Author Topic: What Buildings Does Every Old West Town Need? (Read 6169 times)

Tommy20 · « **on:** January 21, 2019, 05:54:28 PM »

I'm dipping my toe into the Old West real estate market for the first time, and am curious what buildings everyone feels are necessary for a proper Old West town.

As a little background, I usually play in a large town that my buddy Rupert of Hentzau has accumulated. When my son picked up the cowboy bug, however, I decided to put together a small town for quick games at home. So I'd like to concentrate on buildings that will work for a small standalone town, but also able to do double-duty alongside my friends collection as needed.

So, what are the must-have buildings for a very small town (I'll start the list with the obvious)?

1) Saloon (every town needs at least one!)

Belisarius · « **Reply #1 on:** January 21, 2019, 06:51:10 PM »

Sheriff’s office / Jail.

Skyven · « **Reply #2 on:** January 21, 2019, 07:23:53 PM »

Just watched Eastwood's Pail Rider

Town of LaHood is wonderfully small (there's a tent town a little way off)

One side of the town is
Cafe
Mining and Hardware store
Post Office (alternatively an Overland Mail and Freight style office)
Drug Store
Dentist/Barber Shop (small town version encompassing barber-surgeon/dentist/doctor)

On the other side
Bank
Liquor store
Blacksmith, livery and windpump and trough
La Hood's Mining Offices plus a minehead wheelhouse round back (as if the town grew around the original mine)

Surprisingly for a Wild West town no specific saloon (may be in the liquor store or one in the tent town), hotel/bunkhouse (again maybe provided by the tent town) or sheriff/marshal/jail -- all of which I would add to any wargames table.

Also consider land office, Chinese laundry, church, gunsmith

FifteensAway · « **Reply #3 on:** January 21, 2019, 08:50:25 PM »

After the first saloon, the hotel though probably the hotel came first. A livery stable. Banks and jails come later but are good to include, probably a jail before the bank. Livery stable should have a blacksmith but could have both. Dry goods store and feed store. If on a rail line, a train station - passenger and freight, can be combined or separate. If its a cow town, a cattle yard. And then several additional saloons. Which means its time for at least one brothel. And that is likely to ignite a church. And then that means a school isn't far behind. At some point there is going to be a newspaper office, which might include the local telegraph station - or it might be in the train station (more likely). Somewhere in there, an undertaker will show up - and he (or she) might double as a doctor and maybe even a dentist. If the town is a bit pretentious, it might show off an opera house, or at least a theater. Dance halls show up. So do gymnasiums - yup, really. A barber shop is pretty common. An eatery and maybe a confectionary establishment. And a haberdashery where the cowboys can blow there pay - well, some of there pay since portions are reserved for other establishments. Such as a gambling hall, they weren't always in the saloon. The list goes on and on but that covers most of the core. And don't forget houses for people to live in, they didn't all live "upstairs" by any means. Something I don't recall seeing modeled but an abattoir for the local butcher? That should keep you busy for a few days.

Metternich · « **Reply #4 on:** January 22, 2019, 07:06:35 PM »

And everyone has forgotten the outhouse(s).

DS615 · « **Reply #5 on:** January 23, 2019, 04:23:37 PM »

If you want them to be usable alongside your friends, then you need to watch duplication.
A town doesn't need two sheriff offices for example.

I have contemplated, but not built, a set of buildings with magnet based front signs that could be changed out as needed/desired.
Something like that may work for you.

Dr DeAth · « **Reply #6 on:** January 23, 2019, 04:52:42 PM »

Quote from: DS615 on January 23, 2019, 04:23:37 PM

I have contemplated, but not built, a set of buildings with magnet based front signs that could be changed out as needed/desired.
Something like that may work for you.

I've done that on my old west buildings for Beaverlick Falls, it works very well. Print the signs and mount them on magnetic paper then build magnets into the front of the building. Simple.

This is the Beaverlick Falls bank, the sign has been given a wooden frame to give it a bit more stability.

More here http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=105875.msg1319046#msg1319046

HerbyF · « **Reply #7 on:** January 24, 2019, 06:27:45 AM »

Well I think a town would need at least one hotel/boardinghouse/saloon. A supply store of some kind. A livery stable. And maybe some kind of law enforcement establishment. At least plus some kind of outhouses or latrines for most if not all other buildings. And a few houses for locals. As for the idea that only one sheriffs office is all you should have, well there are several times that there were as many as 4 different lawmen with competing or over lapping jurisdictions. Each one would have their own base of operation. Federal marshals, state or territorial marshals, local sheriffs, and town sheriffs. In some cases the local or town sheriff was some times hired by or in alinement with the local nerdo wells, so a town villigence comity would hire their own sheriff. So this would lead to a number or conflicts. And some towns built up around army posts, so you might want to show these building too.

Panama · « **Reply #8 on:** January 24, 2019, 08:24:42 AM »

I think it might depend on what type of town your going for, how big a table your playing on & how many figures a side your thing of, the set up doesn't need to be the whole town don't forget it can be just a part of it.

So today you plan a bank robbery then a bank would be needed, next game you want to do a gunfight at the ok corral type game then you need a different set up.

That would be my view on it

Tommy20 · « **Reply #9 on:** January 24, 2019, 02:01:51 PM »

Like I said in the OP, this is going to be a very small town for pickup games with my son (we play Gunfighters Ball). I'm thinking no more than a half-dozen buildings.

Thanks for all the suggestions so far!

Panama · « **Reply #10 on:** January 24, 2019, 11:05:45 PM »

If only wanting 6 buildings then I think I'd go for saloon, sheriff/jail, bank, corral, store & maybe telegram office with say a doctors above it, that give you different reason objective for gaming reasons.

Ramirez Noname · « **Reply #11 on:** January 28, 2019, 06:30:40 PM »

Hi there Tommy20,

Louis L'Amour, in his 1976 novel "The Rider of Lost Creek" describes a border settlement thus -

"[they] rounded a bend and looked down the street of the rickety settlement of Apple Canyon, so named because of an orchard once planted, and now almost gone. There were four buildings on one side of the street, three on the other."

"The nearest one is where the doc lives. He's a mighty good sawbones, but a renegade from somewhere and something. Next is the livery stable and blacksmith shop, all in one. That long building next door is the bunkhouse, and Bert's place is just beyond... On the right side is Bill's place ... Right alongside is the big joint of Apple Canyon - the Border Bar. The last house, the one with the flowers, is Nita's."

RMZ

hentzau · « **Reply #12 on:** January 29, 2019, 08:25:38 PM »

Remind me to lend you my Cowtown Creator when you're over next. Some great info in there.

FierceKitty · « **Reply #13 on:** February 01, 2019, 02:47:26 AM »

Livery stable, knocking shop, undertaker. And the gallows isn't quite a building, but to my eyes very much part of the scenery.

Tommy20 · « **Reply #14 on:** February 01, 2019, 04:29:22 AM »

Knocking shop?

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Author Topic: What Buildings Does Every Old West Town Need? (Read 6169 times)