Brainstorming a Name for My Railroad & Town

Town name = Bluegill

 

Redshirt Township 

After looking at the local history, how about "The Greenville Treaty Lines".

 

Jay in Ottawa

Northwest Edgewater

That's not too crappie! Though the fish makes me happy.....

 Ere a bucket of mess, it pales

to my beautiful "Shale Cliff Rails",

 and the "Buckeye Bullet Express"...ohhh yea!

 

 

Naming the railroad was not a consideration for me. Too many different road names running on the layout to make any sense out of it.

Some background on where I am coming from: I am partial to fictional names, rather than borrowing a real one.   There are as man y as three names you might wish to pick: the name for your town, the name for your layout, and the name for your own railroad.  Often, over course, two or more of those are the same.  

      I model small town western US: Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, etc.  After some consideration of a few humorous alternatives (Lackamoola as the name for the town or the RR, etc.) I picked San Bettadaise for the town, since the small town I model is like many in the western US that have "seen better days."  I named the layout the same: San Bettadaise.  I made up a railroad, though, the Canon City, Blanca, and Glen Canyon Railroad.

 

To your question: You say you model small town Ohio, and most of the industries and RRs you mention are associated (at least in my mind) with nearer rather than farther from the great lakes/northern Ohio.  

 

Can you think of a theme or word or phrase like "seen better days,"but one that describes the attitude/situation for small town in Ohio ad you think of it?  Something like, oh, maybe Tenacity, Ohio?: I say that because many towns in Ohio are facing tough times but I am always impressed with news reports I see about the pluckiness of the people and the innovative ways local governments are trying to attract jobs and industry.  Or maybe Steadfast, Ohio, etc.  corny?  A bit.  Too corny? You have to decide.  I don't think so, but that's me . . .

 

As to the layout name and railroad,, something like the Upper Ohio and Erie or Great Lakes and Central Ohio.  However, based on my own experience, think carefully before picking a long name for your railroad.  I have grown very tired of applying lettering to my own livery.  I often wish I had just called it Canon and Blanca RR.

 

 Trust me, you come to regret a really long name . . . . with every letter you have to apply.

Gas meter junction?

This is a personal taste.

You can use the first two letter of each family member to create a fictitious name.

other way is jump into google map and find the best name in the small towns in the middle of nowhere.

personally i like short names or composed names like "Stillwater" 

Andre.

 

I suggest a fictional RR name, because of the wide range of lines represented in your car and Loco fleet.  

 

I suggest naming the town and then including the town's name in your fictional RR name.

 

Then name the layout the same as your RR name. 

 

Lots of nice town names on the map, small towns.   I have been through Van Wert a few times and thought it nice.   Hey, Ohio even has a Rio Grande.    Anyway, you could pick a town and add Southern, Western, Northern, Gulf etc.   For instance, Pioneer for the town, and Pioneer Southern for the layout.  

 

Have fun!  -Ken

 

 

Layout: Ohio Central Lines

 

Town:  Lakeside

 

Richie

Mine is called the D&RGW..........but not that one!!!

Mine is named for Denver North Carolina, Rio Grande Ohio and Weston West Virginia!

This allowed me to use commercial decals to custom paint locos and cars....and use items factory decorated in D&RGW.

All this came about when I would drive from my home in NC to visit family in Ohio.

Maybe you can use local places or even family names to make things familiar. Even store names on my layout are some how related to things or people I know.

 

The various layouts I had were usually referred to as "the layout." Occasionally, a town got named as the layout got more complex. I developed a few private roads, which ran amongst the prototypical roads, but since the trackplan didn't really follow the traffic patterns of my imagined private road's purpose, I just treated it as trackage rights, and didn't feel compelled to name the layout per se. Hopefully that will change after I buy a new basement with a house on top, and start my opus.

