Setting the geographic context

A few people have written and requested track plans and maps of the layout and the route I'm modeling. So I thought I'd accommodate.
The first map is of the Canadian National system through Ontario in the 1950s. The Wabash had running rights from Windsor to Glencoe, then to St Thomas, and on to Fort Erie or Niagara Falls.
The portion that I've chosen to model is from Aylmer to Jarvis. The original desire was to go as far as Cayuga, but there was no good option to allow me to model the bridge over the Grand River. (see the last image)
I was fortunate to receive a complete track profile of the Buffalo Division from a friend and I've posted the charts of the stations I'm modeling.
I found the track profiles to be invaluable for designing the track plan. It was a simple matter of copying the track profiles and adjusting to fit the available space. All the hard work had been done decades ago for me.
This is another example of why I prefer prototype modeling. I find it to be easier to copy what was done rather than try to create from thin air the raison d'etre for my railroad. This same thinking will be applied to the schedule, the roster, the industries served in the towns. I also have a copy of the shippers list for each town that will be served.
I will be posting a track plan of the layout in the future. I just have to get what I have in to a publishable state. I can read my drawing, but I won't subject you do it just yet.

A boxcar kitbash

Inspiration for our modeling projects can come from many different sources. A desire to work in a new medium, a photo of a structure that just has to be modeled or a desire to recreate a scene in miniature that has personal significance. In the case of this model, it was an announcement by Gerald Glow on the Yahoo Steam Era Freight Car Discussion Group (STMFC) of a decal set for the Wabash 8000 series Double Door boxcars that got me going.

These cars were of an order of 300 cars built in the Decatur Shops from January to June 1950. As built the doors were labeled "When empty return to Detroit", which for me, made them perfect for my layout which models a portion of the Wabash line across Ontario connecting Buffalo and Detroit. As I model 1951 the build date was perfect as well.

This is the opening of an article just published in the October 2011 issue of Railroad Model Craftsman. The article covers in full the kitbash of a Wabash 8000 series Double Door boxcar. Maybe this will inspire you to try something along the same lines.