A friend on mine asked me to scan these pictures and said I could share them. They're of a floor layout of a friend of his father's. He has no other details.
For all it's simplicity, it's a very nice layout. Looks like the power lines on the poles were functional!
What's interesting is they either painted the concrete floor or spread some sand around for scenery.
Rusty
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That is just superb!
What makes it so cool are the scratch built "folk art" accessories. They add as much or more charm than the manufactured accessories.
I love original prewar period layouts, and at some point, I'd love to do a catalog type layout recreation using original equipment.
Several years ago, I bought a prewar Lionel train from a man, and he came to ask if I was interested in accessories. Of course I said yes, and was expecting Lionel stations, etc. What I ended up buying was a group of hand made accessories that his father had made. Many of them were hand made renditions of items like the 440 signal bridge, the 113 station, etc, fences made from nails, hand made fire hydrants, etc. All show a fair amount of wear from 75 years of use and storage, but are really interesting.
If I get to build that period layout, these will all be used.
Fast comment. It's a late '20s AF large gauge outfit with a few AF accessories. The rest rest, except the **** fence, is home built.
Ron M
Tres cool! 
What very cool Photo's. Someone should collect all of these photos and put out a book. I would be first in line to buy one.
Terrific photos of a fascinating layout! Thanks for scanning/posting them!
They may have used battery power.
I wonder where the trains and buildings are today.
Nice post.
Al
Must have been a real kick in the teeth, going down into a basement that was probably built in the mid-1800s and seeing the train chugging around this tiny scratch built village. Come on, we'd all go absolutely nuts if the exact same layout was sitting there today!
A carpet layout without the carpet. Or is it on carpet? I thought I had seen every variation as far as types of layouts. Wrong again. Wonderful..wouldn't it be great to see this floor based bit of Standard Gauge history in color?
Everything looks authentic, but most basements don't have windows, no?
A lot of Chicago cottages from around the Victorian era had a walk up first floor and a basement with a window or two with a lot of variations as to the elevation of the "first floor". As a kid I remember several of these in the Pilsen Neighborhood.
Everything looks authentic, but most basements don't have windows, no?
The location was actually below street level, in an area where the streets were raised in the mid 1800's. (Anyone remember Geraldo Rivera's "Al Capone's Vault" fiasco?)
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Rusty
Love that bridge (behind the barn i the 2nd picture). I wish I had that one on my layout.
ARNO
Memories...sweet memories are made of these. Think of the father/ child relationship that was formed around layouts such as this. Thank you for sharing.
Great photos, its neat to be able to look back in time.
It looks like they have cloths lines above the layout, I wonder what Mom did with her laundry on laundry day?
Also notice the spot light above the layout. It washes out the corner of top photo.
Chicago raised their streets to accommodate the new sewer system in the early days and many buildings first floors became basements.
Frank
That is great , Mom was probably not pleased at first but Dad went ahead and built it anyway for Jr.
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