Lionel pre-300r

RARE RED AND IVORY(1935) HELL GATE BRIDGE

This was the largest of Lionel's bridges. Stretching 28.5" long and 11" wide while standing 10.5" tall, it was designed to accept standard gauge trains, but O Gauge trains could run through it as well. It is styled along the lines of New York's famed Hell Gate Bridge, which spans the East River where the Harlem and East Rivers merge with Long Island Sound. Built in 1915, it now parallels the main span of the Triboro Bridge built in the 1930s. The Lionel bridge's four towers, though made of pressed steel, were made to simulate stone. Although the steelwork of the real bridge was -- and still is -- red, Lionel painted the span light green when it was introduced in 1928. The towers were painted cream and the base, which could be placed on the floor or train table flush, was painted orange and sometimes terra cotta. It was painted in this scheme until 1934. The trim was brass. In 1935 and later, it was painted aluminum, red, and ivory, a much rarer variation.

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