Choosing a layout name...

[Joseph_Pestell]

Names of Saxon origin, such as Woolwich, are very flexible as to spelling. The suffix -wich can equally be spelled be -wick, -wyke, -age, -idge.

 

Similarly, -wade (which seems to be a mispelling of the Saxon wrde) can/should be rendered as -worth.

[Torper]

I agree that the key thing is to base the name of your layout on what you might find regionally.  My latest layout is set in the Mearns, a rural area stretching from Angus up through Kincardineshire.  It was the centre of ancient Pictdom and while the Pictish language is still a mystery, the prefix "Pit" is used in the nemes of a lot of towns and villages in northeast Scotland, apprently coming from the old Pictish word for a piece of land or farm.  So the layout name can start with Pit.  After that?  Well, one of the towns in the mearns is called Auchenblae, so I took the the second half of that and ended up with Pittenblae which I think sounds pretty authentic.

 

DT.

Edited July 20, 2017 by Torper

[john new]

Names of Saxon origin, such as Woolwich, are very flexible as to spelling. The suffix -wich can equally be spelled be -wick, -wyke, -age, -idge.

 

Similarly, -wade (which seems to be a mispelling of the Saxon wrde) can/should be rendered as -worth.

So Biggleswade, should become Bigglesworth; to kids who grew up in to 50s that would immediately suggest an airport connecting line!

[zarniwhoop]

Where is the layout set?  That might influence the name.  Certain elements in place names are specific to particular geographic areas.  You won't find a "thwaite" in Devon or Cornwall nor many "ington" endings away from Sussex as examples.

 

 

I think this gets to the heart of the matter, at least for people who have a definite idea whereabouts the layout should be set (layouts which might move from one region to another between operating sessions are a different kettle of fish). there is also the question of alternative realities (people build lines that never happened, for those of us who don't have space for telescoped simulations of real places, perhaps things differed in the distant past (e.g. after the Black Death a different village survived, or in the 19th century the decisions about where to put a station were slightly different.

 

I don't think any of the following will help  in Kelly's case, but I'll mention them anyway!

 

At the moment I have zero layouts, but I have hopes of building some, or all, of the following:

 

Starting with West Coastway BR(S) 1960s, between Hove and Shoreham (i.e. where Portslade is now) perhaps something based on Atlington (not an early South Saxon name, but "Atlingworth in the half hundered of Fishersgate" had some mentions when I first started thinking about names - the -worth suffix means a hilltop settlement, it dated from the population expansion circa 1200, the -ton is generally taken to mean a walled (or fortified) settlement.  I also have thoughts about Meeching- variants (that _is_ early South Saxon, currently in Newhaven) and Erring- (Erringham - on a river bend - is just North of Shoreham.  Arguably I might get away with just Erring (plain -ing names mostly start at Lancing).

 

At one time I had hoped to build a common OO layout with alternative station / scenic parts so that I could run early 1970s EMUs on concrete-sleepered track to a late-1930s Southern station, with corporate signage. That is now very unlikely to happen (where would I get decent RTR 4-CIGs and 4-BIGs ?), but I tentatively plumped for West Ferring (for Poling) - a real place, probably it would have been at Roundstone to cater for prospective development some distance away at Poling.  In that case it would have to be _West_ because there is already an LBSCR Ferring terminus on the exhibition circuit!

 

For this approach, an interest in the history of the area (for the back story) is important.

 

Other layouts I'd like to build if I move to a barn and live for ever:

 

A narrow gauge line in the Sussex Weald, replacing what was an LBSCR branch line (like the South Tynedale Railway in the NE) - Forge Lane (the Weald used to have a lot of ironworks in the days when water and wood were the important things).

 

A narrow-gauge line in the Scottish Highlands (this seems to be a common view of alternative reality in 009 circles) - station names loosely derived from gaelic, e.g. Ballantrae (Baile an Traigh - the town on the beach).

 

Something based on the Austrian Ybbstalbahn (actually, I hope this one _wil_l get built, to test baseboard construction, realistic sizes, and automation using Heathcote products) - it would just be a halt where trains might stop, or not, and the Ybbstalbahn had several halts named after local Hofs, so I'm hoping to build Kügelhof - derived from Gugelhupf, a yeasted cake (yes, humour is also important).

