Medina Valley Southern

Live Steam Magazine, May 1979



Alex and Grace Hitzfelder officially opened their new track with a Golden Spike ceremony on November 25, 1978. This newest track among the Southwest Live Steamers is 1-1/2 inch scale, 7-1/2 inch gauge, with 1200 feet of main line, two passing sidings four trestles and a truss bridge.

The land for the track was flat, but Alex dug a lake and built mountains so he could have a cut and a trestle over the lake. Still to be built is a yard and spurs to industries. Planned are an oil field and a mine, among others, so cars can be set out and picked up, as in prototype railroading.

Medina Valley Southern equipment presently consists of a 30-ton GE switcher which Alex scratchbuilt and a 46 foot flatcar. A 40 foot semi-well flatcar is under construction and several cars are on the drawing board.

Alex built his own foundry (thanks to a lot of technical advice from Les Burford of Dallas) with which he makes his own castings. Future plans call for building a Texas & New Orleans Mogul, adapted from drawings made for a 1 inch scale version by Bob Jones of Pearland, Texas.

Alex and Grace say they always are happy to have visitors, but ask that they be contracted in advance at Route 1, Box 377, Devine, Texas 78016.