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Abandoned - Railway - part 3 - Pumpkin Junction - Story 62

Started by Abandoned, October 23, 2020, 07:56:10 AM

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Abandoned

Intro


This is the 62nd story in the Smallville Series, and part 3 of the Railway mini-series.   It tells the tale of 6 families who traveled east by train through the newly cleared tunnel from Iron Ridge (story 50).  Their job was to settle a junction town and expand the railway tracks to the north, south, and west.  The story begins in year 80 SVT.


The map seed is  #  10909567   Valley,  Small,  Fair, Off,  Start -  M6  deer, geese, bear, boar


Mods activated for this map and load order are:


Map changing and Starting Mods:  Banished UI Maps, Labor Window, RK Minimized Status, CC Light Rain, EB Grizzly Valley, CC Transport, Settler Deco, Kid Tree Replacer Deco, Kid Tree Replacer Light, New Flora Edit, Kid Wildlife Starts

Tweak Mods:    Better Fields, Dried Mushrooms, Fishing Dock +25%, Hunting, Hunting Season, Increased CC, 1:1 Alternative, Rocks Respawn, Stop Burning Coal, Tiny Smoke, Woodcutter +3

Major or Must Have Mods:    An Empty Square, Nomads (Kid), Storage Crates, Jinxie Bitty Chicken Coop, Jinxie Festival Park, Kid Colonial City Center (testing), Kid Friendly Pumpkin (update testing), Kid Old Town, Kid Workplace Village, Mini Warehouse

Supporting Mods:    DS Tunnels, Fly Fishing (TS), Kid Deco People, Kid Deco Farm Animals, Kid Deco Wreaths, Kid Farmyard, Kid Ghost Flowers, Kid Market Carts, Kid Market Food, Kid Market Puzzle, Kid Portable Mine, Kid Railway,  Kid Work Shop, Map Scroll, One Stop All Mining, Tiny Chopper, Tiny Mine


Mod notes:  Kid Friendly Pumpkin update has 2 roof textures added, one is vanilla thatch, the other is Forest Haven wood shingles.  I am testing additions that have been added to Kid Colonial City Center WIP since the last test, a new version was released, find it here:   http://worldofbanished.com/index.php?topic=3837.msg68445#msg68445


Map Note:  I found this map seed while looking for a map for the previous story, Grizzly Gulch.  I thought it looked liked a pumpkin face and it gave me the idea for Pumpkin Junction, I wrote down the map seed number.  However, after choosing mods for this story, as usually happens after changing mods, the map seed did not generate the same map.  I tried several combinations enabling mods from the previous story, with no luck.  I re-enabled the grizzly terrain and added a few other small mods plus the Colonial City Center update before continuing to look for a new map.  For some reason I tried one last time with that map seed and there, to my surprise, was my pumpkin face map again.  It is not the best map for developing a town and railway but I am using it for Pumpkin Junction anyways. - Screenshots to follow - I hope.



  Yes, weary traveler, it is chilly for late autumn, come sit by the fire while I tell you all about Pumpkin Junction.


Abandoned

Intro Maps

Abandoned

Prologue


  As you know, weary traveler, there is and always was talk in Smallville about the railroad.  The original town was abandoned after loggers for the railroad jammed the river causing death and destruction.  In year 35 SVT an abandoned tunnel was discovered by Smallville expedition #9 on their way north where they founded North Mining Town (story 13).  It was not until year 60 SVT that descendants of one of the loggers returned to that abandoned tunnel.  They named their town Iron Ridge after the mountain the abandoned tunnel was in.  They build the railway for their grandfather back in Holiday Hometown (story 51).  The first train built in Iron Ridge went west back to their Hometown in year 67.

   It was miners from the north who were of Dwarven descent who help design and built the first train engine and cars, and later it was their knowledge on mining that made it possible to clear the abandoned tunnel and expand the railway to the east.  They said that mountain ridge was mainly iron and would be very hard to dig through.  They recommended building a mine next to the tunnel to remove stone, coal, and iron through a side shaft which would later make completing the tunnel easier.  No one knows more about mining and rocks than a Dwarf. 

