01-12-2018, 07:20 AM
Hi, another stupid question from me! It is crazy how very simple things from the past can quickly become big mysteries when you never witnessed them.
My question is about cattle pens operation. I've often remarked that cattle pens in small towns are often located directly on passing track that otherwise are used for scheduled trains to meet. That means it is unlikely a stock car was spot on these tracks for days. Given cattle had to be moved swiftly before losing too much fat and that mandatory rest stop existed, I'm a little bit at loss figuring out how operations went in such small places. I've found information about large stock yards but almost nothing about the smallish ones. Doctorwayne had a few of these small cattle pens on his layout, most of them on the main line.
How railroads di operate such stock pens (generally small ones, not the large stock yards)? Would the cattle be loaded only when the freight train stopped in town?
Matt
My question is about cattle pens operation. I've often remarked that cattle pens in small towns are often located directly on passing track that otherwise are used for scheduled trains to meet. That means it is unlikely a stock car was spot on these tracks for days. Given cattle had to be moved swiftly before losing too much fat and that mandatory rest stop existed, I'm a little bit at loss figuring out how operations went in such small places. I've found information about large stock yards but almost nothing about the smallish ones. Doctorwayne had a few of these small cattle pens on his layout, most of them on the main line.
How railroads di operate such stock pens (generally small ones, not the large stock yards)? Would the cattle be loaded only when the freight train stopped in town?
Matt
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Hedley-Junction Club Layout: http://www.hedley-junction.blogspot.com/
Erie 149th Street Harlem Station http://www.harlem-station.blogspot.com/