Three
Concrete Interlocking Towers, and the Model Kits They Inspired
by Richard White #70-3387
(posted 1-3-06; text and
photos most recently revised 1-13-06)
---S-gauge-2.jpg)
The photo
(above left) is of the reinforced, poured concrete interlocking tower
at Buzzard's Bay, Massachusetts. This ex-New Haven railroad tower, built
in 1911, is still in service on the Bay Colony RR as its only interlocking
facility. There is a virtually identical tower, built in 1914 by the Buffalo,
Rochester, and Pittsburgh Railway (later Baltimore and Ohio RR), in Ashford,
New York. The Ashford Junction Tower is now privately owned. A third almost
identical tower, now abandoned, is located on the former BR&P Railway
at Falls Creek, New York. Furthermore, the Rev. Phil Smith reports that
this same design tower was at one time in use at a number of locations
on the New Haven RR. A photo showing the Buzzards Bay tower under construction
can be seen at the Cape
Cod Rails site. The second photo (above right) is of an S-gauge model
of the Buzzard's Bay tower, constructed from a BTS kit.
 
This (above
left) photo is of the S-gauge version of the Buzzard's Bay tower. The
other photo (above right) is of an O-gauge version, constructed from a
Model Tech Studios kit. Notice the taller chimney on the O-gauge model.
The MTS ad states: "This NEW HAVEN Style Tower kit features detailed
section hydrocal casting's, including the pre-assembled & detailed
Spanish tile roof, pre-assembled wall sections, pre-assembled window casting's,
stringer and landing platform
casting's." This kit is currently available.
 
Here
are two photos of another O-gauge version of the Buzzards Bay tower, from
a kit by Railway Design Associates (RDA). This is a cast resin kit, no
longer available from RDA. This kit seems to be the same as the version
described above as an MTS kit, except for using resin castings instead
of hydrocal castings. (Two photos courtesy of Mike)
The above
photo shows an N-gauge kit-built structure for "Typical New Haven
Interlocking Tower", by the N-Scale Architect. This kit is of "Laser-Cut
Micro-Plywood" with cast details. Note the tall chimney and the different
location of the lower door. One
thing that this kit does have that the others lack is the distinctive
"shields"
at the corners, per the Buzzards Bay prototype in the above photo.
This
is my HO gauge model of the Ashford tower (which is virtually identical
to the Buzzard's Bay tower-but notice the difference in the lower door
placement). This model is styrene, and was constructed from an Ertl kit,
and is now available in a kit from RDA (Railway Design Associates). [Also,
check on EBay, under HO gauge trains, "Ertl"] The concrete
construction of the prototypes gives these models a completely different
appearance from most other models, which are usually patterned after wood
prototypes.
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