PHOTOS BY DAVID WILLIAMS
Visiting Paul Novak’s Gold Creek Railway
An HO layout set in 1950’s Montana/Paul Novak, Jr.; with photos by David M. Williams T
he Gold Creek Railway had its beginning as a 5′-0″×9′-0″ rail- road that consisted of a loop of
track, a small yard and a branch to a mine on the upper level. My father, Paul Novak, Sr., built the first GCRY in the late 1960’s as a tool that would allow his two sons to learn about model railroading. He began in model rail- roading in the late 1940’s with a Var- ney “Little Joe” and several of the early HO scale freight car kits. Difficulties in operating the equipment led Paul Sr., to purchase an American Flyer S scale Hudson train set.
While near the end of his service in
the U.S. Army, he purchased some Model Railroader magazines, and this
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renewed his interest in HO scale. After marrying Elizabeth in 1958 and mov- ing into a new home, he began an HO scale railroad in the basement, al- though it never progressed very far. Af- ter my brother, Philip, and I reached an age where we were able to appreciate model trains, construction of the first GCRY began.
It lasted for many years until a new, larger edition was planned as finances allowed. The second version of the GCRY went through several revisions and expansions until the 1980’s, when a final trackplan allowed for two yards, a mine area, and a lengthened mainline. We developed the track plan as a coop- erative effort for three operators with
blocks. The railroad was designed for the enjoyment of running and as such no real operating plan was ever envi- sioned. The railroad neared a state of completion in the late 1990’s. At that time a small trolley system, the Yippa- hoey Valley Traction Lines, was also built but not connected to the railroad. In 1999, we moved to a new home and the GCRY expanded again. New indus- tries, a staging yard, and additional mainline were added. Over the next several years, the trackwork was com- pleted and more buildings and scenery were built. About that time Bruce Brintnall, MMR, invited us over to his Memphis Ridge Lines for operating ses- sions. After a season of operating on his
MAY 2014
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