She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain
Update 25
Spring 1873
Ever since the first steam powered railroad became a reality in 1826, Americans dreamed of a time when a man could board a train in New York, and travel across the country to the port of San Francisco. The Pacific Railroad made that dream a reality in 1869. A journey to the western United States that originally took about 6 months could now be completed in 8 days. The railroad revolutionized commerce, communication and transportation, and the little region of SorGun was about to become a part of it.
Construction of The Northern Pacific railroad was begun in 1870, with the promise of linking the great lakes of Minnesota to the largely untouched wilderness of the Pacific Northwest. The town that would become the terminus for the railroad would instantly become the shining jewel of the region, and as a result, make many current land owners millionaires overnight. The question was – who would it be?
As the railroads snaked their way over land towards the pacific, each town that they touched created a seismic building boom.
Conversely, towns that were passed by often times withered away.
Folks in the SorGun region were putting their money on three possible candidates.
(click for full size)
Each town had compelling reasons for receiving the terminus station, but which would win the favor of the railroad barons?
Materburg was seen as the long shot. The town has grown slowly and steadily as new farms sprung up along the Mater creek basin.
Despite being the third largest town in the region, it was still relatively small. The port facility was in its infancy, but a long, somewhat protected shoreline offered opportunity for expansion.
To sweeten the deal, the town of Materburg voted to donate a large holding of land, including the small docks, to the Railroad Company if they were to be chosen as the terminus.
Porthaven had a number of qualities that made it ideal for a railroad terminus. Most obviously, it offered the most direct route to hook up with the line being built through the mountains along the Columbia River valley.
The town was also centered around the largest lumber mill in the region, and it was a stone’s throw away from Fort Sunset.
And while the town was lacking any real port facilities, Mr. Delin, the largest landowner in the region, offered up acres and acres of waterfront property to the railroad, which would be worth a fortune should the terminus be built in Porthaven.
But despite the advantages that Porthaven offered, New SorGun could easily become the end of the line due to sheer gravity. Due to clever businessmen like Eastman T. Finch, New SorGun had become the commercial and social center of the entire region.
(click for full size)
In the end, a terminus in New SorGun would result in a shorter rail line, but it would need to travel over the mountains, which could significantly add to the cost.
Even with the added costs, the safe money was on New SorGun being home to the railroad terminus. Population, businesses, industry and a thriving sea trade made this town the hands down favorite.
And not to be outdone by Materburg and Porthaven, the town council unanimously decided to offer the railroad company a sizeable piece of undeveloped land north of the town.
Rumor had it that the Northern Pacific would announce the location of the terminus by the end of the year. For the towns involved, it was going to be a nerve-racking wait.
Authors note: This was more of a story based update and less eye candy, so I apologize to the folks who just look at the pictures.
Things are starting to move along, so we'll have some juicy pictures and big story developments in the near future. Hope you enjoyed it.
Replies to the last Teaser:
jason leo: That picture is really nice and also inspire me for the northeastern area of my own region. Great job, SimCoug, you put everything in the right place.
Thank you - I'm really happy how that turned out.
art128: Nice picture! Not a fan of the effect, but still nice setup.
Thank you - I added the motion blur because I wasn't happy with how the automata looked... the resolution was poor compared to the rest of the picture.
Mithrik: Yay! Railroads! 
Yep - big changes are in the works!
ggamgus: Whoa! Excellent photoshopping passing by!!!
Thanks!
Mastof: Trains!
Yep, grab your luggage!
raynev1: Old steam engine , Coool picture.
Thank you!
dubaidude303: Will the train be robbed?!
New SorGun had it's share of criminal riffraff...
Hazani Pratama: Nice Photo
Thank you.
kakado_to_save: very impressive ! 
Thanks! I'm just taking baby steps in photoshop
NMUSpidey: OooooOOOOOooo, a railroad! I wonder who's going to be helping finance that endeavor!
That is a very good question... More to follow soon.
Benedict: Congratulations, New SorGun is back at number one on BTT this week.
Thanks! And you used my favorite pic from that update as well
wcraig: Trains!
The iron horse is on it's way to New SorGun.
ba zing ze: i realy love your CJ i cant wait for more!
Thank you - I'm glad you enjoy it!
weixc812: I really love this kind of realistic scenes, with a dense historical smell. Please keep on great work
Thank you! Historical is definitely what I am aiming for, so I'm glad you like it.
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