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StJYard1960s

St. Johnsbury

I am still reconstructing this page. To see the original, click the link below:

http://nekrailroad.com/NEKOLD/St._Johnsbury.html


St. Johnsbury, Vermont is the center of my layout, both physically and operationally. It occupies a 3'x14' section of the center peninsula and features the trackage of CP, MEC and LVRC, as well as some yard tracks and local sidings. I have included the E.T. & H.K. IDE buildings, the Caldbeck-Cosgrove building, Allen Lumber, and also a freelanced propane dealer. I was not able to fit in the Ralston Purina plant or the turntable, and I have reduced the number of yard tracks. I also did not model the large CP passenger station. This appears to be a quite a challenge, and it would be in my aisle anyway!

Most of the layout operations involve St. Johnsbury in some way. CP-BM trains pass through, while MEC and LVRC trains will arrive and depart with interchange traffic. A CP local handles switching of the local industries. A yard crew based here sorts the interchange cars.

Let's tour the St. Johnsbury yard from from North to South with information about the key features. Many of these pictures I took on a visit in 2002 when not a lot of railroad activity was happening in the yard.

CP Rail Shanty

StJCPShanty
At the north end of the yard where the CP departs to Lyndonville on the way to Newport, this small shanty sits between the CP Rail and MEC tracks before they head under the Portland Street underpass. Little buildings like this are important to add to the layout to add interest. A model would be a basic box painted boxcar red with white door and window castings and trim.
StJMEC
To the east of the shanty, the MEC track curves off on its way to New Hampshire's White Mountains and ultimately Portland, Maine. The track passes below Rt. 2/Portland Street, useful for hiding the track at the end of the modeled portion of St. J. Because of how I fit St. J on my layout, the CP track essentially curves this same direction, parallel to the MEC.

E.T. & H.K. IDE Building

A signature building next to the St. J yard is the E.T. & H.K. Ide building. Through the years farm products were shipped and received from this building. Being so prominent in height and location to the yard tracks, I knew I needed to include a model of this building. There is the large tower building and also the car shed with a siding through it. On the side of the building there is a lower level loading area for trucks. There are also many additions built onto the main building that making an exact replica is a real challenge. I decided I would model a representation of the building that captures the main aspects of the building from the track side.

StJETHKIde

Marty Phillips from Vancouver took the time to measure the building when he still lived back east. He sent along the following dimensional information for modeling the building:
StJETHKIdea
Main Building
  • Trackside widths: 52' at base, 15' at tower (as in picture below)
  • Trackside height: 72'
  • Tower depth: 52' (side with "E.T. & H.K. IDE")
  • Sidewalls height: 36'
  • Sidewalls depth: 100'(i.e. tower only goes back 52' of the 100'
  • Black Band height: 9' (with lettering inside)
  • Platform height: 5'
  • Canopy over platform height: 10'

StJCarShed
Car Shed
Trackside length: 122'
Trackside height: 19'
End width: 15' (end with track entering)
End peak height: 26'
Roof overhang: 1'
Trim around track opening: 7"
3 Side Windows: 40" x 68" (boarded over in view below)
Window spacing: 26', 54', 88' from left corner
Clapboard: 4"

StJETHKIdeb
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