WV Coal History

People who model railroads have different reasons for why they spend countless hours perfecting their specific line that they model. Many do it because of the love of the "rail" or the fascination of seeing the look on a visitors face as they see whole towns, cities and industries in miniature. But for Bruce Elliott, model railroading has a somewhat different meaning. The model railroads that he works on and takes care of are not just a loving hobby. He has the task of recreating history. The HO layouts at Cass Scenic Railroad in Cass, West Virginia are as close to an exact model replica of the town of Cass as it was in the early 1900's. Built by the West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company, the town, lumber mill and it's numerous workers harvested and produced in 40 years, an estimated 2-14 billion feet of timber into pulp or lumber. The timber cut from Bald Knob, at at an elevation of 4,842 feet, being the third highest point in West Virginia, was then taken 11 miles down the steep grades to the lumber mill at Cass. All done daily by Shay, Heisler and Climax steam locomotives which still make daily journeys up and down the Cheat Mountain.

Bruce Elliott is the "showcase" Mgr. there at Cass. He took over the restoration and operation of the model layout at Cass, back in 2003. A lot of work went into what is there now. While the park management certainly appreciates the effort to get it back up and running, and its interpretive value, there is little effort to advertise its presence at Cass, beyond the park boundaries. Quite often people pass on the opportunity to visit the "showcase" because they don't realize just what it has to offer. The "showcase" is 10'x40', and approx. 400sf. Now that's a pretty good sized layout, which represents the town itself, during 1935 -1940.

Another one of Cass' secrets is reviled by Bruce. Located on the second floor of the "country store" is the location of the second layout. It is based on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, 1950 - 1955, during the transition era. This layout is just under 1,400 sf. The layout was started in February of 2004, and the bench work, track and wiring will finally be finished the spring of 2009.

The potential exists for eight operators, but at this time there are only two who are qualified to operate. During the "regular" season, the Piedmont Div. of the B&O, is open to the public on Friday afternoon, after the park closes. The Piedmont Div. also represents models of both rolling stock and structures from the last 50 years in the hobby, as well as scratch-built and kit-bashed models. During the "off season", Bruce can be found five days a week working up-stairs on the new layout. In truth, both model railroads are open to the public YEAR AROUND ! The only request that the park has to an off-season visit, is that you make reservations 48 hrs. in advance in order to have everything ready. Especially heat, if you happen to fancy a visit in the winter. There is no charge to come and visit ether of these layouts, but of course, donations are certainly welcome.

Bruce has been a long time supporter of "the worlds greatest hobby", having been a model railroader, in HO scale now for 47 years. Bruce has been a member of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Historical Society now for the past 23 years. Model Railroading is a way to preserve the past, through study, sharing modeling techniques, different railroad interest (structures, locomotives, rolling stock, and history), photography, electronics, carpentry, art, and scenery in 3D.

The limited photos below were taken at the "Showcase" layout located in the old feed building at Cass Scenic Railroad in Cass West Virginia. Cass is home to some of the worlds most awesome iron work horses, the Shay steam locomotives.

Photos of the Shay locomotives featured at Cass Scenic Railraod can be found on our "Locomotives" page.