My name is Clyde “Allen” Whitaker, I grew up in east Tennessee in the small town of Jellico, TN. which is at the foot of Pine Mountain. I moved to Ohio to become the 4th generation professional railroader in the family. I gained employment from an eastern Class 1 railroad working as a conductor and later as locomotive engineer. Currently, I work as a State Safety & Legislative Director for the Ohio State Safety & Legislative Board of SMART Transportation Division.

My model railroad journey began in 1993 with the purchase of a MRR and RMC magazine from a book shop one evening after church. Seeing Athearn’s NS and SP GP60 advertisement, coupled with the article of building a Santa Fe GP50, I was hooked. The proceeding summer I went to work with my Uncle Eddie at the CSX Lakeland, FL. Terminal where I operated my first locomotive. I was hooked at that point.

Several freelance roads influenced me to create my own. Those influences were that of the V&O, Ohio Southern, and Utah Belt. These were my favorite layouts to read upon. During this period, I was in high school and decided to create my own. Growing up I saw the rainbow variety CSX had to offer but my first train I remember seeing was some big old’ Southern tuxedos! In my backyard NS called the line the Jellico

District, which I painted some tan and black units and lettered them. But that didn’t work for me. Though I later incorporated the history into my railroad.

Year 2000, I moved to Columbus, OH. met some friends at work that were model railroaders. I attended a model railroad club with them and at the time I was modeling CSX and NS units. I was a very novice modeler as where I’m from no one was involved in the hobby. My modeling skills, well… not that great. A certain club member decided to just nit-pick my work and tear me down in a rude manner.

So, I went home and my railroad friends and some new people I met coached me up on how to model things prototypically. But I felt restricted and wanted some freedom like my model railroad heroes had. But I just couldn’t get the name right. I knew I wanted orange units, my Tennessee Volunteer shade of orange wasn’t available, and I could not mix paint well at the time.

Being a Tennessee Volunteer fan and a Southern Railway fan, I simply combined the two names. Though not knowing until 2 years later there was a real TS RR, but I fixed that we took them over in the story line, problem solved. With that you must give history, I wanted a believable rugged railroad like the WLE, DT&I, and KCS. I wanted the locomotive power to have history.

Therefore, I model the prototype in my colors and make my modifications. Then I figured out what our primary freight is going to be or what we are known for. In a sense I picked apart what I liked from other railroads and what I would change if I owned one.

Back Story

In 1980, the Louisville & Nashville (family roots) and the Southern Railway spun off what they felt were bad investment lines. The holding company of The North Carolina & Tennessee Southern Railway Co. was created. Or simply known as the Tennessee Southern Railway or TS. (The history of adding the NC portion stems from influences of the Clinchfield and the Southern Rwy., Murphy Branch book.)

During this time more shortlines began merging with the new railroad offering a variety of power and history to the new road. With Southern having a heavy influence, the tuxedo scheme would be everywhere, but the new paint scheme would be gray (L&N) and black (SOU).

The road would be for the most part a rugged mountain railroad hauling black diamonds and having timed freight with our “True Service” standard for our customers. We take care of the customer, our equipment, advertise, be competitive, and the road will grow. And pick up the missed opportunities of the big boys.

Later the railroad would morph into a Class II railroad and then graduating to Class I status in the early 2000 period. I often get asked to back date my railroad, I have allowed some friends to back date no further than 1975, which is plausible given the rush to paint units before an official merger like SPSF.

Back to Reality

I officially established the model railroad on October 31, 2000. The paint scheme was gray and black, which I proudly showed off in front of the rude individual at the club. When he began to critique my work, I just simply said, it’s my baby, and offered a Stone-Cold salute, so-to-speak. I never was bothered by him anymore.

Two-years later enter the Heritage one scheme which was influenced by BNSF. I hated the orange color, looked cool but didn’t get the job done. Then I switched to the tuxedo and felt like a copycat. I had the vision in my head what I wanted, I just needed the right color paint. In 2006 I walked into the local hobby shop and my friend Mike Butler says to me “Hey AL, we got some Tennessee VOLS orange paint.” It was literally the color of my shirt. Without hesitation I bought all 10 jars right then.

