Former Layout

From early in 1998 until September of 2002, the FitzGerald and Western occupied a 15 by 40 foot room in the basement of my home in Greenville. It was, as I now know, a less than ideal design. The towns were far too close together and operating would have been a real headache. The fact that it was a poor design was actually a good thing, as it gave me a better idea of what I should plan for the new layout. This was my first attempt at building a large home layout, and while the layout never reached completion, there were a few areas that I would like to share with you. For those of you who have ever had to dismantle a layout, you know the mixed emotions that go with it. I like to think of it as a new challenge, a chance to improve on the past. Here are a few of my favorite scenes from the first layout. You will probably notice some of the same concepts showing up on the new FitzGerald and Western. I hope that you enjoy these scenes from the past as much as I enjoyed creating them. Click on each picture for a larger version and a bit more commentary.

This photo shows an overview of the small town of Coleman, Wisconsin. This was the only town that I had completely "finished" on the old layout. It represents a small town between the real cities of Green Bay and Marinette. (FitzGerald and Split Rock on the layout) It is a relatively small town, with a feed mill and the Coleman Camping Co. as the main industries.

Wisconsin Central GP-30 # 711 rumbles across the Hwy. 41 grade crossing in downtown Coleman, Wisconsin, with a mixed freight.

Two loaded Burlington Northern hoppers wait for the next local to pick them up from the Holdingford Grain Elevator in Coleman.

This is, by far, my most favorite picture from the old layout. I love the way the lighting gives the impression of an early morning switch move. Here, a Wisconsin Central GP-30 drifts down the siding from the Coleman Co. with an empty hopper that had contained plastic pellets.

Two FGW boxcars are loaded at Coleman Co. while a WC centerbeam flatcar sits on the interchange track. While the real village of Coleman, Wisconsin, has no ties to the camping gear company, I have taken the liberty of changing that on this layout, as well as on the new layout.

Here is a shot of the first two FGW paint schemes. The gray GP-9 is painted in what railfans dubbed the "stealth" scheme. The second GP-9 is painted in the "safety green" paint scheme. This paint scheme was short lived, as my modeling friends thought it was too un-prototypical and threatened to oust me from the group if I didn't drop it. (I think they may have even been serious about that!)

Even Thomas got a chance to polish the rails every now and then!

This is the new paint scheme that is being applied to the FitzGerald and Western fleet. I have adopted an oxide red and white scheme to coincide with the color of most great lakes boats, another one of my interests.