The Little World

About someone else’s past?

Can you appropriate memories and images? In most societies this is severely frowned upon – like the outroar if a non-indigenous person were to paint themselves with dust and dots. Or a Canadian Prime to apply shoe polish to his face and hands for a frat party. Big explosion!

So how come there are so many British OO model trains and North American HO trains in the hobby shops? Are they only for the exclusive use of people who grew up in Huddersfield or Medicine Hat? Could the hobby shops survive on just a few migrants?

Of course the answer is that there is nothing at all stopping the native from aping the migrant and building a model railway set of the LNER, AT&SF, or DB if they choose. There are plenty of publications, both monthly and in hardcover, that support this. The internet can supply images from nearly anywhere ( with the possible exception of the place you are modelling…) to fill out the gaps.

If you are brave, you can buy models of local trains and go out and look at the trackwork and scenery nearby. The rolling stock may be less spectacular than some of the boxed stuff in the hobby shop, but people will be pleased to see local structures and foliage.

If you never had a railway in your past, you can invent one. As long as you stick to the basic principles of flat trackwork and a reason for the trains to be there, the rest can follow. If you know someone who actually lived wherever you are modelling, pick their brains for details.

Note that liveries, decals, and architecture can be done in your own computer or workshop so you can have any road name you fancy.