Why do you call yourselves the Roark Valley?
In 1906 when the Missouri Pacific RR completed their White River Line through Southern Missouri, what is now currently known as Branson MO was called the Roark Valley by the Railroad. So we acknowledge the history the Branson area has with the railroad.
How many scales miles of track do you have?
Not including the yard, side switches, or the yet to be completed Thunder Mountain complex, the main layout of the RVRR has 26 scale miles of track.
Are the layouts a recreation of any "Real" location or is it all "Fantasy"?
The only real world locations that have been recreated are the cattle farm in the SW corner of the main layout and the Branson Railway Depot (located near the Thunder Mountain complex on the south side). The Branson Depot is a painstaking built from scratch replica of the actual building. Cattle farm builder, Harvey Lane reports that it is an accurate recreation of the cattle farm he grew up on. Rumor has it the Harvey is one of the kids depicted on the section. The rest of the layout is a fantasy version of what could be seen when traveling by train through Middle America.
How old is the main layout? How old is the portable RVRR II?
How many man-hours to build?
The main layout is approaching its 12th birthday. The portable layout is nearing 3 years old. As to the number of man-hours invested, thousands.
Are we trying to recreate any specific era of Railroad History?
No, ours is what is referred to by hobbyists as a "Freelance" layout. Our rolling stock spans the era of steam all the way to modern diesels. The "downtown" area on both layouts is prototypical of a small town during the height of the modern diesel era.
What percentage of the rolling stock is club owned? member owned?
30% club 70% privately owned by members.
Do we have expansion plans beyond "Thunder Mountain"?
Yes, eventually we will have a circus module on the south side of the layout. We have other ideas in the planning stages but right now our focus is on completing the Thunder Mountain complex with it's coal mine, lumber mill, and stone quarry.
Is there a membership status for Nationwide folks who visit Branson annually?
Yes, an associate membership is $15/month and is due only for the months that you plan on being in the Branson area. The remainder of the year you will be transferred to the inactive role. See the membership page for more details
Why do we have so many different Railroads represented on the layout?
As 70% of the engines and rolling stock are owned privately by individual members, those trains reflect their personal interests.
Why is <my favorite railroad> not represented on your layout?
Again see the 70% - 30%. Club owned stock is geared towards industry we have on the layout and we try to stick with railroads that have operated in Southern Missouri.
If you would like to see your favorite railroad represented on the layout we do accept donations *hint hint*
In 1906 when the Missouri Pacific RR completed their White River Line through Southern Missouri, what is now currently known as Branson MO was called the Roark Valley by the Railroad. So we acknowledge the history the Branson area has with the railroad.
How many scales miles of track do you have?
Not including the yard, side switches, or the yet to be completed Thunder Mountain complex, the main layout of the RVRR has 26 scale miles of track.
Are the layouts a recreation of any "Real" location or is it all "Fantasy"?
The only real world locations that have been recreated are the cattle farm in the SW corner of the main layout and the Branson Railway Depot (located near the Thunder Mountain complex on the south side). The Branson Depot is a painstaking built from scratch replica of the actual building. Cattle farm builder, Harvey Lane reports that it is an accurate recreation of the cattle farm he grew up on. Rumor has it the Harvey is one of the kids depicted on the section. The rest of the layout is a fantasy version of what could be seen when traveling by train through Middle America.
How old is the main layout? How old is the portable RVRR II?
How many man-hours to build?
The main layout is approaching its 12th birthday. The portable layout is nearing 3 years old. As to the number of man-hours invested, thousands.
Are we trying to recreate any specific era of Railroad History?
No, ours is what is referred to by hobbyists as a "Freelance" layout. Our rolling stock spans the era of steam all the way to modern diesels. The "downtown" area on both layouts is prototypical of a small town during the height of the modern diesel era.
What percentage of the rolling stock is club owned? member owned?
30% club 70% privately owned by members.
Do we have expansion plans beyond "Thunder Mountain"?
Yes, eventually we will have a circus module on the south side of the layout. We have other ideas in the planning stages but right now our focus is on completing the Thunder Mountain complex with it's coal mine, lumber mill, and stone quarry.
Is there a membership status for Nationwide folks who visit Branson annually?
Yes, an associate membership is $15/month and is due only for the months that you plan on being in the Branson area. The remainder of the year you will be transferred to the inactive role. See the membership page for more details
Why do we have so many different Railroads represented on the layout?
As 70% of the engines and rolling stock are owned privately by individual members, those trains reflect their personal interests.
Why is <my favorite railroad> not represented on your layout?
Again see the 70% - 30%. Club owned stock is geared towards industry we have on the layout and we try to stick with railroads that have operated in Southern Missouri.
If you would like to see your favorite railroad represented on the layout we do accept donations *hint hint*