Wheeling and Great Lakes 

 

Ohio Valley and North Coast Railway

 

Northeast Ohio Railroad

 

Ohio Lakeshore Railway

Rocky Valley and Southern Ry. (RVSR)

 

 

You definitely don't want the Whiskey RR ("We haul your s^*#").

Sorta depends on where in Ohio you envision your road operating....W&LE sounds like

in the northeast of Ohio.  Which would prevent it operating through Santa Fe, Ohio,

which once had a railroad serving the still operating grain elevator, but now is mostly a ghost town with an interesting block of abandoned brick stores.  It is just a little farther east of the DT&I main line through Jackson Center, Ohio, that ran from Detroit to the Ohio River.  Might be a chance to call yours the Cleveland and Santa Fe.  There

are probably an infinite number of combinations, including the town's name as that

of the railroad, that and its direction..."Podunk and Southwestern"...etc.

Buckeye Central

Zanesville & Western

Cleveland, Quaker City and Ironton

Portsmouth, Ironton, Steubenville & Sandusky

Scott Smith

I name my layout towns after my kids, wife, relatives, friends and family...

 

How about:

 

Middle Hi & Round Ends Railroad?

 

(O-HI-O)

avoid cute/funny names especially if you're going to letter your equipment. They get old quickly. John Allen named his railroad "Gorre and Daphetid" and regretted it forever more.

Having said that, there is always room for an occasional humorous car. Here is one of  my favorites:

 

For the modern era I think I'll do a covered hopper.

 

I don't know what happened with the last post, I didn't get a chance to submit a reply. Anyway add the RR at the end of the last suggestion and it changes the meaning somewhat.

Don

Is there anything significant about your local area, or any famous landmarks to name your road after? I have a 10' X 16' outdoor suspended layout under the covered patio attached to my workshop. Since I didn't have any indicator lights as to the switch positions in key areas, I would almost always have a derailment, or send one of the trains in the wrong direction, so I named my pike WWRR, for Wrong Way Rail Road. I didn't reletter any engines or rolling stock, but my son had a sign made for the back of the shop.

Don

Well, I always thought "Gorre and Daphetid" was pretty corn pone for a legendary

model railroad, and, if John Allen didn't like it, I am surprised he did not change it.

I agree with "Rex" above.

How about Bent Creek as the town layout takes a bend... 

Vignette: Buck, a peanut farmer, has his eye on the sweet lady from the chocolate shop.

I wonder if you could find tiny brown beads with a tan stripe for a tree?

A couple of pounds worth on the layout for a subtle effect?....

Yep, when there, they are on the ground everywhere. Like big ball bearings .

 

Take your time... No need to rush naming everything.  You will probably have different and new ideas as you develop your railroad.

 

I have decided to name places and things after people I know and who have helped me.  Of course, something will be named after my wife, son and daughter.  I have named my yard after my Bother in Law who is an Engineer and who has provided a whole lot of motivation for me.

 

And here are three others I'm naming buildings after.  Alan Arnold who helped me with my electrical set up and Lee Willis who motivated and helped me try my hands at my first card stock bldg flat.  GGG will have an engine shed named after him.  G Cubed Engine Facility.  I just have not got that far yet.  They have helped me and I want to remember how they helped me by naming something appropriate after them.

 

I have lots of other stuff to name after all those future folks who have an impact on me by lending a helpful hand or who provide some knowledge when needed. 

 

Thanks All.

Ron

 

 

Lee - I've caught on to many of the names associated with the life of Veranda Turbine but I must admit I didn't get San Bettadaise until reading your post in this thread...lol

-Greg

The town on my layout is called Woodbury, served by the Allegheny and Susquehanna Railway.

 

Jerry

My layout is called the Lenny Lines named after my uncles first name and the town is called Billiapolis, named after his middle name

Oil in mind, shale was very serious.

 

 

Detroit Rock River (KISS, sing it Gene)

Berkshire Detroit Rock River Rail Road, doesn't sound dumb till you say BDRRR. 

