St. James Model Railroad Club remains on track with a tradition set almost four decades ago as it plans a Holiday Open House the weekend of Nov. 21-23 at historic Mills Pond House in St. James.
“If they come there and smile and have a good time, that’s all we care about. The kids love it,” said Club President Tom Lamb, a 25-year member who found his personal inspiration for railroading from a childhood Lionel set.
This year, the Holiday Open House will be held before Thanksgiving to avoid the holiday bustle and give people more time to attend. The schedule is Friday, Nov. 21, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., and both Saturday, Nov. 22, and Sunday, Nov. 23, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Parking will be at 176 Mills Pond Road near Mills Pond House, where the club runs a 38x48 display with 16 operating trains in the basement courtesy of Smithtown Township Arts Council. The suggested donation is $2 for adults.
The thrill of seeing a model train, be it steam or diesel, in operation is never elusive because of a unique setup that puts the viewers amid the train layout.
“If you turn in a complete circle, it’s guaranteed you’ll see a train running somewhere,” Lamb said. “We have 12 trains running at one time. You have the bigger clubs with much bigger layouts, but we want to entertain people.”
Toward that end, the club makes it a goal to regularly add new features. This month, participants can look forward to a new train station and a working drive-in movie theater, where “It’s A Wonderful Life” will be playing on a 7-inch screen. Members pride themselves on details, so the theater will be joined by a projector shack and snack bar, just like the old days.
Details are their hallmark throughout the display. For instance, Lamb said, “We have a carnival with moving rides. We have a movie theater in our downtown that one of our members made. It’s all fiberoptics.” The marquee even has rolling lights in an “amazing” bit of workmanship by retired electrical engineer Patrick Knetter.
The buildings are not mere shells but a testament to realism both inside and out. “We have a pizza shop that actually has a brick oven that you can see the flames,” he said. Another crowd-pleaser is a “working fire” surrounded by fire trucks, their lights all flashing.
For the holidays, the Polar Express train and Disney train packed with Disney characters are highlights, as well as a smaller track with Santa on a flat car with reindeer and Mickey and Minnie in their holiday attire.
From that first open house in 1984 that drew over 900 visitors, the Holiday Open House has continued to draw fans. “We’ve had people who’ve said, ‘I have a train set I’m going to set up this holiday season.' There’s also a family whose son has Down syndrome and they try to get here every year to see our layout. Their son loves it,” said Lamb. Even teens might be reluctant at first but “when they leave, they’re smiling,” he said.
According to the club website, the original layout was the re-creation of the Smithtown to Port Jefferson run, but today’s layout transcends time by presenting railroading through the ages. “We try to make it realistic, but some is fantasy,” Lamb said, citing the Minions from the Despicable Me movies.
For Lamb, his love of trains goes back to his youth when “we always had a Lionel set around the tree.” When his parents decided to move to Florida and sell the train at a garage sale, Lamb salvaged them for himself. He joined the club at the suggestion of his friend Mike O’Keefe and finds enjoyment in maintaining the layout.
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