 

And if I ever accumulate enough stock, and space, I'd really like to do a layout based on the Rhaetische Bahn in the upper Engadine valley.  The upper Engadine has its own dialect of Romansh (Puter) and the particular feature of that is the use of s-ch for a 'sk' sound (S-chanf, Chamues-ch, etc).

 

Summary - to me, trying to capture the spirit of the area (whether real or imagined) is part of setting the scene.

 

Hope this doesn't cause everyone to spend as much time as I do following increasingly diverse searches on wikipedia ;-)

 

ĸen

 

(edit) original post had a couple of lines at the bottom, from an early version : deleted.

Edited July 21, 2017 by zarniwhoop

[rockershovel]

One thing I decided from the outset about Oilpatch, was that any names appearing would be of the "KP101.8" variety. The general plan is for a desert or semi-desert location, somewhere between Algeria, Iran and the Trans-Caspian, with elements of Colorado, as the mood takes me and particular locations come to mind.

[Kelly]

Names of Saxon origin, such as Woolwich, are very flexible as to spelling. The suffix -wich can equally be spelled be -wick, -wyke, -age, -idge.

 

Similarly, -wade (which seems to be a mispelling of the Saxon wrde) can/should be rendered as -worth.

 

 

Thats interesting, thanks. I had found a useful site that gave the meanings of the different suffixes.

 

It gives the following for wick as a suffix:

 

WICK

Wick has several meanings. At the beginning of a name, like Wickham, in Hampshire its derived from the Roman word 'vicus', which meant vicinity. At the end of a name wick sometimes meant trading place e.g. Norwich was the north wick. It could also mean a port like Greenwich. Or it could mean a specialised farm e.g. Gatwick was a goat farm and Chiswick was a cheese farm.

 

 

Another being this university site.

 

I had thought for the Woolwich/Charlton layout (there are two distinct layouts, one based on Shepperton track plan with some compression (9ft long) and another based on a compressed track plan of Woolwich Dockyard/Chalrton Junction (15ft+)), that Victoria Road/Bridge/Way might work as there is a Victoria Road across Charlton Junction (the junction where the North Kent line splits for Greenwich and Blackheath), but have since found that there's a Victoria Park in North Woolwich, so not sure that one is viable now.

[Pandora]

For the best models , there isn't a  need to pick a name, the model will  find it's own name!

[eastglosmog]

The model railways I built in my youth were mainly narrow gauge and all set in Cumberland, so I borrowed the 3 volumes on Cumberland place names by the English Place Name society from the library and sat down to concoct some plausible names, mainly based on Old Norse, but with a smattering of Old and Middle English.  Last one was called Ellerdale, so the locomotives and coaches went round with a very patriotic "E R" on the sides. (Although, given the period it was set in, would have been King Edward VII, not Queen Elizabeth II.)

I believe the EPN Soc wrote tomes on most county place names, so might be worth borrowing the relevant volumes for your area and seeing what you can come up with.

Current layout is based on a real place (Buscot) which, as with most East Gloucestershire Railway stations, is sufficiently far from the station not to need being modeled!

[28XX]

Stourhampton is a blend of Stourport, Stourbridge, Wolverhampton, Hampton in Arden etc. There is also a dystopian novel by the same name which fits my fictional history disturbingly well. It also featured briefly in The Archers radio program, and occupies the same physical space but a different time-space continuum as Redditch.

[Poor Old Bruce]

Best 'made up' name I've ever come across is Dylan Thomas's 'Llareggub'. -  Welsh sounding through and through.

 

Terry Pratchett's "Llamedos" is presumably somewhere in the same area..

 

Fforeggub can't be far away either.

 

If you are following a new theme, how about 'Damascus Road'?

[Torper]

I always like a station name with the word "Road" in it - it often means (up here at least) that it's in a rural situation so you don't have to worry too much about modelling a supporting town.

 

DT

[railsquid]

Stourhampton is a blend of Stourport, Stourbridge, Wolverhampton, Hampton in Arden etc. There is also a dystopian novel by the same name which fits my fictional history disturbingly well. It also featured briefly in The Archers radio program, and occupies the same physical space but a different time-space continuum as Redditch.

 

Having lived in Redditch, that sounds like an attractive alternative. Is there a layout thread?

 

For my part, pending delivery of sufficient circular tuits, I will be constructing something to be known as "Birmingham Knotmore Street", in a mildly alternative universe where the GWR mainline through the West Midlands was never closed.

