First photo of the first White River and Northern

Taken sometime in early 1973, this image reveals the layout at an early stage of construction. In the foreground, the engine facility—which included enginehouse, water tower, ash pit, cleanout tool rack and yard office—was completed, right down to the weeds, while inches away the mainline wasn't even laid yet. I saw no need to complete all of one task type (such as tracklaying) before moving on to other things like scenery and detailing; I worked on whatever I felt like at the time. Track is all Minitrix, including a mix of sectional and flex, and four curved turnouts. There was one handlaid crossing (hidden behind the water tower).

Image specs: This Polaroid color print was originally a vertical image. However, since there was nothing of interest in the upper and lower margins, cropping it horizontally did not eliminate any significant visual information. To light the layout, I placed it in front of my bedroom window, and Mr. Sun did the rest. Except to remove a few dust specs from the scan, the image was not digitally manipulated.

Continue to the next image
Return to Chapter 3

Copyright © 2006-2008 by David K. Smith. All Rights Reserved.
Nothing contained in this website may be reproduced in any form
without the express written consent of the copyright holder.