MODEL PHOTOS BY DAVID STEER
Como was a division point on the Colorado & Southern, and Grant Knowles HOn3 Como roundhouse scene, which includes models
of the stone roundhouse, turntable, blacksmith shop, boxcar sheds, crane and the car shop, is a focal point on his layout.
Modeling the C&S Como roundhouse scene
Grant Knowles built this impressive HOn3 scene/David Steer T
he quintessential railroad scene of the steam era was the round- house with its associated facili- ties for maintenance of locomotives. Nothing quite as well defines the story of railroading as the roundhouse facili- ties. This is where the crews met and the locomotives were serviced. Today, while a few roundhouses remain, most are long the casualties of dieselization. However, one early roundhouse re- mains to this day in the South Park high plateau in Colorado. The railroad town of Como was the division point of the three foot gauge Denver, South Park & Pacific Railroad (DSP&P) and was the junction for the route from Denver over Boreas Pass to Leadville and the west- ern route via Alpine Tunnel to Gunni- son. Later (after 1899), the DSP&P be- came the Colorado & Southern. At an elevation of 9,796 feet above sea level, plans for a six stall stone roundhouse and facilities were estab- lished in 1879. Later this was expand- ed with a seven stall wooden extension. The railroad’s facilities also included a
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coaling trestle, turntable, ash pits, wa- ter tank, blacksmith shop, station, ho- tel and marshalling tracks. At the
height of its activity in 1887, Como had a population of over 500, mostly rail- roaders and their families, and typical-
OCTOBER 2013
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