BOOKS FROM ENGLAND

 For years, I’ve picked up the English model railroad magazine,  Narrow Gauge & Industrial Railway Modeling Review.    Despite mostly dealing with UK prototypes (occasional US prototypes) it is my favorite, and in my opinion, best modeling magazine out there.   Doug’s Trains in Claymont, Delaware, used to carry them, but haven’t for around 4 years.  I was told there that the publisher died and there was and interruption in publication, but since it’s been published again, Doug’s hasn’t been getting it.  This led me to miss out on a few years of issues (four a year).  I managed to fill in what I missed via eBay, but kept meaning to get around to paying for a subscription, which I did two weeks ago.   It’s 45 pounds a year to get in US - somewhere around $60 a year - still worth it for me.  

The first magazine came via air mail in less than 6 days from ordering it.  While I was ordering from them, I got the few back issues I didn’t have from past few years, and purchased two books - The Crowsnest Chronicles and WDLR Companion.   

The Crowsnest Chronicles is first-rate, and incredibly cheap - 10 pounds, around $13 US.  It’s a nice paper bound 96 page book, with 174 photographs and 25 drawings, diagrams, and plans.   The modeling is outstanding and something to aspire too, but better, the techniques and materials are explained.   It’s the author’s  ramblings of his construction of locomotives, buildings, cars, track, and scenery, for a series of narrow gauge dioramas from the early 1970s to the present, based on a fictional narrow gauge prototype.  It starts out in O scale but ends up in 16mm, which is a popular scale in England to model 2’, or 600mm narrow gauge prototypes.  It works out to around 1/19 scale but the track is pretty much O scale - in US would be like Gn2 or maybe Fn2.  

The second book WDLR Companion, was a bit more expensive, 32 pounds.  It’s about the Western Department Light Rail WWI trench railways.   The same publisher put out a book six years ago called the WDLR Album, which is out of print now.  This book is a companion and stand alone book, with photos, drawings, and interesting history.  Not something I will ever model, but WWI light railways have always been interesting to me.  Carstens, now White River, published Narrow Gauge to No-Mans Land, they might still have available, which is about the US light rail system in WWI.   The WDLR is the British system.  These railroads were operated in dangerous, harsh conditions to supply the front line, and move wounded to the rear.    As an aside, one of these 600mm trench railroad systems was relocated after the war to nearby Ft Dix, and used to transport troops to and from the ranges.   They have I believe a car in their museum still.  

Besides excellent writing and drawings, the quality and layout of these books are first rate.  

BOOK REVIEW - West Floria Rails. Volume 3. Bone Valley Phosphate Operations

 

You know you’ve bought too many Morning Sun books, when you start looking at subjects far from home, west Florida to be exact.   In all fairness, I’d always been interested in the Bone Valley area, but there wasn’t really much out there about it.  For those not familiar, the Bone Valley is in central west Florida, and has the largest deposits of phosphate in the US  Phosphate is primarily used for agricultural fertilizer, but also other things, like giving soft drinks their unique tangy kick.  From a railroad/industrial standpoint, the area would be comparable to the coal regions of West Virginia or eastern PA - lots of trains, in a small area, pulling the same stuff.  The difference would be that the Bone Valley peaked in the 70’s and 80’s, in terms of output, so the locomotives and rolling stock are more modern.  The rolling stock is also very unique and interesting - a mix of open and covered hoppers, with a smattering of tank cars carrying acid.  The hopper cars are fairly specific to hauling phosphate.  

The book is nicely laid out, with good maps (something many Morning Sun books lack).   Excellent descriptions of the photos.  Subject matter not confined to solely locomotives.  Plenty of photos from afar, and also plenty without a locomotive.   Interesting subject, well described.