I went home and experimented with undecorated shells, drawings, and my Alps printer. I had railroad books and magazines all over the house picking apart what I liked from each paint scheme. Then at 3AM it hit me, I got out of bed, drew the first sketch, and then the railroad called me to work. Round-trip to Cleveland and awake for 20 hours I did the first test and loved it. The next day an undecorated high hood GP40X with a backstory of a former NS/Southern unit saved from the scrapper torch became #5150 and thus the Rocky Top scheme was born.

Every unit with very few exceptions has had a version of this scheme, unless it has a heritage that of Southern. The heritage units ironically Intermountain made most of them in my number series. Only the Executive E8 units vary with the “Smoky” scheme, influenced by the VOLS “Smoky Grey” uniforms. Friend Bruce Ernatt of the BME RR, sent Mr. Koester a photo of these units. Later they would be featured in Tony Koester’s – Modeling the Transition Era. That was our first feature in a publication.

One other unit stands out that will be the only red, white, and blue unit. I call it “Uncle Sam”, the late Robert “Bob” Harpe called me one evening and said in his Savannah, GA voice. “Hey, can you send me some decals? I have an idea for a paint scheme that’s going to blow your socks off!” A few months later I received a package from him and opened it up and here is a Red, White, and Blue SD45-2. And it did “blow my socks off.”

Notice I say “our”? Friendship and comradery are what this hobby is all about, never forget that. My friends helped me build this big orange legacy and I’m eternally grateful.

This railroad and social media have helped create long lasting friendships. An idea I had to help build friendships was to select certain Facebook Friends, for the most part they never met in person. I started “operation freight train” each person would add their private car to a shipping box, after the previous owner’s car ran their layout, then onto the next road. Continuing until everyone received their car back. We documented the cars journey every step of the way.

I’ve acquired other modelers railroads via “merger” or became part of a collaborative effort with some friends. Your imagination is the limitation when it comes to proto-freelance or just straight freelance model railroads.

The Layout

Unfortunately, there is no current TS layout other than operating at the occasional club or friend’s layout. Though the previous layout is referenced as TS 1.0. Which, my friend Jesse Adams and I began building in February of 2007 and this would be the first layout either of us had built. As the years rolled on JJ Lewis, Denis Blake, JP, Dave Matheny, Kevin Tweed, and many more would help build it.

The layout stood from February 2007 to June 2020 which we ended with an entire day operating session. Throughout the years this layout would host events, yes events. One example was the “Stream and Steam” OPS Session in October. I wanted to create an Owosso, MI steam event with streamliners like what had taken place in Spencer, NC. At the NCTM. We had 36 people in that small basement for a day.

The TS “Sweet 16” was the largest OP and that was an all-day event. Both events people flew in or drove from Canada, CA, NY, PA, MI, IN, KY, OH, and from other states.

The TS 1.0 layout was based on the NS line from Knoxville, TN. to Middlesboro, KY. In realty this is accomplished by a different route than I modeled. The route would be Knoxville – Clinton – Lake City (now Rocky Top) – Jellico – Holton – Middlesboro. In the real world the line ends at Pruden, KY. So, our story we blew a hole in the mountain, why because we can. Heavy influence on coal and freight operations.

This is over 70 plus miles of real-world rail that was compressed into a double deck 22’ 4” x 38’ 8” layout. Which would have been larger had I not compromised with my then wife. But we had a damn nice orange crew lounge.

At the southernmost point of the layout was “Volunteer Yard” an endpoint staging yard that in the real world would be near Maryville, TN. on the Alcoa Line. At Volunteer was division headquarters, division headquarters, locomotive fueling facility, and our Clinch Valley connection, which is Larry Burks former railroad. The area pictured would be the arrival and departure yard of the Hump Yard. On the system map it’s very much the center of the railroad.

