The building at left in this view of Jerry's downtown Philadelpha street scene is modeled after Stichter's Hardware Store that was located on the northeast corner of 5th & Penn Streets in downtown Reading (the building is still standing, though Stichter's is long gone). The model is constructed of cardboard (artist's illustration board and Strathmore) along with some wood trim. The sidewalks are styrene and the street is drywall compound. The other buildings on the block are a combination of City Classics and Bachmann kits.

Directly across the street from Stichter Hardware are two city-center businesses again modeled from landmarks in Reading. The building toward the rear of the photo behind the crossing tower is modeled after the Colonial Trust bank that was also located at 5th & Penn. It was built using Jerry's cardboard technique, and covered with Model Hobbies brick paper. The crossing tower was constructed from styrene and was based on a magazine article from 1954. Finally, in the foreground is Pomeroy's, one of downtown Reading's signature department stores, built from a Bachmann Cityscenes kit. Also, take a look under the archway at the rear of the photo. Jerry used a photo of model buildings as a small backdrop to create a convincing illusion of the street continuing on for some distance.

Moving away from center city, we head towards the "seedier" sections of industrial Philadelpha. The buildings in the center of the photo were kitbased from DPM kits, while the large Philadelphia Refrigeration kit on the right is constructed from cardboard. Jerry's use of a combination of flats, full-size and low relief buildings gives depth to the scene - check out John Pryke's "Building City Scenery for Your Model Railroad" for more on this scenic approach.

Another view of the industrial switching area of Jerry's Philadelphia scene. Most of the buildings in this photo have been scratchbuilt from cardboard or styrene. The Reading's freight station can be seen in the lower left corner. This photo also captures the VERTICAL dimensions of Jerry's modeling - the height of the buildings also help to provide the "urban canyon" feeling common to industrial districts.

The Baldwin Brass Works is another feature from the Reading area that has been transported to Philadelphia on Jerry's layout. The main building is a Magnuson resin kit, while the small brick addition on the right is scratchbuilt from styrene. The large background building was modeled from a photo of the Reading Terminal Warehouse, using cardboard and City Classics parts.

All the buildings in this view have been constructed from cardboard with the exception of the smaller brick building in the center of the photo, which was built from styrene. The bridge was fabricated from wood and covered with a cardboard veneer to provide a smooth finish and to simulate the architectural details. The windows on the building a right were made from thin Strathmore board that was soaked in clear lacquer. This gives a smooth finish and protects the windows from warping, and also allows them to be worked much like styrene.

The large Texaco oil refinery in Philadelphia is a mix of scratchbuilt, Walthers
and Vollmer components. Behind the refinery is the Campbell's Soup plant (Mmm,
mmm, good) built from City Classics kits with a lot of industrial details added.

This is the "Walthers" end of the Texaco refinery. The "Dick Brothers" building toward the rear is kitbashed from DPM kits, and was actually located along the West Reading Branch (visible in the West Reading Branch Photo Album) in Reading.

Soup is Good Food - here's another view of the large Campbell's Soup plant, which is constructed primarily from City Classics components, with some DPM pieces thrown in for good measure.