Mid-Ohio Valley Model Railroad Club going full steam ahead with Christmas open house

NOE Office Equipment hosting nostalgic display

PARKERSBURG -- An electric train running around the Christmas tree is among many holiday traditions celebrated by area families.

The tradition will be celebrated at the Mid-Ohio Valley Model Railroad Club's annual Christmas Open House from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Dec. 3 in the rear basement of NOE Office Equipment, 610 Green St. The family-oriented event is open to the public with free admission and parking and is part of Downtown PKB's Winterfest celebration.

"A train running around the Christmas tree is one of those great, nostalgic traditions," club President Jonathan Insley, owner of Insley Plumbing in Marietta, said. "When you see the old Christmas movies, there's almost always a train running around the tree."

Club members will have miniature electric trains operating on seven highly detailed layouts in HO, O, N and G scales with Christmas decorations and music in abundance. A prize drawing for a Polar Express train set will be held and donations will be accepted to help offset the cost of operating the trains.

The Model Railroad Club has among the largest HO scale layouts in West Virginia and one of the top O scale layouts anywhere with lots of modern technology. Further, visitors will enjoy a top-notch G scale layout made of natural materials and a detailed N scale layout with Parkersburg landmarks modeled and the club's newest O scale layout, which pays homage to the lumber and logging industries in West Virginia.

Dec. 3 also is National Lionel Trains Day and Lionel locomotives and cars will be running on both of the club's O scale layouts.

The club opens its doors to the public four times a year and the Christmas Open House is the largest in terms of attendance and is the most popular.

"The first weekend in December is the unofficial start of the Christmas season," Insley said. "People know this is the Saturday to come down and see the trains, talk with our club members about trains, share stories and just enjoy themselves. We have a lot of people, of all ages, come through the club during the Christmas Open House."

Many model railroad aficionados owe their start in the hobby to receiving a train set for Christmas as a child. Many times, those persons become a model railroader for life and receive gifts of model railroad cars and accessories through the years. In other instances, they stray from the hobby, only to return in adulthood or at retirement.

The Model Railroad Club facility also will be open to the public during a visit by Belpre Industrial Parkersburg Railroad's Santa Train from 6-8 p.m. Dec. 11. A BIPR diesel locomotive, decked out in Christmas decor with holiday music playing, will be on hand for visitors in inspect on the tracks at Sixth and Green streets near the crossing. This spot was once home to a thriving Baltimore & Ohio Railroad station. The locomotive is expected to be in place from 7-8:30 p.m.

The Mid-Ohio Valley Model Railroad Club, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, was founded in 1981 and boasts more than 60 persons on its active roster. Membership is open to anyone with an interest in model railroading. For further information, go to the club website movmrc.org.