Edited July 22, 2017 by railsquid

[Zomboid]

I've been staring at maps of Louisiana seeking inspiration for my current project.

One good thing about US modelling is that you can just use the -ville suffix, but that's consequently very common, and I'd like to come up with something different. Could use French, since it's in Louisiana, but that hasn't helped either...

[Talltim]

Pelicanville

[28XX]

Having lived in Redditch, that sounds like an attractive alternative. Is there a layout thread?

 

For my part, pending delivery of sufficient circular tuits, I will be constructing something to be known as "Birmingham Knotmore Street", in a mildly alternative universe where the GWR mainline through the West Midlands was never closed.

 

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/101635-stourhampton-now-three-quarters-of-a-layout/?fromsearch=1

 

Not much has happened since my mum and my mother in law passed away and I have been supporting my dad who has now finally agreed to go into a care home.

 

If you find any round tuit dealers with stock, could you let me know where?

[john new]

I've been staring at maps of Louisiana seeking inspiration for my current project.

One good thing about US modelling is that you can just use the -ville suffix, but that's consequently very common, and I'd like to come up with something different. Could use French, since it's in Louisiana, but that hasn't helped either...

For my current WIP N gauge US based effort I came up with Plum Hollow, bases are two boxes originally for plum delivery. Try Googling local legends for the area you have picked for the location and see if it brings up any inspirations. Although the name I've picked is actually from a Canadian hamlet it fitted in many other ways too. Edited July 25, 2017 by john new

[rockershovel]

More years ago than enough, I was a member of a club (in Cambridge?) which had a club layout called "Hornby Castle" complete with the eponymous ruin covering the tunnel at one end, in the Craigshire fashion.

[Pete the Elaner]

Family Guy is a secret?

Blue Harvest was the working title of Return of the Jedi. At the time, it was due to be called Revenge of the Jedi, but if they called it that while filming, it would have been swamped with fans trying to see what was going on.

I did try to watch Family Guy once but could not get on with it. I am aware that they did a Star Wars tribute episode & this is why they would have used ROTJs working title.

[Pete the Elaner]

I always like a station name with the word "Road" in it - it often means (up here at least) that it's in a rural situation so you don't have to worry too much about modelling a supporting town.

 

DT

I think of it the other way around: Road means in a city, like Tottenham Court Road for instance.

Abbey Road (DLR) Globe Road/Coburn Road (GE, just outside Liverpool St but both closed), Edgware Road (Bakerloo & Circle lines), Derby Road (Ipswich).

That makes it easy too. You can model a real location which does not have a railway, removing a few buildings & create a 'what might have been'.

I am building a real location now find that copying buildings & structures is extremely rewarding.

[Steven B]

What about picking names from the history of the locations you're modelling, either people or locations. For Woolwich you could have:

 

Gun Wharf Road

Woolwich Kings Yard/Sidings/Junction

Definance Street

Steam Factory Lane

Mast Quay

 

 

 

Steven B.

[Kelly]

What about picking names from the history of the locations you're modelling, either people or locations. For Woolwich you could have:

 

Gun Wharf Road

Woolwich Kings Yard/Sidings/Junction

Definance Street

Steam Factory Lane

Mast Quay

 

 

 

Steven B.

Quite like that second one. Woolwich kings junction could work.

[MarkSG]

We've just returned from a week's family holiday in Cornwall. Not far from where we stayed is a small village called St Enoder. My daughter, who is a very big Minecraft fan, saw a signpost to it and said "For a moment, I thought that said 'St Enderman'" (for those unfamiliar with the game, an Enderman is a character in Minecraft).

 

That got me thinking of this thread. There are several themes that recur in Cornish toponyms, including a lot of places named after saints (eg, St Agnes, St Ives and St Mawes, as well as the aforementioned St Enoder), the ubiquitous prefix Tre- and, of course, the word "Wheal", referring to a mine.

 

Armed with that, here's a list of plausible Cornish-sounding placenames based on Minecraft names:

 

St Enderman

Trecreeper

Wheal Ghast

Trewither

Treshulker

Wheal Blaze

St Endermite

Wheal Alex

Trenetherrack

Wheal Creft (literally, "Mine Craft")

St Admium

 

I have no plans to use any of these in the foreseeable future, so if anyone wants to use them on a Cornish BLT then feel free! I require no acknowledgement or thanks, but if I ever see any of these at an exhibition I will allow myself the luxury of an inward snicker

 

[Huw Griffiths]

So how did you come up with a name? was it simply a contraction/variation on the area? or a road name? etc?

