John Whitby Allen

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John Whitby Allen (July 2, 1913 – January 6, 1973) was a prominent American model railroader. He pioneered or developed several aspects of the hobby on his HO scale Gorre & Daphetid model railroad in Monterey, California, popularizing them with numerous magazine articles and photographs starting in the 1940s.

Allen was renowned for his skill at scratch building and creating scenery. He also pioneered the technique of weathering his models for a more realistic appearance. In addition to his superdetailing of locomotives, rolling stock, structures, and scenery, Allen was known for populating his model world with scale figures in humorous scenes. Other techniques Allen promoted were realistic train operation and the use of forced perspective to create the illusion of a model railroad layout larger than it really was.