted from the Milwaukee Road and is moved to the interchange with the UP. Blocks of box cars carrying munitions are frequent visitors to the line heading west to the Naval Station at Bremerton, WA. Tank cars of oil also move west to service the newer Navy Ships, the older ships still burning coal which also moves over the line. The time period for the road was summer, 1942 until MR ran an article titled: "1942, A Good Period to Model". My layout is now set in the summer of 1943 just so I can seem strange. The line is primarily a single track line with extensive passing sidings. Freight moves on a strict priority basis. One deviation from normal railroad practice is to give right-of-way to westbound freights rather than to eastbound. This in deference to the Naval Station at Bremerton. The line changes motive power at Ashton, larger locomotives working east of Ashton, smaller locomotives working west. The west lines are frequently triple headed going west to provide sufficient air for the train brakes. Running from the west into Ashton, many freights require double heading because of the gain in elevation from Headquarters to Ashton. The railroad is listed as a Class 1 railroad because it moves over a million dollars worth of freight a year over the line. This amount of freight is due entirely to the war effort and the high value placed on war materiel. No one expects the road to last much past the war, but for the time being everyone along the line is fully employed, and those working for the railroad are exempt from the draft. Needless to say, the railroad has an enormous backlog of applicants seeking employment. <br /> <br />Steam, it's all we know. <br /> <br />Tom
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