Dubuque Model Railroad Show 2015 - Part 1

Sunday, November 1st, my grandparents (Harry and Colleen Carson), Charity, and I left for Dubuque at 4:00 A.M. We stopped at a convenience store on the way for a quick breakfast (as nothing else seemed open), and arrived at the fairgrounds where the railroad show was held with plenty of time to set up.

After everything was ready, we relaxed, ate donuts, and visited with fellow vendors/friends from last year until the doors opened at 10:00 A.M.

Charity worked with Grandpa selling HO model trains, and I worked with Grandma selling her artwork.  Art sales were better than last year, though some people expressed concern that they were running out of wall space for pictures. One helpful fellow-vendor suggested they start hanging pictures on their ceilings. 

When things slowed down in the afternoon I caught up with some of the model train hobbyists from last year and met a few new ones.  Let me introduce them to you!

Rod & Carol Thompson

Rod Thompson, who is retired from a job working on auxiliary power units for aircraft, has been interested in trains all his life.  For Carol, model trains are an acquired hobby.  When their son was young he worked with them on the models; he eventually became a supervisor at Electro-Motive, a company that designs, manufactures, and sells locomotives.  

The Thompsons exclusively sell O scale.  Their oldest piece for sale at the show was a blue Missouri Pacific locomotive from the 1950s.  They pick up the railroad dishes here and there--most people don't realize that they are railroad dishes.  They found the coral Illinois Central dishes, made from a custom pattern in 1935, on Craigslist.  

John, Railroad Book Collector

John has been collecting railroad books for 27 years, and selling them for 19 years.  Each year he does over a dozen shows throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa.  His favorite trains are the old steam trains.

Joe and John, Railroad Memorabilia Vendors

At Joe and his stepson John's table one of the first things I noticed was the railroad examination dated 1927.  But that wasn't the oldest item they had in stock.  Their lanterns are from the 1890s, and the five dollar note from The Store at Alleghany Furnace dates back January 1st, 1856.  

Cathy & Tim --- and --- Audrey & Mike

Cathy and Tim of Cathy's Treasures and Tim's Trains & Repairs had more of the large train packages.  Cathy has always been more interested in antiques, and Tim in trains.  She operated an antique store for 13 years, but now they are concentrating more on shows, and are working on developing a website.

Mike has been interested in trains since he was 6 years old.  His father and brother worked on the railroad, and he worked on the Union Pacific as a chief brakeman.  He recounted working on many trains, including the Union Pacific Big Boy, one of the largest locomotives in the world.  Audrey said she usually did not accompany Mike to train shows, but was there this time to help since their daughters couldn't be there.

Do you have any hobbies you share with family members?

Stay tuned for Part 2 to meet more talented hobbyists.