"PALM TREES IN MOBILE???" Prior to this evening, my parents had no idea of my plans to start over with another AT&N layout that is a little more theoretically prototypical than the layout I built a couple of years ago. The freelanced plan for the next layout includes a small yard at the Mobile office with a photo of the BNSF-era depot on the backdrop (It's the most modern photo I can find until I'm down that way again.) So, with my parents having no knowledge whatsoever of my plans to have a part of the Mobile/gulf coast area on my next layout, and with no talk (ever) of me modeling anything coastal/tropical, how ironic is it that one of the gifts they gave me for Christmas tonight was a package of palm trees? http://www.jttmicroscale.com/viewproductdetail.asp?id=216 The palm trees may be out of place around the office and ferry slip, but that's exactly where I'm going to "plant" them, regardless. Although my research hasn't found Pheonix palms in Mobile, there are palm trees of other species down there. http://www.florida-palm-trees.com/alabama-palm-trees/ Additionally, I received a Bachmann Silver Series box car... ...a Walthers Gold Line RTR coil car... I suppose they're both headed down the AT&N to the port of Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz (Mexico) via the CG rail ferry!?! I also received a Model Power supermarket kit. I suppose Aliceville has plans for a new supermarket coming to town!?! I suppose it's been about 20 years since my parents bought me anything for MRRing. They have an advertising business associate who buys and sells collectibles now through another business. He gets a few HO items in every now and then. I may have to pay him a visit. - Brandon
Re: Mobile Yard and Freight Office These were taken in 2008. AGR was and still the owner. It hasn't changed much if at all since then. If I find any more recent I will post in this thread.
Re: Mobile Yard and Freight Office Thanks so much for this "Christmas present, Howard." It is more up to date, more level, and exactly what I need for my back drop since I just don't have the ambition to scratch build it. Do you have any idea about it's width? I haven't been able to find a floor plan. From the scale on google maps, my closest guess is 60 feet across the front or roughly 8.28" in HO scale. Is AGR still the owner? Have they bought the property or do they still lease it from BNSF? In other news, my wife bought me a rotary tool for Christmas! Time to cut some rail! - Brandon
Re: Mobile Yard and Freight Office Brandon, the aluminum door appears to be 7' high, and I would assume 3' wide. Hope that helps. I need a class in Photoshop or something to be able to take the vehicles out of shots like these.
Re: Mobile Yard and Freight Office The old AT&N/SLSF office building appears to be roughly 19-20 times as wide as the current door (just the door alone - not including the window next to the door). I believe that without actually measuring the building or having a copy of the floor plan, a safe estimate of the office building is 60' x 30' based on the google maps scale and assuming that the door is 32"-33" in width. With that said, a rough 1:87 scale estimate would be a width across the front of the building of 8 inches for HO scale. Until/unless I can get accurate measurements, 8 inches is what I'm going to resize the photo width to in order to use it on my backdrop. - Brandon
Re: Mobile Yard and Freight Office I'm not sure who owns the property these day. It looks about the same. I was buy there in September and it looked about the same. Take a look at my album Frisco in Mobile for more pictures