Proceeding northward a TVA power plant with a working rotary dumper, passing siding, DB scrap, JJL Plastics, TS HQ, and the Tennessee River bridge that spanned 6ft., showcasing a Neyland Stadium in the background. This between stations of CP Henley and CP Rocky Top.

You would then enter a scene divide to a semi-prototypically modeled area of Newcomb, TN. that included a passing siding, Kenny Hill Propane, and the Triple III Coal Company.

Oswego – Was the bottle neck of the railroad to space trains out with a local working on single track serving I-75 Cold Storage, Buffalo Industries, and Pillsbury Bakery.

CP Adams – Begins a passing siding into Jellico, TN. There was a gravity drop coal plant called Adams Coal, and Cantrell which at one point was a very large employer in the prototype world. Cantrell made brass fittings and other plumbing parts. I resurrected this industry and made it a plastics plant to keep with the times.

Jellico, TN – Back to single track and enter Jellico Yard where a team-track was present. Road locals, mine runs, and a yard job called this area home. The buildings were based on various businesses throughout the years, slightly compressed I almost was able to model the whole city area. On north we go to –

Lot, KY. – This is where NS (SOU) and CSX (L&N) meet up and NS would exercise trackage rights to Holton, TN. in which a wye track was there and this led to the coal mines of White Oak, Tackett Creek, Clairfield, KY., Eagan, KY., and ends at Pruden, KY. On the model railroad I did not have the room to pull this off. I opted to make Lot – Holton a passing siding and then you would spiral down the single-track helix. The helix would lower you 19” to the lower level.

Coal Jct. was the lower-level tunnel portal at the base of the helix. Which is near the Middlesboro, KY area. There you would find the Bell-Co. Coal 2 a gravity drop loadout. The area between Coal Jct. and Middlesboro is inspired by the “Narrows” which is between Jellico and Morley, TN (site of the largest state side disaster during WWII, when an L&N troop train jumped the tracks).

At CP NM “North Middlesboro” you enter the staging yard for outbound and coal trains. From here you can take the coal branch to service Bell Co. Coal 1 and 3, as well Brooks Blasting Powders. This offers up some prototype operation as you handle hazmat shipments and need buffer cars.

CP Brooks is the north end of staging and switching yard entrance.

Middlesboro Yard/Doss is the switching yard that actively switched cars and built other trains. At this area we could loop trains on the double track loop and store power.

The Future

TS 2.0 layout is scheduled to begin construction in late fall 2025. The area will be in a space approximately 25x15 plus a helix in another room that will act as staging. The layout will be single track and focus on operations within the Knoxville, TN. area, with scenes from the north end near Merchants Drive area to South Knoxville.

The layout will be 3 decks total, one for staging both north and south bound traffic, one level for north Knoxville, the second level for South Knoxville. Both levels will have industrial spurs in the center of the room, like that of an island. To access these islands will have a leaf drop down. Think Iowa Interstate and CSX Miami Industrial Spur layouts.

Mainline trains will be present, but those operations will be limited. I wish to focus on industrial switching operations and scenery. The goal is to make all benchwork reusable as I do not plan to stay where I am. So, yes there will be a TS 3.0 somewhere down the track.

I will limit myself in modeling the current era and will focus on my personal favorite period between 1996-2006. I can still have CSX rainbow schemes, and I can change years and have modern GEVOS and ACES. Plus, real railroading was more fun to me during this time. A lot of the freight cars now days lack color, not as many roads, and everything has a wide cab. On occasion I may model up to 2025 but that’s a big change with equipment.

Thanks

Special thanks to the Home Shops crew and Chris’s vision to unite the freelance world. I’m proud to be tapped on the shoulder for those projects and seeing TS production equipment. Also, must give a shout out to the Big Orange crew for helping me over the years and continuing to be great friends. I hope you have enjoyed the story of my road. As an old friend would say to me may your signals be clear, highball!

C.A. Whitaker “Big AL”

Owner/CEO

Tennessee Southern Railway