Tangaire

[joerg 281]

The Story of Tengaire Valley begins in the late 16th century during the age of exploration.  In 1579 Juan Cortez led and expedition to what spanish explorers believed to be the island of California.  Cortez and his men, not to be confused with the far more famous Hernando Cortez, sailed from Spain in 1579 to the eastern coast of North America where they gathered supplies and slaves for a trip around the american continent and back up to California.

Cortez eventually landed at the bay of Tangaires in 1583 four strenuous years after the voyage had begun.  By this time he and his men were exhausted and sure they still had not found this mystical land of California that the indians described.  Another three months trying to navigate around the supposed island of california left Cortez completey sure that this land they had stumbled on was most definately not the Island of California.

In 1585, sure that he was close, Cortez set out with half of his crew sailing west into the vast blue Pacific in hopes of finding the real Island of California.  He and all 234 me were never to be heard from again.  However, the roughly 200 men he left behind did become some of the first Europeans to settle California.

The region of Tangaires was acctually named by Cortez, to this day we know not what inspired the name, but the my personal favorite story is the myth that it was named after a woman in the mysterious Cortez Journals.  You see there is a legend that Cortez left journals with one of his captains at Tangaires before he sailed out.  In this journal the name Tangarine came up many times, she was the woman that stole Cortez's heart, but prior to their marriage Cortez was dispatched to America, soon after Tangarine wrote Cortez that she would come to find him in this "California" she stole away on a ship to America soon after and was never heard from again.  Cortez lost his mind and believed if he could find California he could find Tangarine.

Legend or Truth we may never know but the people of Tangaires will tell you the only way to truly know is to live their and experience the area's aura that heightens every emotion.

The Spanish did not stay long though, without a captain or a purpose the group quickly fled East, and it wasnt until the early 19th century the region again made homage to Europeans.  This time it was the American fur trader that found Tangaire to be quite the treasure trove.  Beaver can be found throughout the entire area and their pelts were very valuable.

As the fur trade came to a close the region found new meaning in 1862 when the American President Abraham Lincoln Signed the Pacific Rail Way Act which eventually lead to the construction of the TransContinental Rail Way.  This inpired Lewis Theodore Amos, a wealthy buisness man from Chicago to build his own competing railway just north of Lincolns.  He quickly rushed out to California and found a starting location, armed with two thousand men, and a small collection of maps and research on the area, he began his rail way, the Union Northern Continental from Tangaires California, hoping to meet up with the Eastern Trans Continental prior to the famous pounding of the goldspike that connected this country.  Needless to say Amos failed misserably at this goal, but the Union Norther Continental did eventually reach the Trans Continetal, and to this day engines roar out of Tangaires proudly branded with the UNC name sake.

The contruction of the railroad and the regions important natural harbors created an ideal breeding ground for early west coast industry, and in 1874 Tangaire was officially incorporated into California as a city population 1743.

Alright guys so its been awhile sense i last did well anything SC4 related, but im kind of inspired and bored lately so looks like im back for a bit.  Anyhow i had pictures but it seems either simtropolis no longer hosts pics or i am a total idiot.  Point being im on my laptop and i dont feel like going through image shack right now so no pictures tonight  but i promise you can expect them soon.  Anyways tell me what you think of the story so far, and as always it is completely fictional but with a twist of real history.

[MTLT_17 27]

Hey Joe,

Glad to see your back with the Simtropolis Community. I will be keeping a close eye on this one

Cheers,

Marshall

[SpecialEddie 3]

Hey, if itsn't the great joerg! I bet this CJ will be as good as your lots and BAT's. And it's a wild west adventure, eh? I know a thing or two about old western CJ's...

[frogface 354]

Sounds good so far, I look forward to seeing the pictures

[homeandaway 1]

great intro - im eager to see where this great start goes my friend, keep up the good work and be safe, take care ~alex~

[joerg 281]

Well looks like I was able to gain access to the Tangaire Valley Archives Building afterall, they went ahead and gave me a few pictures for you guys to look over.

The first couple just show some of the natural beauty of the area including the beaver habitats, natural landslides, and some of the marshlands.

And Finnally one of the most treasured artifacts, one of the original copies made of the map that Cortez and his men made of their expedition into the region.

Well anyways guys I know its not much but believe me when i tell you terraforming and planting trees in 120 large cities is not a fast or fun job.  I am about half done now and i might be tempted to start a city soon.  Next up will be a bit more history on the rail road and some pictures of it winding through the region.  So far im estimating the railroad to be about 40 miles in real scale length which for SC4 is pretty impressive.

The region also has 2 massive peaks both of which dwarf anything ive done in SC4 prior to this.  The peaks sit roughly 50 miles apart on opposite ends of the region both in their own respective ranges.  One peak is so large the summit alone takes up one large city that is nothing but snow cover.  I am going to focus on keep scale as realistic and asthetically pleasing as possible with this CJ so if you have suggestions let me know.  BTW is there a mod out there that will allow me to have smoother railroad curves yet?

[frogface 354]

I love the landscape shots, its all the little details which count like the scree slopes or logs. The region looks enourmous too. As far as I know there are some smooth railway curves avaliable in the latest NAM which should be what you're looking for.

[joerg 281]

Thanks and i found the curves, but i have a random question.  For the life of me I cant remember which button rotates stuff, like the curves for example and going every which way, and trying to build docks is just omg rediculous.

