Working on the Railroad: A Technician's Labor of Love

When technician and train collector Winnie Westwood, CDT, first saw a garden train layout as a child at the Los Angeles County Fair, you could say her wheels started turning. An artist and sculptor who always has a project in the works, she dreamed of creating her own layout in her backyard, but between raising three sons and running her own lab, she never had time to tackle it.

However, when her oldest son was called to serve on a mission for their church—and would be gone for two years—it triggered her to get started. “I wanted him to see it before he left, so I just put my mind to it and got it done,” says Westwood, Owner of W.H. Westwood in Burbank, CA.

She sketched out a design and over the course of a month and a half, created the backyard display. The expansive, 11' by 14' layout features brass tracks weaving through a mountain (which doubles as a water fountain) and a town with houses, a church, carousel, barn and even a Boy Scout camp,...