The flag was up and because of the date and my knowledge of what I’ve ordered online I assumed the mailbox contained bills, statements, and – possibly – a magazine.
Instead, I found a gift from a good friend* from back home in Southern Ontario:
What a delightful surprise! The last thing I expected was a model of the Ontario Southland Railway’s ex-CP Rail van. It’s an HO product from the wizards at Rapido Trains and it’s stunning.
The Ontario Southland Railway (OSRX) is a short line operator established in 1992 to take over a couple of branch lines in southwestern Ontario. Currently, its St. Thomas Subdivision runs 33.6 miles from Woodstock to St. Thomas. At Ingersoll (MP 8.9), the OSR’s Port Burwell Subdivision strikes south 15.2 miles to Tillsonburg, then another couple of miles to a transfer terminal and connection with the CNR Cayuga Spur.
The OSR switches an auto assembly plant in Ingersoll as well as auto parts suppliers, light manufacturing, agriculture, and fuel customers. It also provides contract switching and locomotive leasing and maintenance services.
At one time the OSR also served almost a dozen additional customers as designated operator of the 24-mile Guelph Junction Railway between Guelph and Campbellville.
The railway has become noteworthy with railfans and modellers for its eclectic fleet of vintage locomotives, built between 1947 and 1968, and obviously acquired secondhand. Models represented include the EMD/GMD NW2, SW1200RS, FP-9, GP-7, and GP-9, plus ALCo/MLW RS-18 and RS-23. Some still sport the colours of previous owners, but many are painted in the OSR’s attractive scheme, inspired by the long-gone Toronto Hamilton & Buffalo Railway.
My friend and I are both fans of the Ontario Southland Railway. I think it would be a great modelling subject and even though it’s not the railroad either of us are going to model**, I do have a couple of “shelf queen” Atlas GP-7s in the TH&B-inspired paint scheme:
My friend knew about the GPs of course – we’ve talked about the OSR a number of times – and the van makes a perfect addition to my little collection of modern railroading. Thank you, you wonderful person!
(*I’m not naming my friend. He knows who he is – and the last thing I want to do is reward his generosity by having other friends ask where their gift is!)
(**At least, probably not… although…)
The Model Railway Show 