Atlas - 60 000 076 - Automobile, Ford, Explorer - New Jersey Transit

Specific Item Information: - Simulated rotary beacon, - Side view mirrors, - Head and tail light glazing, - Interior detail, - Simulated rubber tires, - Under carriage detail

Prototype History: The Ford Explorer is a range of SUVs manufactured by Ford Motor Company since the 1991 model year. The first four-door SUV produced by Ford, the Explorer was introduced as a replacement for the two-door Bronco II. Deriving its name from a trim package used on the F-Series pickup trucks (as with the Ranger), the Explorer is slotted between the Edge CUV and standard-wheelbase Expedition.

Road Name History: New Jersey Transit Corporation, marketed as NJ Transit (NJT), is a state-owned public transportation system serving the US state of New Jersey; along with portions of New York, Orange, and Rockland counties in New York State; and Philadelphia County in Pennsylvania. It operates bus, light rail, and commuter rail services throughout the state, notably connecting to major commercial and employment centers both within the state and in the adjacent major cities of New York and Philadelphia.

Covering a service area of 5,325 square miles (13,790 km2), NJT is the largest statewide public transit system and the third largest provider of bus, rail, and light rail transit by ridership in the United States, linking major points in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

NJT also acts as a purchasing agency for many private operators in New Jersey, with numerous private operators receiving equipment from NJT (primarily buses) for route service within the state not controlled by NJT.

Brand/Importer Information: In 1924 Stephan Schaffan, Sr. founded the Atlas Tool Company in Newark, New Jersey. In 1933 his son, Stephan Schaffan, Jr., came to work for his father at the age of sixteen. Steve Jr. built model airplanes as a hobby and frequented a local hobby shop. Being an enterprising young man, he would often ask the owner if there was anything he could do to earn some extra spending money. Tired of listening to his requests, the hobby-store owner threw some model railroad track parts his way and said, "Here, see if you can improve on this".

In those days, railroad modelers had to assemble and build everything from scratch. Steve Jr. created a "switch kit" which sold so well, that the entire family worked on them in the basement at night, while doing business as usual in the machine shop during the day.

Subsequently, Steve Jr. engineered the stapling of rail to fiber track, along with inventing the first practical rail joiner and pre-assembled turnouts and flexible track. All of these products, and more, helped to popularize model railroading and assisted in the creation of a mass-market hobby. The budding entrepreneur quickly outgrew the limitations of a basement and small garage operation. Realizing they could actually make a living selling track and related products, Steve and his father had the first factory built in Hillside, New Jersey at 413 Florence Avenue in 1947. On September 30, 1949, the Atlas Tool Company was officially incorporated as a New Jersey company.

In 1985, Steve was honored posthumously for his inventions by the Model Railroad Industry Association and was inducted into the Model Railroad Industry Hall of Fame in Baltimore, Maryland. In addition, Steve was nominated and entered into the National Model Railroad Association Pioneers of Model Railroading in 1995.

In the early 1990s, the Atlas Tool Company changed its name to Atlas Model Railroad Company, Inc.