John H. Ahern Explained

John H. Ahern
Birth Name:	John Henry Ahern
Birth Date:	9 July 1903
Nationality:	British
Notable Works:	Madder Valley

John Henry Ahern (9 July 1903 – 24 December 1961) was a British model railway enthusiast, photographer and writer.^{[1] [2]}

He is considered a pioneer of scenic model railways and one of the first to place a model railway within a landscape.^[3] The magazine Railway Modeller described Ahern's impact on the hobby as "fundamental and far-reaching".^[4] His 4mm layout, Madder Valley, built in the 1930s is preserved at the Pendon Museum in Oxfordshire.^[5]

Ahern was also an avid photographer alongside his wife Gladys.^[6] In 1932 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Photographic Society.^[7]

Books

• Book: Photographing Models . P. Marshall & Co . 1946 . London . en.
• Book: . P. Marshall & Co . 1947 . London . en.
• Book: Miniature Locomotive Construction . P. Marshall & Co . 1948 . London . en.
• Book: Miniature Landscape Modelling . P. Marshall & Co . 1951 . London . en.
• Book: Handbook of Two-Rail for "OO" . Hambling's . London . en.

Notes and References

1. Kitchiner . David . 1994 . John Ahern: Master of the Madder Valley . Model Railway Journal . 75 . 283–302 . 2023-04-16 . 18 April 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230418095137/https://3rails-media.s3.fr-par.scw.cloud/original/3X/4/e/4e9c65abf4c18906ce392acc891a5d9ab6aa402f.pdf . live .
2. Book: de Frayssinet, John . Crowood Press . 2013 . 978-1-84797-558-4 . Marlborough . en . Introduction . 885170882.
3. Flint . Steve . May 2010 . Pendon's Progress . . 61 . 715 . 370–375 . 0033-8931.
4. August 1963 . Madder Valley at Pendon . . 14 . 154 . 184 . 0033-8931.
5. Web site: Madder Valley Railway . 2023-04-18 . . en . 1 February 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230201152754/https://pendonmuseum.com/about/madder-valley-railway . live .
6. Ahern . John H. . Ahern . G. M. . January 1942 . A Man and Wife Show . . . 72 . 11 . 18 April 2023.
7. 1937 . Fellows, Associates and Members . . . 77 . 4 . 18 April 2023.