Gladstone & North Houghton

The Gladstone and North Houghton R. R. Co. is a freelanced HO railroad based in the upper Michigan peninsula in 1953. Its primary reason for existence is hauling iron ore from the Houghton peninsula to Gladstone, Michigan. There it is transferred to iron ore boats at a 960-scale foot concrete ore dock for the voyage to Chicago and Ohio steel mills. It also serves to supply the Upper Peninsula with manufactured goods and other supplies from the rest of the country. The railroad interchanges with the NYC and PRR by a car ferry in Gladstone, and with the Soo Line and C&NW also at Gladstone. Other interchange railroads are the Central of Wisconsin and Milwaukee Road at Ralph, and the Duluth, South Shore and Atlantic at Nestoria.

The railroad operates using all steam power, and all engines are DCC and sound-equipped. The railroad uses time table - train order and a 6 to 1 scale clock to control train movements. The operating positions are dispatcher, two yardmasters, an engine hostler, an ore director, a mining engineer, and 4 to 8 road engineers.