Remembering Fred Dole

My condolences to Dole family and friends! 

Condolences to his family and friends. He was a very nice person. Sad day

have never met Mr Fred Dole....but it was his photography and Dr Tinkers kind words on repair advice that brought me to be an avid reader of OGR magazine.   An earlier post by Allegheny said it all for me in wishes for Fred and his wife & family.  bless Fred for re-kindling my interest in O gauge.

 Sorry to hear of Fred's passing, I had the privilege of meeting Fred many years ago when he came to my home to take pictures of my old layout for OGR magazine. He was here for quite a few hours taking pictures, and was very helpful in preparing the layout for the pictures. The layout at the time had florescent lighting and I remember Fred saying in a very positive/kind manner, that this type of light does not do justice for our layouts. Years later when I started preparing for the new layout, I remembered Fred's words about the lighting and installed track lighting above the new layout. This was of course a huge difference in the lighting of the layout. This is just my little story of Fred, and the short time we spent together all those years ago!! Please see the attached photo of Mr. Dole!

Rest in peace my friend,

Jeff James 

Very sad news indeed.  Ironically he passed away on my birthday.

I remember almost 15 years ago talking with him when I was helping to coordinate his visit to the San Diego 3-Railer's layout in Balboa Park; he was going to be in Cali for a few days visiting relatives & friends as I recall, and wanted to drop by to take photographs while he was here, in spite of the layout not being quite finished scenery-wise at the time (the layout was just recently rebuilt).  After a few pleasant phone & email chats the day was finalized.  When that day came I made sure to keep an eye out for him, and before too long I spotted him along with Edie huddled amongst a group of visitors; he told me later he was trying to be discreet but I told him it didn't work .

Before long after chatting with the group of us running that day on the history of the layout, etc. he began setting up his gear.  I've heard beforehand, from Jim Barrett and others in addition to his own self-confession, that he was a bit of a cranky curmudgeon when it comes to staging shots to suit his style of photography, and sure enough (and in spite of being a minister) he did get a tad bit cranky & impatient a few times when having people stage their trains in certain spots on the layout, but once he got his shots, he was all happy in between.  It didn't bother me a bit; I chalked it up to part of his strive for the perfect shots.  He was made an honorary club member as a sign of our appreciation.

Needless to say, I haven't corresponded with him all that much since then, but needless to say he struck me as a very humble, personable, warm and likable fellow, and I've always admired his interest in the Delta Lines and his interpretation he did on his layout in addition to the contributions he's made to the magazine and the hobby as a hole.  And his wife Edie was a real sweetheart and a treat to talk to as well.

You'll be greatly missed Fred, and my sincere condolences go out to Edie and the rest of his family in their time of loss.

Like losing family.  I read so much of his work in OGR over the years.

HOPPY posted:

Like losing family.  I read so much of his work in OGR over the years.

You are right about that!

Peter

Seems strange for me to say, as others have, that Fred "will be missed".  I have already missed him for 10 years now because I haven't seen him since he left the magazine.  I had the pleasure of visiting with him several times and I had interaction with him when he accepted an article of mine for the magazine when he was editor.

My condolences to the family.

Dennis

Another Great Person was called home to his eternal rest. To those of us who know Mr. Dole were truly blessed as he was a gentleman who always had time for all of us.

As PCRR/Dave stated in his post - Fred now runs his Trains on the Supreme Architects great Layout, I am sure the Boss will use him as his Chief Photographer, his talents were that great.

We all shall miss this great man and I wish my condolences to his family.

Late add-on to the "Fred Dole condolences" thread. No, I never met him, either, but I don't believe there's ever been a better photographer of O-gauge railroad layouts ANYWHERE !  He spoiled me, for one. Rival publications to OGR may have great articles, but almost always have small "vignette" pictures, leaving you craving for an overall "big picture" view to put the smaller scenes into perspective. Fred forever "ruined me" in that way. Scope, focus & lighting - ALL were perfect.

I was a johnny-come-lately to the grandeur of the Delta Lines. As most DL fans, we've seen the imitation layouts (pretty darn good in their own right) and read tribute articles, as well as Frank Ellison's original musings, but I don't think I've ever seen a complete detailed track plan. If he were still alive, I'd ask him if he ever actually MET Frank, or saw firsthand the DL layout before it was dismantled.

I salute Fred for his homage to all-things-Ellison and remember his wonderful articles (and photos!) in past issues of OSR and OGR. And recall his love for the (Harbor Mist) Gray & Armour Yellow of the U.P. even though he was fundamentally an east-coast railfan.

He is definitely missed !

Even though I never met him either, I felt like I knew him because of his excellent writing and photography in the pages of OGR. A great loss. He will be missed.

