Record largest # of toy train stores in one medium-sized town?

Classic Toy Trains Forum
1

Manassas, Va., a medium sized town of 25,000 to 100,000, has 3 stores that sell 3-rail trains and are authorized MTH dealers (some may be Lionel and other dealers as well but unsure).

  1. The Train Depot (largest 3-rail train store in Virginia
  2. KMA Junction (used to be part of the Train Depot but owners had a parting of ways, to put it nicely
  3. Hobby Lobby (smallest of the 3 and sells other things as well)

Can your mid-sized town beat this record?

There’s also a 4th toy train store about 10 minutes from Manasses.

2

If you consider that Manassas is just another in the chain of Northern Virginia towns that all blend together, I’m not sure your estimate of the population is fair. Manassas used to be kind of out in the boonies (when I grew up in NOVA), but now it is absorbed into the Northern Virginia traffic jam.

BTW, the Rail Yard in Roanoke (one of 3 train stores) is larger. Since about 1/3 of the rail yard is Dept 56.

OK*let me say one thing, because I don’t want to start a flame war.

I think Manassas is definatly the train capital of Northern Virginia, and every time I go out 66 I stop at the Train Deport. I really like that store.

3

PlaSTIC,
Don’t you mean the 1/3 of the Train Depot is department 56. The Rail Yard doesn’t carry Dept 56. THe largest THE Rail Yard—Then Ricks Hooby shop. (mostly HO–almost hostile towards O). Kens Trains closed a couple of years ago. WE do have a couple of others that have a few trains: Hungates in the Valley View mall and Crossroads hobby in Salem…
Scott Smith

4

Tazewell, Virginia population 4,176 now has two hobby shops.
APEX Hobbies and a brand new one that (don’t remember the name) that opened up recently.
Scott Smith

5

Yeah Scott,
I meant the train depot is 1/3 dept 56.

6

Man…And I’ve been in Manassas a lot for the VW shows…never knew they had train shops.

underworld

[:D][:D][:D][:D][:D]

7

That’s funny - I’ll probably be staying in Manassas in June when we do a muscle car cruise through Skyline Drive. I’ll have to check them out.

8

Lansdale, PA , with a population of about 15,000 has 4 hobby shops which deal in trains.
Two of the shops are distinct, but are in the same building, one specializes in HO, N, & G, the other in O gauge 3 r.ail.

They are Lynn,s Junction and Henning’s

One of the other shops deals in O gauge 3 rail, and the 4th deals in HO & N.

We are lucky to have so many right here.

9

I don’t think that the Train Depot is in the Manassas city limits. It’s part of the greater Manassas area, although it’s really part of the greater Washington suburbia. It’s kinda of like the town of Herndon that I live near. The mailing address covers a larger area than the town/city itself and it’s pretty hard to tell where the town/city begins and ends.

Enjoy
Paul