Category Archives: Train Shows

The Mammoth Amherst Railroad Society’s Railroad Show

Just returned from W. Springfield MA from the biggest model train show in the nation. Quite an experience. Over 400,000 square ft of dealers, manufacturers, modular layouts, etc.

Car in the parking lot right where I pulled in. No doubt I was in train land!

The show is in 4 buildings. this is the entrance to one of the four (Mallary Complex)

Mallary Complex

They have some canvas covered walkways between buildings

covered walkway

This is inside showing less than half of the largest building (Better Living Center)

Partial BLC Hall photo

Some of the manufacturers show a model in progress-undecorated.This is a Rapido Pre-production model at their booth

Pre-Production Alco RS11

They also have some special things like this Real 1895 Baldwin steam engine, built for SD Warren Paper Co, that has been restored to full steam operation.

SD Warren-No-2-2Ft gauge

All in all , a very enjoyable weekend

Pretty interesting article in the New York Times about a new Model railroad Museum to be designed by Architect Frank Gehry

The Extreme Model Railroad and Contemporary Architecture museum in North Adams Mass. 83,000 square feet with 40 foot ceilings to accommodate 35 foot tall Empire State Building.

The article can be accessed here  Extreme Model Railroad and Architecture Museum

 

COOL

 

Steamtown National Historic Site

In an ongoing summer of visiting railroad related sites, we visited Steamtown national Historic site in Scranton PA. run by the national park service. A lot of very interesting trains and exhibits. I’ll post more in a future post, but thought this cool cutaway of a steam engine showing the firebox, Boiler, smokebox and cylinder, was a good introduction.

Steam Engine cutaway

 

More about The Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago

The Museum of Science and Industry has a model train display that is really much more than just a train layout. It is about transportation, and how the railroads move goods from place to place.
The fact that it is beautifully crafted, with scale large sections of Chicago and Seattle and the industries , plains, mountains etc in between, makes it a modelers must see if you are in Chicago.

Chicago

The buildings in Chicago are true to the sections of the city that is being modeled. Two times an hour there is a short night segment to show the display in that setting.

Chicago-night

Of course along the way showing double stack containers, mountain bridges and peaks, not to mention some human interest in a stream

Containers

UP in the mountains

Beach

Finally ending up in downtown Seattle including the docks.

Seattle

Visiting Chicago Museum of Science and Industry / Tranportation

Visited the Museum of Science + Industry, Chicago this past weekend, to see their terrific HO model railroad exhibit, from Chicago through the plains, the rocky mountains, and ending up in Seattle.

I will put shots of the exhibit up in future posts, but this one to one scale Empire State Express greets you at the beginning.

Empire State Express

Closeup of Driver

Empire State Express Driver