Wednesday 11 April 2018

Flagman

Recently I've been reading some biographies of railroaders from the late 1800s which have been fascinating reads. If you have the inclination I thoroughly recommend reading "Little engines big men" by Gilbert Lathrop and "Clear the tracks!" By Joseph Bromley.

Both these books recount the life of railroad workers and include reference to flagmen. When a train stopped in an unexpected or dangerous place, perhaps to attend to some problem or perform some switching manoeuvres which may foul the main, the conductor would send out a flagman to warn approaching trains.

I've heard of other modelers including brakemen when the operating their layout and thought I'd make a couple.

This is something I might use if I feel so inclined while I'm operating. I generally operate alone so don't have to "warn" anybody else. However, it completes the scene and is a fun little detail if one is wanting to feel immersed in operating.

The flags are simply small squares of copy paper coloured with my daughter's red felt pen. They are glued to a sewing pin which was cut to size and blackened with a permanent marker.

The figures are from an old train crew set by Bachmann which my father repainted many years ago.

Maybe I'll take a photo of them in use one day and post here.

L.