The S-Scale B&O/Allegheny
Western Subdivision
This 11 foot x 45 foot S-scale
model railroad represents a portion of the operations of the
Baltimore & Ohio Railroad through the Pittsburgh, PA area in
1966. The B&O operations take place over the trackage of the
former Allegheny Western Railway, an P&LE-like railroad which
offered superior facilities to the B&O�s own route through the
Pittsburgh region.
This type of prototype-freelancing
is particularly useful when modeling in a minority scale like
S-scale, allowing for use of rolling stock and structures that do
not match actual B&O practice, but are offered as RTR or kits in
S-scale.
History of the Allegheny Western
Railway
The history of the fictitious
Allegheny Western Railroad begins in 1875. In that year, some
influential Pittsburgh businessmen, anxious to create a connection
between Pittsburgh and the lake port at Cleveland, chartered the
Allegheny Western Railroad and completed the line between Pittsburgh
and Cleveland in 1888. During the 1890�s, track was extended south
from Pittsburgh to serve the steel facilities in McKeesport, and
coal mining operations in Versailles, PA. The Allegheny Western
continued as an independent operation until the Great Depression
following the stock market crash of 1929.
In 1934, the Baltimore & Ohio
Railroad secured majority stockholder interest and the company was
reorganized as the Allegheny Western Railway. Under B&O control,
the Allegheny Western continued basically as an independent
operation, but B&O increasingly took advantage of the Allegheny
Western�s superior right-of-way. B&O passenger trains operating
through Pittsburgh were moved to the Allegheny Western from
Versailles to Akron and from Versailles to Cleveland in 1934. From
1934 to 1960, in increments, the original B&O mainline was
abandoned from Versailles to a point just east of Glenwood Yard,
with the superior Allegheny Western mainline being used by both
roads between these two points.
In 1963, concurrent with the
affiliation with the C&O, the B&O absorbed the Allegheny
Western Railway into the B&O, designating it as the Allegheny
Western Subdivision of the Pittsburgh Division. By 1966, the year
being modeled, only a few pieces of Allegheny Western Railway
rolling stock and other reminders of the independent Allegheny
Western operation remained, and the B&O image had become
dominant.
Operations Modeled on the S-scale
B&O/Allegheny Western Subdivision
The layout focuses on operations
between Versailles, PA and West End, PA in the greater Pittsburgh
area.
By 1966, B&O through passenger
service to Cleveland had ended, but there were still multiple
passenger trains operating through Pittsburgh, linking Chicago with
Washington and Baltimore. In addition, commuter service is offered
between Pittsburgh and Versailles.
The major freight connections
modeled on the layout are:
-
The Penn Creek Valley (an
S-scale model railroad owned by Sam Powell, which represents the
Pittsburgh and West Virginia) with an interchange at West
End.
-
The Monongahela Connecting
Railroad, which serves Jones & Laughlin Steel Co. facilities,
and interchanges with the B&O at Glenwood Yard.
Operations are based on the car
card/waybill system with a fast clock.
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Site last updated December 31, 2020