Virginian and Ohio - Appalachian Lines

Appalachian Lines

Several factors came into play in the formation of the Appalachian Lines. Model railroaders Tony Koester and Steve King had become fast friends as they developed their interest in proto-freelancing (developing a fictional railroad based on real-life practices) and railroad operations. The V&O was constantly moving forward in time period, reflecting McClelland's interest in prototype modeling. Heavily influenced by repeat visits to Appalachian coal country and the realization that their three small regional railroads would face challenges surviving in the real world economy of the late 1970s, Koester suggested that the V&O, his Allegheny Midland and King's Virginia Midland form the Appalachian Lines. Modeled after the Chessie System and the SCL/L&N Family Lines, each railroad would retain its own identity and color scheme, but follow similar layout for paint styles and road names. The V&O would keep its deep blue and white, the AM would adopt a bright red and yellow, and the VM would go with yellow and deep green. Like Chessie System and Family Lines, the Appalachian Lines would be a name used in marketing and advertising, and the three railroads would be able to pool their resources to remain competitive. Not only was this a great excuse to use "run-through" power from the connecting AM and VM roads, but it also helped strengthen the idea that all three model railroads we somehow part of a larger system, and in fact connected to the national railroad network. Thanks to regular coverage in both Railroad Model Craftsman (of which Koester was editor at the time) and Model Railroader magazines, this is probably the most well-known period of the V&O's operations.