Pretty Pictures: The Battle of Coal Creek

It's been a long time since I posted any terrain related content to TFH. There's a very good reason for that - I've been very busy on a secret project which did not lend itself to the TFH Ishoo format. But it can now be unveiled - The Battle of Coal Creek.
This is a 600mm square board, modelled up to replicate an area of Coal Creek Historic Park and Musseum in Korumburra, just down the road from where I live. On Saturday, it'll be used at GeekFest 2015 for participation games using the Fanticide rule set. I've condensed the actual terrain features down a bit - the courthouse and general store are a lot further apart in real life, but to get all the things I wanted onto the board, I had to shrink a few bits and pieces.
First, some reference pictures (I took a lot more than this, but most of them were just pics of details I ended up simplifying out)

The courthouse at Coal Creek

The front of the bank - the back of the building is the Paymaster's Office for the mine.

The General store. I couldn't find anythign near that font, so I decided on a different set of signs - the place has obviously been repainted since the time of the battle.

Taken from just in front of the general store, this gives you an idea of how much I've condensed things. And how I've ignored the tree. I should just point out that, Like Sovereign Hill in Ballarat, Coal Creek is roughly where the mine was, but most of the buildings were not originally there. Most of them have been brought from elsewhere and set up in the park, so actually, the place is nothing like Korumburra during the early coal mining days.

Now on to actual construction photos!

Initial styrofoam board construction on top of a sheet of MDF. It's not solid - only areas which needed to be carved are foam.

The foam is carved into roughly the right shape. Sandpaper was then used to smooth things, and some modelling clay was also used to fill a few gaps.

The foam, with wheel ruts added.

All work is inspected by a professional Bavarian hippo.

Building shells and fences mocked up in place with some figures for scale.

General overview of the whole board.

Another overview, although from a different angle.What will they think of next?

Yet another overview shot.

And still more overview shots.

The bottom of the slope and the back of the bank.

A rioting miner, seen here with his stolen loot slung over his shoulder as he leaves the Paymaster's Office.

A pair of unsavoury characters outside the general store.

It's not easy to spot, but there is an interior in the store. Well, a backdrop photography anyway.

A pair of stalwart constables guard the all important wanted posters.

The front of the bank, with guards. It's news to me Australiasia is a nation...

The front of the courthouse has been simplified to save time and sanity.

Side wall of the bank, with advertising posters.

The general store from another angle, with menacing thug leaning on sign pointing completely the wrong direction (Loch is actually the other way!)

The courthouse.

Surprising many, the courthouse also has a back view