Howell Day Museum

The Magic of Scale Model Railroading Gallery

"The Magic of Scale Model Railroading" exhibit at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento is now open!
To watch a 20-minute video tour of the exhibit hosted by former NMRA President Charlie Getz, click on Tour.
To read the story of how the exhibit was built, click HERE
Or just enjoy a few photos of the exhibit:
Photos by Chrisopher Palermo.

This impressive 40-foot display depicts the history of model railroading from its first mention in an Alfred Lord Tennyson poem, right up to the current day. Model kits, tools, and other time-dated items illustrate the progression of the hobby.

Within the display is a "typical" model railroader’s workbench, containing tools and materials most modelers use to build items for their layout. This lets non-modelers know that not many specialized tools are necessary to have fun in this hobby.

Many non-modelers wonder how popular model railroading is. The answer is "VERY". This part of the exhibit contains hundreds model railroading magazines from all across the globe, spanning from its earliest days to the present.

“The Magic of Scale Model Railroading” contains half-a-dozen impressive pieces of real modelers' layouts. Here, an imposing scratchbuilt ore dock loads a waiting ship. The dock is a reduced-size version of one that stood in Michigan.

The exhibit also features a fully built model railroad, the San Juan Central, which was featured in a series of "how-to" articles in Model Railroader magazine in the 1980's. Museum visitors can see how a highly detailed layout doesn't have to take up a lot of space.

One of the most impressive parts of the exhibit is the "Wall of Trains". This display depicts real 1:1 trains that ran over the rails in the U.S. in the 50s and 60s. The trains are car-for-car replicas, based on actual trains manifests.

Specially built for this exhibit, the "layout in progress" display shows the steps of an entire model railroad being constructed. From raw benchwork on one side, to foam insulation hills in the middle, to full scenery on the far side, visitors can see exactly how a model railroad can be built.

Museum

Howell Day Museum

Museum Logo

The mission of the Howell Day Museum of Railroading is to chronicle the history and development of model railroading, and to encourage and inspire those of all ages to become involved in the hobby. The NMRA has opened a world-class museum exhibit, "The Magic of Scale Model Railroading" at the California State Railroad Museum (CSRM) in Sacramento, CA that showcases many of the historical artifacts to outline the history of the hobby over the years. This exhibit, the first by an outside group at the Museum, is designed to the highest standards and contains many of the NMRA's historical artifacts as well as a strong representation of current products and model railroads. The NMRA is also affiliated with the Library at CSRM and NMRA has loaned CSRM our collection of model and prototype books to provide a broader range of materials for all those interested in model railroading. (Note: There is no museum at the NMRA headquarters in Tennessee.)

Howell Day

In 1995, Mr. Howell Day proposed creating a museum entirely devoted to the history and technology of scale model railroading.

Howell Day had modeled trains, began his own model train shop during the heart of the Depression and designed HO model railroad equipment which he later sold through the Red Ball Line, his own company.

Howell Day was able to attend the dedication of the Museum in 2000 and accept the donation of several exhibits, including that of Cliff Springmeier.

The dream of building the model railroading museum lives on through the efforts of patrons like you. As noted above, the NMRA has opened an exhibit at the California State Railroad Museum that features many historical model railroad artifacts, including many models from Howell Day's collections. The exhibit contains a wide variety of rare and unique models and model railroads to educate and share the hobby with the public. It is a first in the world of top-level museum exhibits.

Dorothy
Replica of Howell Day's LehighValley "Dorothy" Inspection Engine

Cliff Springmeier Layout, one of many to be showcased in the museum.

Watch a 20-minute video tour of the exhibit hosted by former NMRA President Charlie Getz:

Contact the Howell Day Model Railroad Museum

Write: Howell Day Model Railroad Museum
P.O. Box 1328, Soddy Daisy, TN 37384-1328
Phone: (423) 892-2846
Email: museumchair [at] nmra.org