Nobody puts on a parade like a small Southern town, such as the one for the 50th Annual Selma Railroad Days Festival. Their golden anniversary celebration was the largest in its history, and the crowds were there to help this small town (population ~7000) show its appreciation for its railroad heritage. On May 1, 1867,Continue reading “Selma Railroad Days”
Author Archives: dcrrsophie
Happy Daisy Train Show
The Tidewater Big Train Operators returned to the Happy Daisy Garden Center in Elizabeth City for another spectacular train show, bringing with them an impressive array of models and displays that captivated visitors of all ages. Setup was done early on Friday, October 17th, as the dedicated team meticulously arranged the tracks and ensured eachContinue reading “Happy Daisy Train Show”
“G” Is For Garden
Garden Train (ɡärdən trān) A garden railroad is a model railway set up outdoors in a garden. We run G gauge trains in ours. A garden is “a piece of ground, usually close to a house, for growing vegetables, fruits, flowers, ornamental shrubs or trees, etc.” Our yard is laid out unusually. We live in aContinue reading ““G” Is For Garden”
Christmas Eve Open Train Yard 2024
We started running trains on Christmas Eve the first year the Engineer and I were dating. We have an “open yard” for anyone who cared to drop by. It started when we lived in a small community that had a combination hayride/caroling ride. The Engineer drove the tractor that pulled the hay wagon with theContinue reading “Christmas Eve Open Train Yard 2024”
Happy Daisy Garden Center
We have a new location for putting on train shows – the Happy Daisy Garden Center in Elizabeth City, NC. With the closure of White’s Nursery in Chesapeake VA earlier this year the Tidewater Big Train Operators (TBTO) club lost a venue where we had been setting up smaller shows for over a decade. TheContinue reading “Happy Daisy Garden Center”
RIP White’s Nursery
“To Our Valued Customers & Friends We gave our best effort to keep White’s Nursery & Garden Center going. It is with heavy hearts that we announce we will not be reopening. Thank you for 68 years of support.” White’s Old Mill Garden Center A sad day for the Tidewater Big Train Operators club andContinue reading “RIP White’s Nursery”
White’s Nursery Spring 2024
As previously mentioned, White’s Nursery is our preferred venue for hosting train shows. Each participant has their own designated space, allowing everyone to pursue their individual creative vision. When the Engineer and I first joined the Tidewater Big Train Operators, we were committed to keeping it simple by designing layouts where all components (trains, scenery,Continue reading “White’s Nursery Spring 2024”
Holiday Show 2023
Every year our train club, the Tidewater Big Train Operators, has a large Christmas themed train show that runs for eight days. This was the first time in four years that we had an individual layout in the show. Setting up your own display for the show involves a big time commitment, not to mentionContinue reading “Holiday Show 2023”
White’s Nursery Fall 2023
I am not sure when our train club, Tidewater Big Train Operators, started doing shows at White’s Nursery, but we have had a layout for it every fall and spring since the Fall of 2015. It is fun to run trains there as it is only for two days, the size of the layouts isContinue reading “White’s Nursery Fall 2023”
White’s Nursery Spring 2023
Another Spring, another show at White’s Nursery in Chesapeake, VA. Continuing our micro layouts we went with a farming scene this time. We do not have an actual farm train, so the Hello Kitty cars were asked to participate. We went back to our old standbys this time – birdhouses. They are a good sizeContinue reading “White’s Nursery Spring 2023”
Dismal Creek Railroad 