After looking at John Armstrong’s CSRR (Canandaigua Southern) trackplan in the July 1996 Model Railroader, you suddenly realize John played on words for CSRR’s layout town names like John Allen did with his “Gorre & Daphitid” = (Gory & Defeated).
I really have no idea other than guesses for these two which I would say:
AWL MINE = All Mine.
GASMETERSZAG = Gas Meter Zag (where the track had to go around the gas meter).
YNYSYBIWL and EBBW VALE are takesooff on Welsh words and pronunciations. Liek the actual PA town of Bryn Mawr (‘Brin Mar’)
In Creative Layout Design, he has a few more doozies. Bee Haven (so they can have an annual pageant to crown “Miss Bee Haven”) and Llawn Mawr (“lawn mower”) were two of the best.
I remember that John once wrote that “Ynysybwl” (correct spelling, per John, without the “i”) almost rhymed with “municipal,” but don’t recall ever seeing or hearing how he pronounced Ebbw Vale. However, it wasn’t made up; it was named for a major marshalling point on the Taff Vale Ry. in Wales. Dunellen is simply named for the town in New Jersey where Howell Day operated The Model Railroad Shop, where John got many of his hobby supplies in the early days. Merry Christmas, Andy
In the July 1966 Model Railroader, “The Canandaigua Southern Today” - Part 1, there is a CSRR route map on page 59: Canandaigua to Cattaraugus to Uncertainia Junction to Pittsburgh.
Our Westcentral Pennsylvania geographic region is a 1 - 1 1/2 car drive east of Pittsburgh named after a Delaware Tribe called the Conemaugh Indians. It is the Conemaugh Valley at the confluence of the Stony Creek & Little Conemaugh rivers forming the Conemaugh River in Johnstown, PA.
The Delawares pronounced it, connu-macht, and; we pronounce Conemaugh as con-eh-maw.
My developing N Scale layout is called the Conemaugh Road & Traction.
My hunch is that “Conemaul Power” was inspired by one of the many local coal-fed tall smokestack electricity power plants called, the Conemaugh Power Plant.