Detroit & Utica RR if you want to go north south to say, Homer? So you don't get stuck in ole Lodi....again

The names Marcellus  and Devon*- Town name, Metal forming, ore, gas, etc

Maps or your area actually provide an interesting number of existing "loops" large and small. There are lots gone too. Narrow gauge names changed to standard, someone did a whole line in a day around there I think. 

Your real dilemma is the rich choice of histories, the area holds. 

 

 wont link http://commons.wikimedia.org/w...limestone_layers.jpg

The history of the Cuyahoga River Valley is so interesting and there were lots of small towns before the National park was created. The names are each rich in their own hitory, both with the railroad and canal. Here are some real names from the valley, many of these towns are nothing more than a picnic area and have been nearly forgotten.

Pilgerruh a.k.a. Pilgrim's Rest

Tinkers Creek
Wilson Mills
Packsaddle Narrows (Valley Railway name) a.k.a. Pinery Narrows 
Vaughn became Jaite
Boston
Peninsula

Johnnycake became Everett (Named for a B&O Vice President S.T.Everett)
Hawkins became Ira
Yellow Creek Basin became Botzum
Oak Hill

Most of these places were lost when the National Park moved in, so you have the benefit of a real name but a blank slate as to how it would look if the Federal plan to take the land had failed.

 

I've often avoided naming things for very long periods of time. Mostly because even with careful planning the finished product takes on characteristics completely different and unintended than planned.

How about "North Coast and Southern"? Got that Lake Erie vibe.

 

For the oil shale road mentioned above, I assume that your slogan is "Shale Yes!".

 

Yeah, I'm looking for the "definitive" freelance road name for my freelanced/modified

locos/cars. I have had decals made by Rail Graphics for this road (a real road of the past, but with a history different from my imagined NYC subsidiary):

 

 

(That's an old All-Nation metal/wood kit, BTW.)

 

This one is a bit more, ah, whimsical. No decals made for it, as I do not intend for there to be many things lettered for it. No loco yet, though I do have the kudzu cutter and the gumbo tanker (plus a caboose). In small doses, whimsy is a positive thing.

 

 

Thanks for the replies everybody! Please keep the suggestions coming!

From Ohio, it can only be...

 

"The Ohio State RR"

Championship

"FRIENDS OF OGAUGE FORUM RAILROAD" FOOFR for short

There was a small RR called the Akron Canton & Youngstown. It was a real line. 

When I started my layout, I had the same trouble.  What do I name my town, my gorge, my yard, etc, etc, etc. Then one evening while I worked on the layout it came to me.  My grand kids love watching my trains run, and I enjoyed teaching them how to blow the whistle, ring the bell and stopping and starting the trains.  There is nothing more enjoyable than watching kids watch trains.  It was then I decided that each individual section of my layout should be named after each one of my grand kids.  First there was Averyville, because she loved the town that I built.  Next came Ariel Mountain because she needed the largest object on the layout because she was only a pound and 9 ounces when she was born.  Next came Logan's Gorge, because when I ran the trains he always liked to stand under the bridges and watch the trains go over his head.  My next area was my yard.  I named it after my oldest grandson Ethan's Yard, because he liked every car I had so I thought him to be my yardmaster.  Our step granddaughter likes the outdoors so Taylor Park and Pond came to life.  Five years after all of the above were named and my layout I thought was complete, we had a new granddaughter come along. Needless to say she thought she was the boss.  So I added a section 2 feet wide and 8 foot long and made it Ella's engine yard and facility.  This took care of naming my layout areas. Then the hard part came along.  What do I name my fictional railroad.  I decided to name it after two great men I new.  My Dad and my father-in-law.  Thus the L & E was born.. The Lewis and Edmond Railroad now roars in the 1940's and 1950's in my basement.  I hope this gives you some ideas.  

I used the two rivers near my home. North Branch of the Raritan and the Lamington - hence the name North Branch & Lamington