The Yellowstone Project

In my childhood, my family drove from South Bend, Indiana to Northern Minnesota every summer for vacation. Every year we drove past an enormous steam engine on static display in Proctor, Minnesota (immediately west of Duluth) at a roadside park along US 2. Some years, we stopped and I had my picture taken next to this gigantic locomotive. While on a family vacation in September of 1999, I rediscovered this engine. The engine is a Yellowstone M3 2-8-8-4 steam locomotive from the Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range Railroad (DM&IR). Due to the sentiments from my childhood, and my lifelong interest in trains - both model and prototype, I decided I would like to make a scale model of this engine, if possible. I have modeled primarily in N Scale (1:160) since 1970, and knew there would not be many ready-made resources from which to model it. Here are a few details and links regarding my research and attempt at modeling this magnificent locomotive.

	PROTOTYPE INFORMATION	This is one of only three surviving DM&IR Yellowstones
SteamLocomotive.com	The best web source for information on American prototype steam engines
	The Missabe Railroad Historical Society - the 'official' historical society of the Duluth Missabe & Iron Range Railway and its predecessors.
	the un"Official" Denver & Rio Grande Western web site. ( DM&IR leased Yellowstones to the D&RGW. )
	MODELING INFORMATION
	BENCHMARK MODELS PRESENTS: The DM&IR "Yellowstone" - A superbly handcrafted brass model imported for the Serious "N" Scale Modeler available since August 2004. Available in the M3 and M4 versions in eight different road numbers. I have mine! Pictures:   [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]
	The Great River Valley System - an N-Trak model railroad club in the Minnesota Twin Cities area. Damian, one of their members, has a common interest in the DM&IR and has modeled a Yellowstone using the ConCor Big Boy. He supplied me with the winged herald decals for my DM&IR Yellowstone project.
	MODEL MANUFACTURERS INFORMATION (FOR KITBASHING)
	Bachmann Industries Trains - Manufacturers of fine N Scale equipment. Although larger than the drive wheels on a Yellowstone, their 4-8-4 Northern steam locomotive could provide the drive wheels for the Yellowstone.
	ConCor - Was a top quality N Scale manufacturer that had a Centipede tender compatible with kitbashing the ones used with the DMIR Yellowstones. Con-Cor also modeled a Northern 4-8-4 that could be used for modeling the Yellowstone engine.
	Micro-Trains - Coupler conversion kit number 1114 is used for the Con-Cor Centipede tender.