Rio Grande Southern Lizard Head Division

Scale: HOn3 & HO

These beautiful HOn3 Rio Grande Southern and HO Milwaukee Road Shullsburg layouts are certainly well known by those who read many of the popular model railroading magazines. Both layouts are 100% ‘Photo finished’ and as such, provide a ton of viewing and photo opportunities. The layouts have been used as a basis to author numerous articles on various aspects of building or improving upon a layout with an eye towards showing people how easy it is to accomplish projects that will take your layout to the next level. To further enhance the authenticity of the layouts, the layout space includes a dispatcher’s office that replicates a portion of the RGS Rico depot complete with authentic paperwork and dispatcher’s equipment. The actual Train Board from the RGS’ Dolores depot hangs on the wall of a well-dressed crew lounge!

Era/Locale: September 1947, Southwest Colorado
Size: x 17′ x 40′
Benchwork: 100%
Track: 100%
Scenery: 100%

Back to All Home Layout Tours.

From Minnesota Digital Library:

“The growth of Minnesota can be tied directly to the growth of railroads. The railroads supported farmers, millers, miners, and loggers by moving the raw materials they produced to sell at markets. In turn, the railroads brought other goods and products to the people to build their homes, businesses, and towns. Railroads also brought immigrants to settle the land and provided jobs and income to laborers and investors.

Three of Minnesota’s major railroads were the Northern Pacific, the Great Northern, and the Soo Line. While these three were not the only railroads that operated in Minnesota, they had a major impact on the state.

The U.S. Congress chartered the Northern Pacific Railway in 1864 to build a transcontinental railroad from Lake Superior to the Pacific coast. When it was completed in 1883, the railroad had laid nearly 6,800 miles of track through Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Its headquarters were in St. Paul, Minnesota.”

From ThievesRiver.com:

1) Uff da

Background: A Scandinavian import, particularly from Norwegian, “uff da” is widely used to express dismay, exhaustion or sometimes even relief. It embodies the stoic yet expressive nature of Minnesotans.

Example: “Uff da! I forgot my wallet at the cabin. Now I can’t pay for the meat raffle tickets, gosh darn it!”

2) You Betcha

Background: This phrase epitomizes the friendly and positive attitude of Minnesotans. It’s often said with enthusiasm and is used to mean “absolutely” or “you can count on it.”

Example: “Do you want to come to the hockey game this weekend? Grain Belts are on me!” – “You betcha!”

Read more at ThievesRiver.com