N&W Track Plans
You may make printouts/copies of these plans for your personal use. If you would like to link to these plans or use them for any other purpose, please contact the site. All plans are HO scale unless stated otherwise. Enjoy!
- Size: 13′ x 46 ′
- Scale: O
- Minimum Radius: 56″
- Minimum Aisle Width: 36″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
The N&W’s Pocahontas Division Mainline was the heart of the N&W. The double-track main cut through the mountains of the West Virginia coal fields with branch lines of various sizes plying the hollers and feeding an endless string of coal hoppers to the main. As the N&W’s main east-west artery, the “Pokey” main also hosted numerous non-coal freights and the N&W’s hottest passenger trains. Add in dozens of tunnels and bridges, small mountain towns and some company towns, and you’ve got the makings of a great model railroad … Read more →
- Size: 11′ x 21 ′
- Scale: HO
- Minimum Radius: 30″
- Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
The N&W’s Pocahontas Division encompassed the bulk of its coal field lines in West Virginia. While it was home to lots of coal, the “Pokey” main was also the primary artery of the entire railroad connecting the Midwest with the road’s eastern terminus of Norfolk, VA. As such, the main was a robust affair, double tracked with sidings and concrete coaling towers spanning the main between the large yards of Williamson, WV and Bluefield, VA, and traffic was a mix of coal, other freight, and the hottest passenger … Read more →
- Size: 15′ x 24 ′
- Scale: HO
- Minimum Radius: 27″
- Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
The Norfolk and Western’s Abingdon Branch was a sleepy operation that connected small towns in the mountains of North Carolina with the N&W main at Abingdon, Virginia. The line was known for its steep grades (3%), sharp curves, numerous bridges and mixed trains (freight and passenger). This line was home to the famed “Virginia Creeper” mixed train–today, much of the line is preserved as the Virginia Creeper Trail. The highest point on the N&W was on this branch as well, the top of the grade at Whitetop, VA … Read more →
- Size: 15′ x 24 ′
- Scale: HO
- Minimum Radius: 30″ (except 28″ on non-mainline tracks as noted)
- Minimum Aisle Width: 27″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
The Norfolk & Western’s Dry Fork Branch was a major artery through the coalfields of southern West Virginia. The branch connected to the Pocahontas Division mainline along the Tug Fork at Iaeger, WV to the north and to the Clinch Valley Sub to the south at Cedar Bluffs, VA. The heart of the Dry Fork Branch was the yard at Auville, WV, near Iaeger, where mine runs were assembled and mine run power kept.
The Layout
This track plan represents a … Read more →
- Size: 11′ x 20 ′
- Scale: HO
- Minimum Radius: 30″ (except as noted on tail tracks)
- Minimum Aisle Width: 33″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
Jenkinjones, West Virginia was a company town that lay at the end of the N&W’s Tug Fork Branch, almost to the border with Virginia. Toward the end of the steam era, Jenkinjones was home to three tipples that all loaded company coal from the Pocahontas #3 seam. The tipples were reached via switchbacks after a grueling climb up 2.5% grades making this a tough piece of railroad to operate.
The Layout
This track plan represents Jenkinjones in the 1940s-50s when all three … Read more →
- Size: 23′ x 24′
- Scale: N
- Minimum Radius: 18″
- Minimum Aisle Width: 30″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
The N&W’s Dumps Creek Branch operated more like a self contained short line than a branch. In it’s 16 miles, the signaled branch served several large loaders of the Clinchfield Coal Company, a pair of the company’s large preparation plants and a power plant. It had its own yard at Carbo, VA with a small shop, and it operated big power on several trains daily hauling coal up and over the Sandy Ridge through a tunnel more than a mile long.
The Layout
This layout represents the Dumps Creek Branch in … Read more →
- Size: 10′ x 12′
- Scale: N
- Minimum Radius: 18″
- Minimum Aisle Width: 22″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
St Paul, Virginia, was a unique piece of railroad. The N&W, travelling from East to West, and the Clinchfield, travelling from North to South, intersect and run parallel through the town with wyes at either end. The CRR and N&W interchanged at Boody, and there were a few small industries in town. St Paul offers a lot of variety in operation depending on the time period modeled. Up to the 60s, the N&W and CRR were the only game in … Read more →
- Size: 10′ x 16′
- Scale: HO
- Minimum Radius: 24″
- Minimum Aisle Width: 24″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
The Norfolk & Western had coal branches all across southern West Virginia. The North Fork Branch stemmed from the busy Bluefield-Williamson mainline of the Pocahontas Division. Like most branches, the North Fork was filled with loaders and a variety of track arrangements to serve them. This is what makes branch line modeling so great for those who love switching. This line was active into the NS era, though I am not sure which loaders remained active.
The Layout
This layout is designed to fit into a medium-sized bedroom … Read more →
- Size: 9′ x 9′
- Scale: N
- Minimum Radius: 12″
- Minimum Aisle Width: 48″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
The Interstate’s Dixiana branch north of Norton, VA was home to several coal loaders and served by two mine runs per day. A small yard at Norton was used by the Interstate’s first and third mine runs and “Hill Crews” bound for the Clinchfield at Miller Yard to sort cars bound for the Southern and L&N (west) from those bound for the Clinchfield (east) and the N&W at Norton. The N&W’s medium-sized yard at Norton … Read more →
- Size: 21′ x 28′
- Scale: HO
- Minimum Radius: 30″ (visible)
- Minimum Aisle Width: 36″
- Designed by Dan Bourque
The Interstate’s operations in and around Norton, VA and up the the Dixiana Branch were busy and interesting. In addition to the massive amounts of coal being generated on the branch, the mainline also saw a lot of movement of interchange traffic, particularly between the L&N at Dorchester Jct. and the Clinchfield at Miller Yard, the eastern end of the Interstate’s mainline. This layout (which was partially built in my former basement before … Read more →