 

For the best models , there isn't a  need to pick a name, the model will  find it's own name!

 

This might well also apply to lesser models and layouts.

 

If I were ever to build a layout to go "on the road", I dread to think the sorts of names it might acquire. I'd imagine that "Missing Summit" could be uncomfortably near the top of any shortlist.

 

 

Best 'made up' name I've ever come across is Dylan Thomas's 'Llareggub'. -  Welsh sounding through and through.

 

That is, unless you try reading it back to front - probably not recommended if there are any English Language teachers in the vicinity.

 

 

Terry Pratchett's "Llamedos" is presumably somewhere in the same area..

 

Similar advice applies here.

 

 

Fforeggub can't be far away either.

 

If you are following a new theme, how about 'Damascus Road'?

 

Ditto.

 

As for the last name, it probably depends if anyone's name is Saul.

 

 

 

What about picking names from the history of the locations you're modelling, either people or locations. For Woolwich you could have ...

 

They all sound like they could be credible suggestions.

 

However, if anyone were to build a layout based on the town where I've lived most of my life, they might need to be selective.

 

References to the former GKN foundry - or nearby roads / areas like Forgehammer, Forgeside, Springvale etc might not be too out of place - similar comments might also apply to the Monmouthshire & Brecon canal.

 

If anyone chose, instead, to come up with a name like "Crow Valley" or "Grey River" (spelling optional), some people might almost imagine some fictitious US "backwoods" style railroad in On30.

 

 

I've been staring at maps of Louisiana seeking inspiration for my current project.

One good thing about US modelling is that you can just use the -ville suffix, but that's consequently very common, and I'd like to come up with something different. Could use French, since it's in Louisiana, but that hasn't helped either...

 

I'm afraid I can't help you much, either.

 

 

Changing the subject slightly,

 

If you find any round tuit dealers with stock, could you let me know where?

 

I also wouldn't mind hearing about them. I've been staring at various drawings (that show bits of some planned 4 wheel railbus project) for a while now.

 

The next stage will involve transferring dimensions to my own drawings, using an old version of Adobe Illustrator - little more than clicking a mouse a few times, to generate a few rectangles (some with corners - some rounded). This is all stuff I've done loads of times before without problems - but can I get started? (What do you think?)

 

Ultimately, this why I won't be worrying about what to call a new layout any time soon.

 

 

Huw.

[Jamiel]

I had a very specific reason for picking the name for my layout, or rather changing it.

It is a Yorkshire based station which is served by both (North) Eastern and Midland regions of British Rail, rather like Wakefield. Originally it was called 'Ouse Gate', named after the river Ouse which runs through the town of Selby where I grew up.

In 2011 the name of the fledgling layout changed to 'Ellerby'. There are two Ellerby's in Yorkshire, so the name fits the area, but more specific my daughter Ella Beatrice was born, and this became Ella B, or written 'Ellerby'.

The news agents shop I have built is called 'E & A Dawson', after my mother's maiden name Eileen Dawson and my grandfather Allen. There will definitely be a Weaver in the names somewhere for my uncle who is a train enthusiast, and a bakers called 'Crust' after my partner.

In my field of work this (film) is a common practice, in matte paintings all the car number plates are the initials of the team who did the work. I hid the names of all the crew on a TV show I worked on in the jumble of text as a computer boots up. In 'Star Trek TNG' there is a graphic of a family tree, where all the names on one page are the actors who had played 'Dr Who' up to that point.

The one thing the layout name doesn't allow for is pretending it as a north London station when I want to run imposters on the layout like Q1's, diesel Class 16s, and I don't know how long I can resist a Bullied Pacific (maybe a special).

I'm sure there must be others who have named layouts after loved ones, newly arrived, long time partners or in remembrance. After all many place names are come from the people who established the settlement in the first place.

Edited July 30, 2017 by Jamiel

[jcm@gwr]

My exhibition layout is called 'Havatry',

it is a 7mm shunting puzzle (Inglenook),

all the controls are at the front, so that

anyone can 'have a try'!