Train Shed Roofs

[TrainCat2]

I'm scratching a Train Shed for someone but they did not know what the roof was made of. I don't think it could be wood as there would be a fire hazard possibility. So I believe that metal would be the medium of choice. What I DON'T know, it if sheds would have had corrugated, flat sheet, or some other type of metal roof. I also wonder if there would have been any other material on top of the metal, or just painted.

Anyone have any knowledge of this??

[Sokramiketes]

What's a "train shed"?  ???

[mirage]

What's a "train shed"?  ???

Look here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Train_shed

But most of the shown passenger stations are european, so I don't know if this is meant by Bob!?!

[wm3798]

The one that survives at Mt. Royal Station Baltimore is wood sheathed with fiberglas shingles, but that's a very post-steam renovation.







Judging by the last image, it looks like it might have always been wood, though.  In steam days, the engine would have been idling anyway, and dragged through with an electric box cab.

I imagine you could do a google image search (just like I did) and find everything you need.  My first guess would be corrugated steel.

Lee

[asciibaron]

all the sheds i have been in have had metal roofs - in Europe and the US.

Lee, you got me, i forgot about Royal station.  all but one have been metal.

[wm3798]

HAH!  You DON'T know what you're talking about!  I Knew IT!! ;D ;D

(Putting down his bag of troll food)

Lee

[Ed Kapuscinski]

What was Broad Street in Philly's made of?

I know it burned... twice. So I'm thinking it might have been wood.

[asciibaron]

I know it burned... twice. So I'm thinking it might have been wood.

now that i think about it even more, the Reading's Terminal Market shed has a wooden roof, was that original?

here's a shot of Broad Street - can't quite tell what it's made of



and here's another:



Bob, you asked a really good question.  what era is the shed set in, it might not have a roof at all!

here's a shot of Mt. Royal when it was active in 1896 - wow what a difference!

[Sokramiketes]

Is this a passenger terminal?  If so, plenty of them have been wood, but yes it depends on the era.  Running through the stations in Chicago, Dearborn's shed was wood and iron with corrugated metal roofing.  Grand Central was steel framework with tarpaper over the wood sub-roof.  Union Station was concrete, steel, and some glass (or a highrise depending on which year exactly.  Think LaSalle St Station was steel framework with corrugated metal too, though it could have been tar paper. 

But smaller "train sheds" like small town platform canapies, most were wood with either shingles or tarpaper.

*by tarpaper I mean rolled tarpaper or rolled asphalt, which are generally modeled the same way. 

[asciibaron]

go here:
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pp/mdbquery.html

and search on train shed.  i had no idea.

Mt Royal - 1971 - wooden.


here's Camden's old shed - wood. 

http://memory.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/md/md0800/md0840/photos/085984pv.jpg

[wm3798]

Isn't this still standing as the Baltimore Athletic Club?

Lee

[asciibaron]

Isn't this still standing as the Baltimore Athletic Club?

i don't think they are the same structure

http://www.bing.com/maps/default.aspx?v=2&FORM=LMLTCP&cp=qjgm0r8mg32z&style=b&lvl=2&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&phx=0&phy=0&phscl=1&scene=31891639&encType=1

[TrainCat2]

Era is 1930's on.

I have been commissioned to create a N passenger train shed model of US prototype. I was not given a specific shed to model, but I already have drawings for Mount Royal, Harrisburg, L&N in both Motgomery and Nashville and Milwaukee. Each has both good & bad points for a model. Size is set to 3-4 tracks between the columns and one track under the eve at each side. Example:


My main lack of knowledge here is the roof. I did see that Mount Royal had a wood sub-roof from pics I took last year. I did not know if that was original or added during the restoration. And I still don't. I am hoping that some of you may have first-hand knowledge of common roofing of the train sheds. Any of those specific ones mentioned is even better.

[asciibaron]

the 197 image of the Mt. Royal shed clearly shows a wooden substructure and that was before any restoration.

[Sokramiketes]

These are sad photos of the destruction of Dearborn in Chicago, but a couple shots show the roof as it's coming down. 

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=hhphoto&fileName=il/il0300/il0378/photos/browse.db&action=browse&recNum=0&title2=Chicago%20%26%20Western%20Indiana%20Railroad,%20Dearborn%20Station%20Trainshed,%2047%20West%20Polk%20Street,%20Chicago,%20Cook%20County,%20IL&displayType=1&itemLink=D?hh:29:./temp/~ammem_BvAo::

If you can't get the link to work, google HABR or historical building survey, then search for Chicago and Western Indiana Railroad Dearborn Station Trainshed to get the photos.