Take a trip down memory lane as the Boothbay Railway Village celebrates early toys and model trains. Whether it’s Lionel trains, pedal cars, porcelain dolls, tin wind-ups, or an early board game, you might discover something special at this first ever show inside the 1847 Boothbay Town Hall on the Museum’s campus on Saturday, Sept. 10 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There will be both exhibitors sharing their collections and dealers offering collectibles for sale.

In addition to the Vintage Toy & Model Train Show, there will be extra special activities offered from Thursday, Sept. 8 through Saturday, Sept. 10 in conjunction with the National Narrow Gauge Convention being held in Augusta. More than 1,000 rail fans from all over the world are visiting Maine for the Convention and many will be coming to Boothbay during their conference experience.

Adults and older children are invited to try out the Museum’s Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington Railroad Hand Car. The Hand Car dates to 1895 and would have been used by railroad employees to bring their tools and themselves out to areas on the line that needed attention. It is operated by one or two people on either side of the handlebars, alternating sides pushing down on the handlebars to turn a gear which turns the wheels.

Two steam engines and some of the Museum’s most prized historic passenger coaches as well as the Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes Model T Inspection Car and Rail Bus will be operating.

The rail car is owned by the Owls Head Transportation Museum in Owls Head, Maine and is on extended loan to the Museum for demonstration. This 1925 Model T was converted into a crew car for the two-foot gauge Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad at Phillips, Maine in 1925. A motorized inspection car was a significant upgrade from the earlier hand cars that were used to transport tools and workers to locations on the tracks that needed repair.

The 12-passenger rail bus was also built by the Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad at Phillips, Maine in 1925. The railroad was experiencing declining passenger counts and hoped the rail bus would be a way to continue operations while limiting their overhead expenses. It’s on loan from the Maine Narrow Gauge Museum in Portland, Maine.

The Vintage Toy & Model Train Show along with all the extra activities are free with regular museum admission of $6 for children ages 3-18, $12 for adults, $10 for seniors (65+), children under 3 and Museum Members are free. Although the Museum will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., most activities will take place between 11 and 4. Well-behaved and leashed four-legged friends are welcome. Contact the Boothbay Railway Village for more information at (207) 633-4727, or online at www.railwayvillage.org. If you have a collection to share or are a retailer interested in selling at the show contact margaret@railwayvillage.org to sign up for a table. The Boothbay Railway Village is located at 586 Wiscasset Road, Route 27 in Boothbay, Maine.