The Franklin County Narrow Gauges

The Next Stop Is Farmington

by Guy Rioux, 2020
Dan Rand Publishing Company
57 Winchester St.
Boston, MA 02116
carlos@danrandpublishing.com, or SRRL.org, or Farmington, Strong, or Phillips Historical Societies.
Hardcover, illus., 355 pages, $54.00.

This is the third book in Guy Rioux’s series on the Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes and related railroads. The first two are The Next Stop is Kingfield, and The Next Stop is Phillips. I am always amazed at how much information has been published on the SR&RL, and this new book has loads more. The book is arranged into 17 topical chapters full of little details such as the color of the uniforms of the SR&RL baseball team, early cook cars, why did the Madrid Bridge collapse, and the size of the bell at the Farmington Transfer Office. The chapters include detailed discussions of the track cars from 1903–1922, including prototype drawings of pump cars and illustrated catalog information on a Sheffield No. 36 track car. The text describes the various SR&RL track cars in detail with many photos. Most of the information in the book comes from prototype sources, company records, and newspaper accounts making the text detailed, but not easy to read. Chapters include SR&RL Communications, Upgrades beginning in 1912, the Mt. Abram and Barnjum Branches, the SR&RL during World War I, a strike and the Flu Pandemic of 1918–1919 (how relevant today), and a chapter on turntables. Chapter 13 describes locomotive #17 in the river, and Chapter 14 continues the description of track cars after 1923. The rail buses are covered in Chapter 15, with the last days of the SR&RL described in Chapters 16 and 17. There is a List of References, and the Appendix contains a Roster of SR&RL employees from 1908 to 1935, Rules and Rates for Trainmen, Enginemen, Firemen, Trainmen, and Yardmen. There are also replicas of pages from the Kingfield Station Ledger between 1901 to 1903, and list of Franklin & Megantic, Phillips & Rangeley, and Sandy River cars between 1901 to 1907.

This book, along with the previous books by Guy, are detailed to the point that they require a careful reading. The information is there, and 2-foot fans will revel in it. However, there is no index, so you will need to ferret out the details. I wish I had a book like this on the Eureka Mill Railroad, it would make modeling it much easier. But any SR&RL or 2-foot modeler, or historian, will appreciate the mass of data in the new volume.
-Bob Brown

Images of Rail

Along the Mount Beacon Incline Railway

by Gregory Bilotto, 2015
Arcadia Publishing
888-313-2665
sales@arcadiapublishing.com
Soft cover, 6½ x 9 inches, 127 pages, $21.99.

The Mount Beacon Incline Railway was a narrow gauge funicular or incline railway that once ran up, well, Mount Beacon in New York state. The mountain was so named because it had been used as a signal station during the American Revolution. The railway began service in 1902 and was closed in 1978. Unfortunately, the line was damaged frequently by forest fires. Passengers could reach the base of Mount Beacon by first traveling up the Hudson River, and then taking a short trolley ride to a covered station. It was then up the mountain in one of two cars hauled by cables. The cars passed each other in the center of the line. Once on top of the mountain, passengers could go to a casino/hotel for gambling, dining, or dancing.

This little book tells the story of the Mount Beacon Incline Railway in detail. It is divided into six chapters, a Bibliography, and an Index. The first chapter is about the Golden Age of Railways, followed by the beginning of the railway, opening day, and a trip along the incline. The later years until the 1980s are covered in chapter six, and its future is described in the last chapter. There is an effort to restore the incline and a group called the Mount Beacon Incline Railway Restoration Society has been formed to try and do it.

The book is an easy read with numerous photos of the incline, Hudson River boats and ferries, and the little trolley line. Make a neat model!
-Bob Brown

The Railways of Sir Arthur Heywood Volume 1

Duffield Bank & Dove Leys

by James Waterfield, 2019
RCL Publications
Cambrian Forge, Garndolbenmaen
Gwynedd, LL51 9RX, UK
Hard cover. Horizontal format, illus., 336 pages, £47.50.

Sir Arthur Heywood (1849–1916) was the 3rd Baronet of Duffield Bank in Derbyshire, England. He was interested in railways and engineering, and built a 4-inch gauge model railway in the 1870s. Sir Arthur is best known for his interest in minimum gauge railways, and developed a 15-inch gauge system for estates (think Downton Abby). If an estate had a railway, it could do away with horses, carriages, grooms, and fodder. But first he had to determine the most practical minimum gauge. He started with a 9-inch gauge line, decided it was not practical, and moved up to 15-inch gauge, and designed and built a 15-inch gauge railway at his estate. It included six steam locomotives, and one run by internal combustion. The locomotives had a radial axle system allowing them to go around sharp curves. Sir Arthur also built four- and eight-wheeled rolling stock, including passenger cars, a caboose, and even a dining car just wide enough for one person sitting facing their companion.

This book tells the story of Sir Arthur including the history of his family, the ideas that influenced him, his estate at Duffield Bank, and the Duffield Bank Railway. It details the infrastructure of the railway, and its locomotives and rolling stock. It also covers the later history of the Heywood family, a railway he built at Dove Leys, and an open day at Duffield Bank. Sir Arthur went on to build another estate line for the Duke of Westminster at his Eaton Hall estate. I understand that line will be featured in Volume Two of James Waterfield’s series.

The book is beautifully laid out and designed and has some 300 photos, memorabilia from Heywood’s family, and 42 scale locomotive and rolling stock plans, with 40 drawings, diagrams, and maps. The scale plans were made by an American, Heywood fan Mike Decker. Mike has sold CDs of Heywood plans for years. Check Decker’s Trains for information. In the 1980s, Mike marketed a line of Heywood 15-inch gauge chopper couplers, axle boxes, and wheels in 1½-inch scale for use on 45 mm gauge track. He then sold a complete kit for a Heywood four-wheel flatcar, and a detailed Duffield Bank switch throw.