I kept many of my old OSR and OGRs dating back to late 1980s and early 1990s...and have done so mainly due to the excellent photo and layout editorials the late Fred Dole. He knew how to photograph and cover train layouts like no one else IMO. His class and character showed through his work as well.

Agreed. When he came to our home to see the layout, we felt proud and honored to receive him. When he then suggested doing more than one Run of our layout, we were delighted. Plus, frankly, he was fun to be with, pleasant and enjoyable as a guest.

FrankM

Fred Dole was a good friend and helped me (via USPS) in taking decent photos for two articles I  wrote for OGR in the past. One was on about building a Galloping Goose for 3 rail. The other covered making my old Lionel 675 from 1949 look more "Pennsy." I added a pilot shroud, a few other details. It also got a PRR paint and lettering job with a PRR K-4s number. I have always appreciated his help and encouragement from many years ago.  

S. Islander

It is nice to see this thread again.......Fred is gone but not forgotten.....His name frequently and fondly surfaced at the Delta Lines interest group meeting at York this past October....

Peter

I never had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Dole, in fact, he was gone (from OGR) long before I found the magazine and before I started my subscriptions to it.  As I read thru the various comments about him, I realize just how great a person he really was and nice it must have been to have been able to know him and to have been able to be associated with him.  What a huge loss the model railroading community has endured.  I wish I could have met him.  He sounds like a true inspiration to so many people.  I'm so sorry for his wife and family, I'm sure they will miss him tremendously.  May he live on forever in our thoughts and hearts.  Let us all take comfort in knowing that he is in a much better place now and may he rest in peace.

John Korling posted:

Very sad news indeed.  Ironically he passed away on my birthday.

I remember almost 15 years ago talking with him when I was helping to coordinate his visit to the San Diego 3-Railer's layout in Balboa Park; he was going to be in Cali for a few days visiting relatives & friends as I recall, and wanted to drop by to take photographs while he was here, in spite of the layout not being quite finished scenery-wise at the time (the layout was just recently rebuilt).  After a few pleasant phone & email chats the day was finalized.  When that day came I made sure to keep an eye out for him, and before too long I spotted him along with Edie huddled amongst a group of visitors; he told me later he was trying to be discreet but I told him it didn't work .

Before long after chatting with the group of us running that day on the history of the layout, etc. he began setting up his gear.  I've heard beforehand, from Jim Barrett and others in addition to his own self-confession, that he was a bit of a cranky curmudgeon when it comes to staging shots to suit his style of photography, and sure enough (and in spite of being a minister) he did get a tad bit cranky & impatient a few times when having people stage their trains in certain spots on the layout, but once he got his shots, he was all happy in between.  It didn't bother me a bit; I chalked it up to part of his strive for the perfect shots.  He was made an honorary club member as a sign of our appreciation.

Needless to say, I haven't corresponded with him all that much since then, but needless to say he struck me as a very humble, personable, warm and likable fellow, and I've always admired his interest in the Delta Lines and his interpretation he did on his layout in addition to the contributions he's made to the magazine and the hobby as a hole.  And his wife Edie was a real sweetheart and a treat to talk to as well.

You'll be greatly missed Fred, and my sincere condolences go out to Edie and the rest of his family in their time of loss.

Sorry such a belated reply, John, but were these pictures by Fred ever all published? I traveled out to see your layout from KS w/ my youngest son and an adult friend (via Amtrak) and took a few pix myself, though NOT of the same quality as Fred, I'm QUITE sure. Don't remember what year, offhand, but I DO know it was NOT the latest layout version -- and I DO recall the latest version in pictures, somewhere in print. You guys (and the museum) represent the pinnacle of model railroading, in my mind. Maybe NOT the biggest (Paterson, NJ ?) but likely the best.

P.S. Let me explain my not-intentional, but likely somewhat-controversial comment: First, as I have aged, I have realized there is no absolute "bests" of anything, only personal preferences. Second, as I was the president of a local club for nearly a decade, I got mild arrows shot my way for a variety of reasons, not the least of which was that while we embraced O-gauge AND S-gauge layouts and collectors (i.e. TOY trains) we did NOT include HO (ho ho ho). I always felt there were PLENTY of outlets for ho-ho-ho'ers already. So back to my earlier comment - it was quite refreshing to see ALL the gauges represented in a museum, with each club literally having a "seat at the table." And getting along! (maybe better than could be expected?) 

But, thru MY eyes, it was great seeing O-gauge 3 railers putting forth a superb effort, one that could more than adequately stand up to the superb MODELS of HO gauge railroads. And a layout with "action-accessories" that kids could embrace with widened eyes (and possibly a vehicle which could attract them into the hobby - we could certainly use THAT !)