VIRTUAL TOUR OF THE DETROIT MODEL RAILROAD CLUB LAYOUT
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    Welcome to the virtual tour of the DETROIT MODEL RAILROAD CLUB LAYOUT.  With this tour we hope to give you a better idea of our objectives and accomplishments. We have been working on this railroad since 1974.  We never expect to get the railroad "finished" because we are continually changing it as we get experience operating it.  Our major source of income is membership dues with a little help from the public Open House.  The dates of the 2005 Open Houses are posted HERE. 

   Our Club model railroad is called the DETROIT MODEL RAILROAD CLUB, and is being built in an exact scale of 1/4 inch to the foot.  This is referred to as "O" Scale among model railroaders, and it means that the model of a forty (40) foot long boxcar will be ten (10) inches long.  The popular Lionel trains (which most of us  started in model railroading) are the same size as our models, but they are not to exact scale.

   The first section of our model that you come upon is the city of Dorrance.  The city is named after Perry Dorrance, the first president of our Club, and is the western terminal of the DETROIT UNION RAILROAD.  Many railroad related structures are in place including a roundhouse, station, Railway Express Agency (REA), car repair building and the Duncan Junction switch tower.  Operating facilities at Dorrance include a passenger coach yard, freight yard and a self-aligning turntable.  All of these facilities and structures have been built in place "from scratch" by members of our Club.  Many additional structures will be built in the town as time and budget permit.

   The DETROIT UNION RAILROAD is patterned after the Union railroads of several midwest cities such as Cleveland, Cincinnati and St. Louis.  The railroads serving the city organized a Union railroad, which was jointly owned and provided a single set of tracks into the city that all the owning railroads would share.  Detroit never had a Union railroad serving Detroit used the old Fort Street Union Depot.

    As the trains run east to the right of the building run on about 350 feet of double track mainline as they head towards Detroit. On the way to Detroit, the first thing the train passes is Duncan Junction, where the double track passenger mainline merges with the double track freight mainline.  In this area are some outstanding scenery features of our railroad, including rockwork, trees, stumps and a hobo or two.  One of the features is a bear that roams the area we call Bear Mountain.

    After the curve around Bear Mountain, the train start downgrade towards the valley and pass the Dorrance Signal Bridge.  After passing the signal bridge, the train goes behind the mountain on the far side of the layout and emerges heading back through Nichols Crossing.  The train then goes under Bear Mountain and comes out to pass Pierson's Farm.  

    After passing Pierson's Farm, the train head into a curved tunnel and comes out in the town of Hammondsport.  Hammondsport is one of two towns in the "Valley" (The other being Keatington). They are both serviced by the single track branchline.  These towns provide "revenue traffic" for the railroad and allow for interchange of passengers and freight.

    After leaving Hammondsport, the train then heads into another tunnel and enters Walkerville.  In Walkerville, the three lines (the double track main and the single track) run parallel for a short distance.  From Walkerville, eastbound trains head into Detroit.  

    In Detroit, there is an additional 200 feet of track under the floor, where there are two five track storage yards and reversing loops.  This track will be extended eventually to 650 feet as we build the eastern terminal of the railroad in the lower level of our redesigned theater.  The city of Detroit will include a nine track passenger station and a large freight yard.

    The train then, after getting clearance, head out of Detroit and into the valley.  In the valley is Mohan Mine. Clearing the valley the train then heads into the first town in the Valley, Keatington.   After passing through Keatington the train then heads out of sight and emerges in Smith's Creek.

    Upon exiting Smith Creek the train heads past Walkerville and below Maguire, where the single and double track mainlines interchange and heads into the to the back of the building.  The train makes several loops, including crossing over the Curved Tressell, and into the Power Plant.  

    Trains that head west out of Dorrance, come through Ripper's Junction and heads through Maguire and into the eight track storage yard called Summit.  During Open Houses up to sixteen (16) complete trains can be stored at Summit.  They are dispatched almost randomly, so that visitors see a large variety of equipment in operation.  Leaving Summit, the trains heads into is heading east again towards Dorrance.  

    Above Summit is the newly constructed Williamsburg.  Two loops of track (called a helix) have been constructed which will connect the towns of Maguire and Williamsburg.  When the track and all of the associated wiring is finished, a mountain will be built in this area which will go almost to the ceiling.   Trackage in Williamsburg will be expanding to service several industries and provide interchange with other railroads, including a narrow gauge line.  This will also allow further development of the east end of the building.   These projects will evolve over the next several years. 

   On the balcony above Williamsburg is our Dispatch Room, which is the control center of our railroad.  The dispatcher there controls the operation of the railroad by connection the locomotive engineers with their trains, and setting the route that each train will take.  The dispatcher gets to decide who goes where and when.  Normally, he works from a pre-planned schedule.

   Up to six engineers can operate trains over the entire railroad under control of the dispatcher.  Each engineer is in constant radio communication with the dispatcher, and with each other, using FM radios.  Each engineer also has a radio controlled transistor throttle (Note: the Club is currently upgrading to Digital Command Control (DCC)) that regulates the power applied to the track.  This allows the engineer to control the speed and direction of his train just like on the real railroads.

   In addition to the radio controlled mainline "cabs", several other locomotives can be operated from local panels in the various towns around the railroad.  These local "cabs" allow us to perform the switching chores that are required to make up and tear down trains.  When complete, we will be able to operate about twenty trains at the same time (providing we have have enough people).

   At the east end of the building, the former stage area, we are operating trains on recently completed trackwork.  Adjacent to the aisle is the town of Millersburg, which is the terminus of the branch line and serves the large coach mine in the area.  The new construction in Millersburg is the beginnings of our narrow gauge line which will interchange with the standard gauge line.  In the middle of this area, new trackage will deliver coal from the mine to a large power plant with it four track yard.

   Above this area is our Club Meeting room, which contains our extensive model railroading library and our Dispatching Center.  Also at the east end of the building is the stairway to the lower level where Detroit will be located.