Initial construction started May 2003 and was completed in 2010.
The RT & GS RR encompassed an area 50’ X 50’. From the roundhouse (3 spur track stone structure on the garage wall with storage/staging tracks in the garage) to yard level, there was a 3 foot elevation drop. The railroad is approximately circa 1920’s.
The railroad had three main line loops that allowed three trains to independently run simultaneously. The three main lines had interconnecting turnouts so the trains could pass from one mainline to another to access the round house staging and storage. There was 600’ of mainline and 7 siding tracks. All curves were 4 foot radius or larger.
The main lines ran through three towns and one rural settlement and had crossing or shared right of ways.
The town of Ragtime was in the hill country, had a western vibe, a sawmill, light manufacturing, and was the home base of the RT & GS Railroad. Its main line ran under the deck.
The largest loop circled the whole yard area from under the deck, around the gazebo, across a koi pond with waterfall and stream, through a farm and hunting area, through a 10’ underground tunnel and back to the upper level at Ragtime.
The third loop (dog bone) ran through the resort and recreation town of Garden Springs, behind the gazebo, and around the rural village on a small lake with fountains.
The town of Garden Springs had tourist shops and hotel, a park with a zoo, and carnival rides and games. The zoo building is a copy of a building at the St Paul, MN Como Park Zoo and the carnival rides are named after the Como Park (‘50’s era) kiddie ride vendor, O’Neil Amusements. All of the rides are powered and operating, the Merry-Go-Round having lights and sound.
The town of Garden Springs catered to the wealthy city citizens who needed a cool seaside and resort place to vacation in the summer to escape the city heat. There is a seaside mansion near a light house on the seashore.
All engines have Airwire radio control and are battery powered. Most buildings (and lighthouse, water features, and fountains) have interior and exterior lighting powered from the yard’s low voltage landscape lighting systems.
The Ragtime & Garden Springs Railroad was removed when the property was sold in 2015 and rebuilt as a smaller garden railroad in a new location in 2016.
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