The Toy Train Depot is a

toy store A toy store or toy shop is a type of retail business specializing in selling toys. Notable examples * Hamleys, the world's oldest toy shop * Toys "R" Us, international company now Tru Kids * FAO Schwarz, famous American brand and store * The LEG ...

and

railway museum A railway museum is a museum that explores the history of all aspects of rail related transportation, including: locomotives ( steam, diesel, and electric), railway cars, trams, and railway signalling equipment. They may also operate historic e ...

, featuring

scale model A scale model is a physical model which is geometrically similar to an object (known as the prototype). Scale models are generally smaller than large prototypes such as vehicles, buildings, or people; but may be larger than small prototypes ...

s of

train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...

locomotives and passenger and freight cars, in

Alamogordo, New Mexico Alamogordo () is the seat of Otero County, New Mexico, United States. A city in the Tularosa Basin of the Chihuahuan Desert, it is bordered on the east by the Sacramento Mountains and to the west by Holloman Air Force Base. The population was ...

. The Toy Train Depot is also home to America's Park Ride Train Museum, which runs the Alamogordo/Alameda Park Narrow Gauge Railway, a working, gauge

miniature railway A ridable miniature railway (US: riding railroad or grand scale railroad) is a large scale, usually ground-level railway that hauls passengers using locomotives that are often models of full-sized railway locomotives (powered by diesel or petrol ...

that visitors can ride for a nominal fee. The store and museum are non-profit, and are run by the Toy Train Depot Foundation. In January 2007 the Alamogordo McDonald's donated their Ronald's Railroad, full-sized, standard-gauge caboose to the museum. The caboose is now in a high-visibility location on US-54/70, alerting potential visitors to the museum's location. Guided tours by volunteer docents are available upon request.

The Toy Train Depot's building

The building that houses the museum began its life in 1898 as a working

train depot A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing such ...

in Torrance, New Mexico at the junction of the

New Mexico Central Railroad The New Mexico Central Railroad was formed in 1908 from the consolidation of the Santa Fe Central Railway and the Albuquerque Eastern Railway Co., to operate the 116 miles of track between Torrance and Santa Fe, New Mexico. That line, reorgani ...

and the

El Paso and Northeastern Railroad EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

. Later, the building was moved to

Corona, New Mexico Corona is a village in Lincoln County, New Mexico, United States, located along U.S. Route 54. The population was 172 at the time of the 2010 census. Description Corona is the closest populated community to a purported UFO crash in 1947, appr ...

, where it remained for 75 years, serving the Rock Island and

Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

railroads. The building retains its original stamped tin ceiling tiles as well its dispatcher's bay window. Image:ToyTrainDepot.jpg, The Toy Train Depot is located in Alamogordo, New Mexico Image:ToyTrainDepot_0.jpg, The museum specializes in displays of scale model and toy rail line equipment Image:ToyTrainDepot_1.jpg, Visitors can ride on the trains dedicated to America's Park Train Ride Museum, also part of the Toy Train Depot Image:ToyTrainDepot_2.jpg, Historical artifacts and ephemera are also on display within the Toy Train Depot's original train depot building

External links

Museum/Store homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Toy Train Depot Miniature railroads in the United States Model railway shows and exhibitions Museums in Alamogordo, New Mexico Railroad museums in New Mexico

The Toy Train Depot's building

See also

External links