Whether you counted box cars on cross-country road trips, placed pennies on rails for trains to flatten, or simply ran a miniature locomotive around your Christmas tree, many of us can’t help but feel some vestigial fondness for trains.
Indulge your soft spot through Aug. 4 at Mesa Public Library, where the Arizona Big Train Operators display lifelike model trains and surrounding environments.
The local group is bringing in more than 300 feet of track, trains and detailed dioramas of Arizona rail towns. Parents and children are invited to inspect the scenes up close, and they’ll even get to operate the trains. ABTO members will answer questions and give historical tidbits on Arizona’s railways.
The Foundation for Mesa Parks and Recreation will display a bell, whistle, headlight and memorabilia from Southern Pacific Engine No. 2355, the 1912 engine on display at Pioneer Park.
Librarian Larry Lee says more than 1,300 people turned out for last year’s ABTO model railroad exhibit.
“There’s just something nostalgic about trains that delight people of all ages,” Lee says.
Prizes will be given away in conjunction with the display; they include two tickets on the Grand Canyon Railway and a package from Roy’s Train World, a Mesa shop for model trains and all things railroad.
DETAILS >> 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 2; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, Aug. 3 and Saturday, Aug. 4 in the Saguaro Room at Mesa Public Library, 64 E. First St. Free. (480) 644-4707 or MesaLibrary.org.
Contact writer: (480) 898-6818 or azajac@evtrib.com
