MRH Sep/Oct 2010 - Issue 9

Page 138

THE LITE AND NARROW: Building some Farm Fencing Ramblings on Narrow Gauge and Branchline Modeling Reader Feedback

About our narrow gauge and branchline columnist

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Lew Matt is a published writer, photographer, and illustrator whose work has appeared in many model railroad hobby magazines. Click here to learn more about Lew.

Figure 1: Horse meets iron horse. This month Lew writes about keeping animals off his narrow The wood fence has several advangauge right of way and maybe different modeling approach to the tages over barbed wire and “pig” wire keeping trains off his farms . . . ubiquitous wire fence is the common

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ailroads were always concerned about defining their right-ofways. Fencing land was an important part of this as it resolved ownership issues and kept human and animal trespassers off of the tracks. A

Page 138 • Issue 9 • Sep/Oct 2010 • The Lite and Narrow column, page 1

split rail fence and post. Frequently found in the heartland of the US, from Maine to Georgia and Missouri to New Jersey, where wood was plentiful and soil wasn’t too rocky, this type of fence was used by many land owners and railroads to establish the boundaries of the right-of-way.

(wire fence with 5 inch square openings). First, the wood fence was inexpensive as all the materials could be found directly on the farm. Second, the wood fence would not scratch and scar the animal’s hide, so the farmer received higher prices for unblemished hides from the tannery. Third, the

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