Finding old track profiles

[Anonymous]

Dose any one know where to get maps or diagrams of old trackage that once existed in certain places? Example: I want to model a small yard that once existed in Brookhaven, Ms., but at the turn of the century it served as an interchange point for three railroads. The Illinois Central, Mississippi Central, and the Pearl River Railway. Where could I find diagrams of this trackage?

[eng22]

Try the Local library, Historical archives section, look for old plot maps from the Accesors office, or Sanbourne fire insurance maps.

[areibel]

The railroad itself probably had maps like you're looking for, but finding them is difficult. There were probably several dozen sets for railrod use, but they weren't "collectable" back then. If there's a local historical society they may have them, or if there's a society for the railroad itself you might have a chance.
Another possibility would be valuation maps. These were maps that the ICC required the railroads to have, they showed the trackage in an area along with anything else of value. Since they were actual government records, many have survived. It might take some digging, like at the National Archives, but they should be out there some where.

[dknelson]

There is a guy who advertises in the Trains classifieds who sells track profiles for a lot of railroads. check those ads
Dave N

[cacole]

Depending on how far back you want to go, the Library of Congress Web site (www.loc.gov) has railroad maps pre-dating creation of the Interstate Commerce Commission (1830-1900). These maps are in a compressed format called Mr. Sid, and there's a link to a free Mr. Sid reader that you can download to look at, enlarge, and print maps that you have saved to your 'puter's hard drive. Click on American Memory, Collection Finder, Geography, and then scroll down to Railroad Maps. There are hundreds of maps available, broken down by geographic location, alphabetical, time frame, or railroad name.