Hello all, Cade here! 
I'm back and I have recently began construction on the first 50-mile release of what will eventually sprawl into a 405-mile (mainline) route, at least the first version, the St Louis-San Francisco Railway's Springfield Terminal and Springfield Subdivision. This subdivision of the Frisco ran between Springfield, MO and Monett, MO, with branch lines to Ozark and Mount Vernon. Springfield was the hub of the railroad and was located on her crossroads of the St. Louis-Texas and Kansas City-Memphis-Birmingham mainlines, and the location of the railroad's offices, major shops, and three major yards, including the massive classification yard at Kansas Ave. The city was served by several major SLSF passenger and freight trains and was also the end of a Missouri Pacific branch that interchanged with the Frisco. Monett was the meeting point of several of the railroad's branches and subdivisions, including the Ft Smith and Cherokee Subs, along with the Joplin Branch. In the late 1940's and early 1950's this line would've been crawling with action.
The Route:
The Frisco Springfield Sub for OR will be the complete sub from Monett to Springfield along with all branches and spurs, and will also include all of Springfield being modeled and detailed in this first release. I am using aerial views from 1959, Sanborn maps from the 1920s and 1930s, and track charts/schematics from the 1960s, so that is one reason why 1950 was chosen as the date. The other reason is because the Frisco dieselized by 1953 so I want this to be in the peak of the railroad's transition era, where first generation diesels served side by side with the SLSF's beautiful 4-8-4s and Heavy 4-8-2s, in my opinion some of the most beautiful steam locomotives ever to be built. (As this route gets nearer to completion if any of the more talented steam modelers need a new project check those out and the other Frisco locomotives of the era
) Plenty of switching, mainline freight, and passenger action to go around.
So far I have the track laid out around MK Junction heading east and south on the Ozark Branch. Next I will be moving west towards the station. I plan on laying all of Springfield out before heading towards Monett.
Future Plans:
This version is just the beginning of a route I have planned and dreamed of building for a few years now. The first full version will include this section along with the Ash Grove Sub to Fort Smith, KS, the Lebanon Sub to Newburg, and the Willow Springs Sub to Thayer. Possible extension past there will be along the Missouri Pacific and the SLSF's lines in far Southwest Missouri.
If anyone is interested in helping out or just giving general pointers, feel free to PM or e-mail me!
Thank you,
Cade VerHage
I'm back and I have recently began construction on the first 50-mile release of what will eventually sprawl into a 405-mile (mainline) route, at least the first version, the St Louis-San Francisco Railway's Springfield Terminal and Springfield Subdivision. This subdivision of the Frisco ran between Springfield, MO and Monett, MO, with branch lines to Ozark and Mount Vernon. Springfield was the hub of the railroad and was located on her crossroads of the St. Louis-Texas and Kansas City-Memphis-Birmingham mainlines, and the location of the railroad's offices, major shops, and three major yards, including the massive classification yard at Kansas Ave. The city was served by several major SLSF passenger and freight trains and was also the end of a Missouri Pacific branch that interchanged with the Frisco. Monett was the meeting point of several of the railroad's branches and subdivisions, including the Ft Smith and Cherokee Subs, along with the Joplin Branch. In the late 1940's and early 1950's this line would've been crawling with action.
The Route:
The Frisco Springfield Sub for OR will be the complete sub from Monett to Springfield along with all branches and spurs, and will also include all of Springfield being modeled and detailed in this first release. I am using aerial views from 1959, Sanborn maps from the 1920s and 1930s, and track charts/schematics from the 1960s, so that is one reason why 1950 was chosen as the date. The other reason is because the Frisco dieselized by 1953 so I want this to be in the peak of the railroad's transition era, where first generation diesels served side by side with the SLSF's beautiful 4-8-4s and Heavy 4-8-2s, in my opinion some of the most beautiful steam locomotives ever to be built. (As this route gets nearer to completion if any of the more talented steam modelers need a new project check those out and the other Frisco locomotives of the era
) Plenty of switching, mainline freight, and passenger action to go around. So far I have the track laid out around MK Junction heading east and south on the Ozark Branch. Next I will be moving west towards the station. I plan on laying all of Springfield out before heading towards Monett.
Future Plans:
This version is just the beginning of a route I have planned and dreamed of building for a few years now. The first full version will include this section along with the Ash Grove Sub to Fort Smith, KS, the Lebanon Sub to Newburg, and the Willow Springs Sub to Thayer. Possible extension past there will be along the Missouri Pacific and the SLSF's lines in far Southwest Missouri.
If anyone is interested in helping out or just giving general pointers, feel free to PM or e-mail me!
Thank you,
Cade VerHage
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