Ontario South Central has expanded farther South…South as in South Carolina. Background of the OSCR can be seen in this blog https://forum.mrhmag.com/post/condoloft-with-a-model-railroad-12194748 about organizing a railroad in a Condo, a small switching layout in the smallest space possible while keeping the missus happy. We’ve since moved and while we wait for our house it’s sitting on top of a chest of drawers at my parents place and lo and behold I found another table the exact same height. So unexpectedly I expanded the layout another 3 feet with an industry and storage track and added a 2 1/2’ staging cassette to the other side. 

South Carolina

In our new basement there’s more room to expand the layout to include a CN staging yard as well as an interchange and another spur. As well there’s another area to the room where ‘more’ layout’ could be included via a long bridge covering the wide entrance to the room. More to the OSCR? Or another geographical area?

My family and I vacationed in Myrtle Beach, SC for 11 yrs. I paid close attention to the Horry Country railway that ran from Chadbourn, NC to Myrtle Beach through Conway, SC where there was a nice Model Railroad shop. 

Conway depot.

It was an Atlantic Coastline then Seabord Coastline branch that ran from Mullins, SC to Chadbourn, NC and south to Myrtle Beach. Nice detail here:

Later the line was sold to the ‘Waccamaw Coast Line’. This particular branch was part of the Seaboard Coast Line where it now interchanges with CSZ at Mullins, SC. I haven’t been down there in quite a while and since there was a railroad called ‘Carolina Southern’ that took line over with an array of mix matched locomotives including a CN B unit in which some still rust in the Yard at Chadbourn to this day. The line was shut down 6 Years ago as the costs to repair the bridges including the draw bridge upon entry to the Myrtle Beach area were too much for the line to keep running, not to mention the track work was a bit sketchy (a truck used to follow the train as it serviced the industries.)

RJ Corman, a Kentucky based shortline and track repair company stepped in to repair the line and got it up and running again in April 2016 along with the Horry County council stimulating business, employment and getting the trucks off the roads. A sign of hope in these days of abandoning rail lines and tearing them up. 

I’ve always wanted to model this line. So I am. However instead of RJ Corman, I have my own fictitious railway called ‘Grand Strand Railway’ or simply ‘The Strand’. G&W owned and operated just like OSCR. Looking at the track plan. It is based on the town of Conway, SC and a very nice depot there and the area just South called ‘Red Hill’ where there’s a fuel company and Lumber Yard. Initially I drew plans to include the Coal powered Hydro plant there which would be way off site, but it since has been torn down and the spur removed after a mile or so. Problem solved. 

Here’s the thing. I plan to connect the two railroads utilizing the ‘Angus’ tracks South of the station on the OSCR (which is end of steel) as Chadbourn, NC staging when I run ‘The Strand’. The Strand is only 6’ x 6’ 10” built on floating shelves from IKEA. Similar to OSCR, it is single engine operation or consisted to similar locomotive technology and a CN GP9u dummy. 

Here is the plan, enjoy: