I need help. I am writing a paper for school about businesses that have model railroads diplayed and can’t find but eight online. I am so disappointed, I was hoping to find more. Can anyone help me out. Thank you. If you know of any can post the name of the business and state they are in, or a link. Thank you again.
First of all, welcome to the forums! You will find a wealth of information available here. To answer your question, I know of three businesses that have model railroad layouts displayed in their businesses. The first one that comes to my mind is a candy store located in Branson, MO. I don’t know the name of it, but you could probably find it on the internet.
The second business is a financial advisor located in Independence, KS. The owner is going to retire soon, though. He has a nice HO scale layout that is rather small, but people love watching it operate.
The third business is a hobby shop located in Tulsa, OK. The owner has a layout that he is always upgrading with the latest and coolest things.
I wish I could be more helpful. Good luck on writing your paper and hang in their.
There are two businesses in the North Texas area that I am aware of …
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Children’s Medical Center of Dallas - in the main lobby there is a permanent layout, about 18 feet tall, that covers the layout with 8 trains running through the mountains. The kids love it… and so do the adults. I believe these are HO
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The Grapevine Gailord Hotel has a large, multi-train layout in one of the shopping & food areas. It also has multiple trains. I believe these ar S scale.
Good luck with your paper.
I don’t know if you were counting hobby stores, but Caboose Hobbies in Denver Colorado has at least 5 layouts (if one doesn’t count the around the ceiling ones).
The Little Choo Choo shop in Spencer, NC
DCC Train in Cincinnati, OH
The Museum of Science & Industry in Chicago, Il
The Mountain Crossing Resturant in Tehachapi has an HO Loop layout.
Phil
http://suffolktrainstation.org/
This place is an old restored Seaboard Train Station from back in the early 1900’s. They have an operating HO scale model there of the city of Suffolk, VA from around 1907. (Model of the city at 1907, not a model from 1907)
I am not sure if it would classify as a “business” for your paper, though.
Happy Joe’s Pizza, Maquoketa, IA
The Train Station, Columbus, OH
The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Columbus, OH
Kenvil Hobbies, Kenvil, NJ
Model Railway Post Office, West Milford, NJ
Lehman’s Hardware, Kidron, OH
Welcome:
Pizza King in Avon and Plainfield IN use G to bring drinks, straws, and napkins to you. Little novelty, but still a train in a buisness. Also, last time I was there, and maybe others can correct me on this, Cinncinati Power Light set up some massive O scale layouts for Christmas, with que lins just to see it, but it’s down again after the new year and won’t be back til November I think?
Dumb thought: You don’t need places near you to actually see them do you?
Harrington’s Wine and Liquor in Chelmsford, Massachusetts, has a very large G-Gauge layout which is set up during the holiday season. The rest of the year, if you look around the store you’ll see some of the rolling stock on top of the racks of wine and whiskey.
Citibank in New York City had a large Christmas display. It was featured in Model Railroader magazine, maybe in the November issue? Unfortunately, they’ve announced that 2008/09 would be the last year they would support this popular attraction.
I think it’s H.H. Snow and Sons hardware store in Orleans, MA, that has a layout. They have some hobby supplies there, too, so it’s not strictly a display, but part of active model railroad marketing. However, since they aren’t primarily a train shop, you might want to mention them.
My own LHS, Maine Trains in Chelmsford, MA, has an in-store layout.
WELCOME!!![#welcome]
I might be wrong, can’t remember the name of it, but there’s a major department store in Philadelphia that had one set up a few years back, not sure if it’s still there or not… Anyone else fro the Philly tri-state area know what I’m talking about? Please chime in, while I continue my search online…
Sam
Every Wegman’s grocery store that I have been in has a large scale loop of track at least 10’ x 25 or 30’ suspended from the ceiling, usually toward te rear of the store. The train is sound equipped.
Hope this is helpful. Good luck with your paper.
[:)]
D&J hobbies in Orrville Ohio. It is in the basement. Ask nice and you can see it, pretty big covering 2-3 big rooms.
Lodi Station Outlet Stores, Lodi Ohio. It is a huge layout. Something like 5-6 acres. Ok so you ride on it around the buildings but I think it counts.
Nicks sales and service in Canton ohio. Not finished yet but he has a nice little tutorial going on.
Hobbytown USA, Maumee Ohio. Multi scale O,HO,N.
mike
Wilson’s Farm, Lexington MA
Clements Market, Portsmouth Rhode Island
There’s a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania with a trainset aroudn the ceiling, and a Candy Shop in York Maine.
Charles Ro Company in Malden Ma. Has a nice layout upstairs.
Nicola’s Pizza in Rehobeth Beach, DE - around the ceiling G Scale.
Outside of hobby shops, I can only think of the following:
The Choo Choo restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois, delivers food to its customers via a Lionel train. I haven’t ate at the Choo Choo in at least a quarter of a century, so I don’t know how things are now. I do know that the city wants to acquire the property for a new police station, and there is some talk of relocating the restaurant in the old Sugar Bowl location on Miner Street.
There is a medical office on Washington Street in Park Ridge, Illinois, that had a LGB layout in the waiting area.
The Bob Rowe Pipe Shop was located across from the city hall in Park Ridge, Illinois. They had a small, say 4’x4’ N scale layout. If the owner saw a group of kids looking at the layout, he would start the train. The equipment looked like it was ancient OOO scale (a precursor to N scale), but eventually was replaced with N scale equipment. My guess is that the pipe shop closed by the mid-1990s.
There was a small grocery store in Chelmsford, MA, with a train around the ceiling. I’m not sure if it’s still there. The store, I mean. It is/was called The Elegant Farmer.
I know of at least 3 in my vicinity, but I don’t think any of them have web sites. It also depends on what you call “layout.” One is an Ace Hardware in Tucson, Arizona that has a hobby shop with a G-scale train running around the ceiling;.one is a pizza parlor in Tombstone, Arizona that has a G-scale train running around the ceiling; and the third is a store in Tombstone that sells various scales of trains as well as a lot of souvenirs.
Choo-Choo Bob’s in St. Paul, MN Has several layouts in the window.
Jimmy