A professional photographer by trade, Allen introduced weathering and other techniques to make models look more realistic. Starting in the 1960s, he also held regular operating sessions on the third Gorre & Daphetid, running his HO scale layout like a working railroad.
Allen contributed photos and articles to Model Railroader and other hobby magazines throughout the ’50s and ’60s. He was also active in the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA), giving many presentations. Readers and audiences came to know him as the “Wizard of Monterey.” Although he died on January 6, 1973, and his layout was destroyed by a house fire several days later, John Allen and the Gorre & Daphetid remain an inspiration for generations of model railroaders.
105th birthday this year.
Hope MR will consider my request to name one of the MR&T diesels in honor of John. Though he was a steam locomotive operator, one visitor was permitted to use a EMD TR cow and calf diesel transfer set to switch Port. Other diesels appeared on the GD Line which John photographed for the Varney ads that appeared for several years on the rear cover of MR! In my opinion, his original layout remains one of the best designed for newcomers in the hobby with limited space, e.i. apartments, condos, and trailer homes.
It is fitting to remember John Allen once again in lieu of April 2017 MR being the 1000th issue. How about offering 1000 limited edition MR&T diesel locomotives in HO and N scale for sale through the MR shop named John Allen? Or perhaps a first, an MR&T USRA Mike? Either way, I’m sure John would appreciate it!
RIP John. Model railroaders the world over miss you.
Re: My comment posted three years ago. I hope MR will consider my request to name one of the MR&T diesel locomotives after John. Though he ran steam on the GD Line one visitor was permitted to use a cow and calf diesel switcher at the Port facility. Though I’ve love to see a pix of it in service switching Port I imigine it was never photographed. Diesels did make appearances of course the ones John shot on the layout for Varney ads!
Is there some way to find the articles John Allen wrote in MR? I gave the archive but there is no search.
John Allen's wit and pioneer fine scale modeling remain in the hearts of most senior citizen model railroaders to this day as well as the many younger modelers who have discovered who John and his G&D were in the excellent Kalmbach published book that the late Linn Westcott wrote.
With so many people who are interested in constructing a layout but live in apartments or condos with little space for a large model railroad, John's original G&D remains an excellent choice.
When Linn built the 4X8 Great Northern Pacific featured in his layout book "HO Railroad that Grows", also a Kalmbach publication, he added a drop-leaf yard so the layout could be expanded when operating and folded when the layout was stored. Adding this feature to John's original 3'7"X6'8" layout can provide everyone living in tight quarters the possibility to enjoy HO modeling, including families living in trailer homes.
Though John is no longer with us, his inspiration and ideas are as fresh now as they were when he constructed the compact original G&D. We miss you Mr. Allen, but thank you too for the wonderful fellowship, in person and in print, that you have provided all model railroaders over the years.
MR should roll out a John Allen Memorial Locomotive on the MR&T!
Although it was my older brother who interested me in model railroading as a teen in the early 60's, it was seeing John Allen's work in Model Railroader that really inspired me. The images of his layout are forever burned into my mind even more so than my own original layout. My brother and I both left model railroading after college. I would think about a model railroad from time to time but never did anything about it. It wasn't until discovering the book "Model Railroading with John Allen" that the desire to get back into model railroading was strong enough for me to act on it. I am now the happy owner of a small layout populated with scratch built structures. I owe John Allen a huge debt! I am happy that he is still so fondly remembered. Thank you John !!!
John Allen was and still is a great inspiration to all modelrailroaders. When his articles would come out in MR, my
late father and I would just marvel. He's the main reason we were and I still am, intrigued by this wonderful hobby.
About the John Allen Memorial JAM Breakfast:
On the evening of July 1st we got word that the first ever JAM
Breakfast had taken place in the Phillipines, celebrated by Jeff Clark and family, thus officially kicking off the 24-hour cycle. With model railroaders in many countries having their JAM breakfasts, it went on all day, right 'round the globe to the West Coast of Canada and the USA.
Here in Toronto the morning of the 2nd, with a fellow model rail we had invited for the occasion, we had the traditional John Allen Memorial JAM Breakfast : flapjacks and strawberry JAM with coffee. We also had a basket of fresh strawberries to munch on.
We spent that day in friendship, visits, model railroading, and John Allen nostalgia. We introduced newer model railroaders to the magic of the Gorre and Daphetid Railroad.
Now that the centennial JAM Breakfast is all over, the consensus seems to be that we should make the JAM Breakfast an annual event, every July 2.
I hope wherever you marked the occasion, you enjoyed your JAM breakfast! Cheers!
Hard to believe that it's been forty years since John's passing, and along with it his G&D railroad. While some techniques may have changed over time, John's layout – documented through several articles in both MR & RMC – still serves as an excellent example of how a free-lanced railroad can be appropriate both for those of us who enjoy running trains as well as for those who enjoy "operation." Happy Birthday, John!
I was introduced to model railroading when I was a child (I am now 67), and my favorite uncle subscribed to Model Railroader way back then. I remember many of the great features about John Allen's work. Something overlooked in today's trend towards hyper-realism is that his work on the various iterations of the Gorre & Daphetid was very much tongue-in-cheek; he had a wry sense of humor that came through in some of his improbable modeling. Remember the Varney ad about the lynching of the diesel salesman? And the ethnic puns represented by some of the figures present? His genius is under-appreciated. I'd rank him right up there with Disney for creativity, and he didn't have millions to work with. RIP
John Allen! Pioneer in so many aspects of scale model railroading. From scratchbuilding rolling stock, structures, ceiling to floor scenery construction, weathering, prototypical operation and photography he was in a class by himself. I still refer to some of my older MRs featuring John Allen's work for inspiration & for just pure pleasure. He was one of God's blessings to model railroading!
I remember the old MRR John Allen articles well, John was a real pioneer in the model rail hobby.
Wish I had those old mags, they're long gone.
Well this article sure doesn't make ME feel any younger! It may not be possible for those were not model railroaders in the 1950s to 1970s to comprehend just how dominating the name John Allen was in the model magazines, even though there were indeed other superb modelers who were frequently published; or what a gold standard the Gorre & Daphetid was as a layout, possibly because Allen was such a fine photographer and very few other layouts of that era, some of which were themselves exceptionally lovely, had the benefit of being photographed so often and so well by their owners.
John Allen was one of the most talented modelers that I have ever seen. It is amazing how much detail and scenery in a small area. He would have been a person that I would have wanted to meet and just talk to. Thank You John.
John Allen lives on the minds and hearts of all model railroaders. His genius was one of a kind.
God bless John Allen.