Touring the Bluff City Southern Part 2

The tour of the Bluff City Southern model railroad of Alllen Keller starts out with the Illinois Central City of New Orleans coming from Chicago powered by E-8 number 4011. The brown and orange cars pass by downtown with Dixie manufacturing and a tanner on southern trackage. The City glides by the freight house and then the southern engine facility.

Later number 4011 crosses this trestle over the Hatchie River Bottoms. Toone is a small town with a cotton gin and some downtown stores. The Southern line parallels the interchange with Louisville and Nashville in the back. After crossing the river, Old Hickory Sand at Somerville comes into view. The Somerville depot serves the Southern, the IC, and the L&N.

Memphis is the largest city in the state and the home of the Bluff City Southern. Above is Union Station, which is home to five railroads. Behind the freighthouse, downtown Memphis and tower 17 come into view. The City backs behind the commissary and the coach yard and into the passenger turn. Before departing, the City of New Orleans will wait for connecting passengers from the Missouri, Pacific Delta Eagle.

The Missouri Pacific Delta Eagle enters West Memphis at the royal feed mill. The Eagle is the smallest named train on the line. The West Memphis depot serves both the Frisco and the Missouri Pacific. Leaving town, the Eagle passes the Ford Parks plant and the Frisco engine facility. In this part of Arkansas, cotton fields abound. The Frisco bridge leaves the Delta Eagle through Bridge Junction into memphis. The Eagle ducks behind the commissary on its way to Union Station.

To follow the rest of the tour, watch the full video. Watch more from Allen Keller’s Great Model Railroad series from our Model Railroad Academy archives.