[football_fever 6]

gorgeous! absolutely stunning. I've never been a personal witness to your city/nature-building ability, but it is legendary. I can't wait for more, and I am glad you're back around.

also, the end and home keys rotate things

[powerdc 0]

Mate, that is beautiful work. Can't wait to see how this develops.

Cheers

Dave

[Mulefisk 15]

Wow, this is looking incredible.

Great stuff!

[jacqulina 162]

wonderfull start and intro my friend,beautifull work and pics,wonderfull details

welcome back btw

[MrCinatit 30]

Ah, very good - I have been waiting for this, joerg. Are you terraforming this by hand? If so - that is very, very impressive. Even if not, the little details are very impressive.

I have always enjoyed the beauty of your journals - and, yeah, I do list them as inspiration of my own regions.

[GMT 389]

Interesting story-line, and a great start. stunning landscape, nice pictures.

waiting for more

[homeandaway 1]

Holy! - now thats stunning! - the scenery and the landscape is so unbelivable! - its a truly magnificent dramactic peice of rugged mountanous work! - and im so eager to see more of it!, be safe and take care ~alex~

[bigberta 0]

Hey, Im loving those landscape-shots. I particularly like the rocks. It looks really natural. Keep it up, ciao

[bigberta 0]

Sorry about the double post

[Pixelrage 34]

incredible attention to detail on those wilderness scenes!

[Mike the Mayor 51]

Beautiful scenery pics there, lovely work - well done!

[joerg 281]

In 1876 when the rail road was finally complete the region still lay vastly untamed and ready to be conquered by American westward dreams.  The rail road was no small feat though as it took nearly 2000 men more than a decade to completely finish.  By the mid 1870s though coaches were bringing in cargo and passengers by the train full.

However, with the rail complete the city and its inhabitants had lost focus.  For nearly a decade the region was home to an industry built around the rail road.  Men would unload rails and supplies from the small docks in town, other men would cut timber for the trusses and ties, and even more men would lay the rails and do the ground work for the rail way.  With a completely rail way there was no longer a need for all those jobs.  A very few men got long term employment through Union Northern Continental, and an even fewer men were able to find other basic jobs in town. 

Alfred L. Quigly, then mayor of Tangaire, was able to pull out a miracle though.  In an effort to create jobs and make use of the rail way Quigly was able to secure almost 300 thousand acres of forest from the California state goverment to be used for resource extraction.  This meant not only would their be timber and mining jobs available for the near 1500 out of work men, but the job market quickly exploded as almost 3000 jobs became available over the next six months.  By 1877 the population of Tangaire had reached 8200 people, making it the eighth largest city in California.

Todays trip to the archives shows us just what a massive undertaking the UNC rail road really was.



The first challange was to build a suitable hub for the rail road's supply needs.  The city of Tangaires was chosen as that hub and you can see part of the city here.  Timber is being cleared for ties and to make room for agriculture.
  

The next hurdle was basically clear as much land and lay as much rail road as 2000 men could in the next few years.  The pictures do no justice for the amazement that is the UNC and its mighty twists and turns that allow it to snake through the region gaining nearly a thousand feet in altitude by the end of its 50 mile journey out of Tangaires Valley.









Lastly here is an uncompleted region view to show my progress.



It doesnt seem so huge here...... Kind of a disapointment really. Ohwell I couldnt imagine developing anything larger.

[Nardo69 51]

Great mountain RR! And I love those gently tollings farms (actually I allways did ... )

I would suggest to use a different RR station - PEG's should fit here better than the ingame station especially together with the service track.

Bernhard

[jacqulina 162]

wonderfull update yet again my friend i also love those farms

[sEAhAwk fAn121 0]

dang thats amazing!! amazing map!

[joerg 281]

One of the most difficult things about getting supplies and people into the Tangaires area was the complexity of navigating its treacherous coastal regions.  In fact Tangaires boasts nearly two hundred miles of coast line, most of which are a captains worst nightmare.

In 1877 Captain John C. McKnight attempted to guide his ship, cargo, and crew of nearly two hundred into the harbor.  The waves ravaged the boat so much so that McKnight a skilled navy man had to order the ship be abandoned only a few hundred yards from shore.  McKnight went on to tell people for years that even Poseidon himself would fear it's rocky waters.

[aleko 0]

Cool natural environment!! I want to see more of this CJ!

Abrazos!

[GlitterGirl 0]

very beautiful. i usually just lurk around but i had to comment. can't wait to see more

[tomdapom 79]

Ooh, I think Jacky has some competition here for Best Nature CJ! Those railroads are amazing, but I think you could have done something better with the small town. Keep up the wonderful nature and RR!

[joerg 281]

No worries about the town guys, I know it sucks, in fact i keep avoiding it because of that simple fact.  I always run into the issue of small towns looking like crap because I don't like to plop every last thing and things just do not feel right until they really take off.  Reference back to my other CJs though for some info on how the towns will eventually work them selves out.  More to come later, i just stepped out of SC to gather a few goodies.  Keep the posts coming.

Oh and do you guys mind if i focus on the small stuff for a bit longer? Like nature, roads, coast lines, parks, and the rail road?  I promise great things, but for the time being I want to feel in the rest of the map with all its natural goodness.

[football_fever 6]

no need to rush, man. The little things are what really count. There's lots of wild west stuff on the stex to arrange in a pretty way, and it can take a lot of time. No worries

[joerg 281]

Ok so SC just royally pissed me off, the dumb thing just crashed on me after about 30 mins of work.  So i decided to have fun in a more reliable program **Grrrrr** lol.  Anyways for your viewing pleasure the lost coastal areas of McKnights Point.