  The abandoned tunnel was cleared and in year 79 SVT a work train headed east.  Some of us in Iron Ridge were really exited because we knew when the work crew completed laying tracks for a turnaround we would be going to our new town.  Freight and passenger cars were already being built.  There were 6 families who volunteered to go, and we women agreed we wanted our town to be more than just a wood and thatch railway mining town.  Many of us had friends and family we visited in Holiday Hometown and we wanted a homey town like that, with holiday decorations and pumpkin pie.  We even picked a name for our town, Pumpkin Junction.

kid1293

 ;D Yes, the map looks like a pumpkin.
This will be fun :) Good Luck!

Abandoned

 :)

Chapter 1


  The report from the returning work train crew was not good. They immediately had to build a bridge to extend the tracks across a river.  The area was mountainous, the soil was rocky, and there were bears and wild boar everywhere.  The crew built the turnaround, stockpiling logs, stone, and iron, and leaving a few coal cars and supply carts for our use.  They had doubts about tunneling through to the east or south.  Our town would likely not be a major railroad junction.  We would keep the name anyways.

  When we arrived the following spring we found bears and geese in the small valley where the work crew built a stockpile and left supply carts for us.  We immediately built a hunting tower and the remaining bears soon left.  The meat went into the carts.  A woodcutter and 2 houses were built there too and when we realized one of the children was 6 years old already, we built a school.  It would be centrally located.  One house was built over to the west of town and the family immediately planted 2 corn patches.  Two houses were built east of town.  Our house was built last over by the lake to the west, we had a nice view.  We knew the railway tracks going north would be nearby but that didn't matter.  I liked the sound of the train.  Our baby girl was born in one of the train's passenger cars shortly after we arrived.  Channon and I were very happy when our house was completed.  At the end of that first year there were 26 of us, 12 adults, 1 student, and 13 young children.

Abandoned

Chapter 2


  It was autumn before we were all settled and had our belongings out of the freight car and the train headed back to Iron Ridge.  We were told a supply train would arrive as soon as possible but not to expect it until sometime the following year.

  It was a hard winter with little firewood or food variety, but the hunting was good and I did some trout fishing from the lake shore by our house.  In spring, Theador & Merryl got the baby chickens and turkeys outside, a coop was built and a roost was planned.  Tristone & Rean planted a pumpkin patch by their corn patches.  We gathered wild foods and firewood and cut trees.

  We were surprised when in summer 10 adults with 3 children came through the tunnel from Iron Ridge.  The supply train was delayed but they knew we needed help.  The work crew reported a problem with bears on our track and a need for trees to be cut.  The work train and the train that brought us barely made it back to Iron Ridge because of lack of coal.  We needed coal and a platform to make unloading supplies easier.  We were advised to concentrate our efforts on expanding the railway north.  We had a lot of work to do but first we need homes from the newcomers and coats and soon tools too.

  The first house was built for the family of 4 on the east side of town where the turkey roost was just completed.  A storage shed and friendly tailor was built there too.  Some warm coats would be made first with wild flax and goose down.  We had hides and furs too.  The coats were needed, it was snowing before 2 of the new families were settled in their homes near the lake and turnaround.  A single young female discovered a duck pond not far from them and wanted a house build there.  An older single male had a house built east of town by the lake, he wanted to catch lake trout from shore.  It was early spring before we knew it.

(Note- screenshots will be posted separately when possible)

Abandoned

picture posting test

Abandoned

Trying again to post more pictures for chapter 2

Abandoned

Chapter 3


   Year 3 began with a very low supply of tools.  A smith was built by the main stockpile.  One of the carts was moved over by the tailor who was having trouble finding needed raw material, we had many storage crates and a few sheds scattered around town.  Not only was it hard to find things but it was hard to say just how much of any one thing we had.  We needed records and we needed a town hall to keep them in, one was built next to the school.

  Work began in the turnaround area, removing stone and cutting trees.  A hill was discover in one thicket of trees that the dwarves among us said would be good for a vertical coal shaft.  Work began.  Tracks were laid to bring the coal cars closer.  A hunting tower was built to control the bear population and provide meat for nearby residents.

  Earlier in the year Channon and I planted a farmyard with a chestnut tree, oats, carrots, and sweet potatoes.  Despite the rocky iron soil, everything was doing quite well.  We had a 2nd daughter that year and Channon built a wooden swing by the lake.  It helped rock the baby to sleep and our oldest girl liked to watch the ducks.  Channon and I would sit and watch the autumn sun set over the lake.  The autumn colors in Pumpkin Junction were spectacular.

