O F ALL THE HOBBYISTS today building model railroads—and the estimates run up to 50,000 — E. E. Palmer probably holds the world's record for constructing the largest locomotive. It is so big that an entire building on U. S. Route 30 just west of Wooster, Ohio, had to be erected to house it. "She's really a monster," boasts the 83- year -old railroad enthusiast, "about 40 feet long and more than 11 feet tall. The boiler alone is 18 feet in length and has a circumference of 14 feet." Even to the forewarned visitor the actual sight of it comes as a shock. Inside the Palmer residence—which resembles a fire station sandwiched between two old railroad cars—the huge engine and its tender tower almost to the ceiling. Old 999—named to commemorate the New York Central's record-breaker,—is a copy of no particular locomotive. At the age of 70. Palmer began work on the ingenious combination of metal, fiberboard, wood and cut glass. Constructing it in his garage, he soon had to tear down the building to make room for his hobby. Realistic -appearing rivets were made by hammering hundreds of chair -leg gliders into the boiler and bulkheads. A few old gauges from wrecked locomotives lent an air of authenticity to the cab—so much so that visiting engineers have remarked that they "feel right at home up there." Red reflectors give the appearance of an actual fire roaring in the firebox. Powered by an old truck motor, the mammoth model rests on 12 rubber -tired wheels, and can be driven on the highway "with the ease of an automobile" according to Palmer. The ex -carnival man, traveling salesman, inventor and one-time "Chipped Glass Name Plate King" has worked at about every conceivable occupation. "But the one I missed was the one I wanted most—railroad engineer," he sighed. Known locally as the "Locomotive Works," Palmer's house was built especially for the E. E. Palmer Overland Limited. Actual 5 living quarters are squeezed into an ancient railroad car on the right side of the building. Once the private car of some railroad president (even Palmer doesn't know which one), it was according to its owner "one of the most ornate ever to glide over the rails." Its antique atmosphere of faded carpets, dangling chandeliers and fringed curtains delights Palmer and, though wealthy, he would live nowhere else. Attached to the left side of the main structure, an old interurban coach purchased for $80 serves as workshop and office for Palmer's name -plate business. In the old relic, which once ran on the old Northern Ohio Traction between Cleveland and Akron, he continues to manufacture chipped glass, sparkling signs and house numbers by the method he patented in 1898. "During one holiday week end some 300 visitors came to see me and my monster streamliner," he says. Then with a shrug he adds, "But after all, what's more fascinating than a trackless locomotive! * * *
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