Touring the Southern Railway

In this video, Allen Keller narrates a tour of Bob Lawson’s Southern Railroad of Kentucky. At Ferguson Yard, Train 55 passes the Somerset Coal Tower. On the point is an F3-A and B, an RS3 and another F3. Above one can see the town of Coddle Creek. The F guides its cars past North Tower and Ferguson Tunnel heads into the next room. A hidden track brings Train 55 into Upper Danville. Here lead unit number 4615 passes the Danville passenger station and the freight station. Train 55 rolls by the freight office before heading onto hill trestle at Elliott. Another trip through the hidden loops brings the train to Lower Danville. Houstonville is a suburb of Danville which is home to the Barnett Transfer and Storage and the Guthery refrigerator car repair company.

The upper line heads to Junction City. Faulkson Station is home to the Wilson Coal and Lumber Company and the Weissinger Coal Mine. From the caboose there is a nice view of Weissinger Curve. 4165 exits tunnel 45 through a cut and the line continues past the Henry Hill Brass Import Company. The Elliott Coal Mine is the site of much activity on this part of the Southern railroad. This town has many businesses that support the Elliott Mine. There’s Maxwell Machine and Tool, Mason Woodworking, Ottis Machinery Supply, and Moore’s Metal Works.Train 55 returns to Somerset and the industrial district while a trio of RS-3’s pulls train 78 out of Somerset past the coal dock and the water tank. In the foreground is the new diesel facility that used to be a warehouse. To view the complete Allen Keller tour, watch the full video. To tour other model railways or for more Allen Keller videos, visit the Model Railroad Academy archives.