  One of our main concerns was the distances we had to travel around town especially in winter.  The tunnel from town to the east was a great help and so were the roads that were laid there.  By winter of year 3 another tunnel was built, going from town to the west, coming out near our house.  My concern was our children would be crossing railroad tracks when they reached school age.  Channon assured me that trains would probably be few and far between. 

  Another concern was our food supply, we had a limited variety in most areas and very little meat.  When 2 deer herds and 2 groups of bears showed up east of town, 2 hunters were immediately sent to the area.   We would have some good winter meals and warm coats.

Abandoned

Chapter 4


  By early spring of year 4 a hunter's tower was built but the deer herds and bears did not return.  The snow that fell did not stay around for long.  Our farmyards were doing good and so was our firewood supply but it was not getting where it was needed.  We had the worker who filled the textile cart get firewood from the main stockpile to add to the woodfuel markets on both sides of town.  We also had a storage unit on our side of town now. 

  Our coal supply was growing slowly, we only had one miner.  We thought he would be safer with a helper since mines were places where accidents happen.  It also reminded us that our town had no cemetery yet.  A spot in the center of town was chosen.

  We were please with our work on the railway that year.  A coal bin, station master, railway station, and rooms were built.  When the supply train came it would have a platform to unload goods and the workers would have rooms to stay while they were here.  Hopefully we would have enough coal for the train to return to Iron Ridge.

Abandoned

#10
Chapter 5


  During year 4, Channon and I had our 3rd daughter, little Lottie was a darling.  There were additions to other families also and by early spring of year 5  Pumpkin Junction's population had grown to 47, 22 adults, 8 students, and 17 young children.  The population grew more when the supply train arrived in summer with 5 families who would stay to help mine for coal and build the tracks.  There were 14 adults and 1 child. 

  There was not enough room for everyone in the railway rooms so we immediately began building houses. The train conductor would remain in the caboose until the train left.  We did not have nearly enough coal on hand and in autumn we had a mix of freezing rain and snow followed by more snow.  The supply train would have to stay until spring or an early thaw. 

Two houses were built near the railway station by the lake, another by the river, and 2 on the east side of town.  We unloaded wool from the general car and apples from the food car.  The new families also brought us seeds for farmyards and messages from friends and family back in Iron Ridge. 

Abandoned

#11
Chapter 6


The worker from the textile wagon brought coal to the railway coal bin but it was spring  before the supply train had enough coal and weather permitted the return trip.  We were told to send word when we laid enough tracks to reach the mountains in the north, the work train would return to dig the tunnel.  We might want to build a trading post,  There was now a cartographer in Riverboat Junction, we could order maps to have on hand for visitors to our town.

  The summer was spend getting settled.  A farmyard was planted with potatoes not far when where the 2 new house were built on the east side of town.  A trading post was built on the river north of the town hall.  The trader stocked it with firewood, iron tools, leather, down, and pumpkins.  Some time was spent clearing trees and stone from the path the railway tracks would be laid going north from the station.  More trees were cut and the coal miners were now bringing up iron for the rails.  The railway work was progressing at a good pace.

  By early spring of year 7, the railway tracks reached our house and tunnel, and continued on until the river.  The work stopped there, we had other important things to do that year.  We wanted the children to have some fun in autumn, we wanted it special, and we started planning early.

Abandoned

#12
Chapter 7


  As usual in autumn there would be some cornstalk, hay bales, and pumpkin decorations but this year we wanted more.  Soon special Halloween decorations with scarecrows and ghosts began appearing all around town, every house had decorations outside.  The tailor made some witch's costumes for us.  The men gathered straw from the farmyards so we could give the children hay rides in the empty coal car.  They built a festival park behind the town hall and school.  The closest we could come to a cauldron was a market stew kettle which we soon had bubbling away.

  By autumn, 14 year old Grisellene had her own house built near the park and she put up a sign saying Sweets.  She gathered wild honeycombs and cut them in pieces to be chewed like candy.   Everyone was thrilled.  We soon had a town center with our park, Sweets shop, Food Store, and Firewood market. 

  And then it was the end of autumn, All Hollow's Eve, and to the children's horror we had vegetable stew in the cauldron.  We bobbed for apples and ate honeycomb candy.  When it got dark we told scary ghost stories and because we were in Pumpkin Junction, there were spooky lit pumpkins everywhere because This is Halloween.

kid1293


angainor88