TrainTopia is a Christmas Wonderland for All Ages!
No matter your age, miniature electric trains and Christmas are a traditional favorite that always go together. For some, a visit to TrainTopia brings back fond memories of Lionel trains racing around the Christmas tree. For younger folks, it's their first encounter with the 2,500 square foot G-Scale world in miniature that sparks new memories that will last a lifetime.
Visiting the Museum of the American Railroad's TrainTopia in Frisco has become a holiday tradition all its own for people of all generations. And check out our progress on reconstructing the “O” gauge Neuhoff layout. Downtown Dallas is taking shape, as most of the finely crafted buildings are now in place.
Visiting these exquisitely detailed and animated displays is a throwback to the days when large downtown department stores attracted throngs of shoppers through their doors. Electric trains were the main attraction of enchanting Christmas displays sometimes spanning entire floors.
Lionel, the largest maker of electric trains, showcased their latest offerings on lavish holiday layouts in New York, Chicago, and other cities – Macy’s and Marshall Fields among them. Madison Hardware, located at 105 E. 23rd Street (one block off Park Ave.) in New York, was shoulder-to-shoulder with dedicated Lionel shoppers. Dallas' Sanger Harris and Titche's department stores had similar displays at their downtown locations as part of their elaborate Christmas attractions. And of course, no visit was complete without a photo with Santa!
(At Left) Considered one of the pinnacle years for Lionel’s post-war production, their 1952 catalog featured 35 pages of electric trains and accessories. Children marveled at the diverse offerings from the New Jersey-based toymaker. The catalogs offered promise of additional items to enhance any starer layout – if not this Christmas, then next Christmas!
(At Right) Madison Hardware Company was perhaps the most well-known Lionel dealer for many years. Located in midtown Manhattan, it started out as a hardware store with Lionel trains as a side business. It quickly blossomed into the epicenter of Lionel’s sales and service philosophy, with trains floor to ceiling! No trip to New York City was complete without perusing the small, crowded store just off Park Avenue.
No visit to TrainTopia is complete without meeting our wonderful volunteers and staff who share their enthusiasm and love of trains with visitors of all ages. Museum staffers Alora and Cheri are ready to welcome holiday guests inside the Frisco Discovery Center as our regal nutcracker stands at attention overseeing TrainTopia operations in the background!
This holiday season, make new memories with your family and rekindle fond recollections of trains at Christmas with a visit to TrainTopia. This odyssey in miniature is even more special and exciting during this holiday season!
Our sincere thanks to our dedicated crew of volunteers that maintain and help present TrainTopia to thousands of annual visitors. TrainTopia would not be a success without them!
Check out TrainTopia on The Texas Bucket List here!
TrainTopia is a gift of Jane Sanders and her family in memory of Steve Sanders. It is presented by Amanda and Brint Ryan and is made possible by the City of Frisco Community Development Corporation.
Work Begins on Outdoor Events Pavilion
The long-awaited Events Pavilion is now underway! As the Museum's first covered public space, it will transform the visitor experience. The 4,800 sq. ft. open-air structure is situated between Exhibit Tracks 5 & 6 and stretches 120 feet. At 40 feet wide, it will provide shelter between the two tracks for year-round protection from rain and sun.
"Outdoor events have always been on our list of future Museum offerings," said the Museum's COO Kellie Murphy. "We just had to get past basic infrastructure construction, and now we're there!" The all-steel Pavilion will be clear span for maximum usability, having decorative trusses painted in a vintage green finish. Eves will be 14 feet in height to allow unobstructed viewing of the Museum's rolling stock collection. The historic trains will serve as a unique visual attraction during daytime and nighttime events.
The Museum's school field trips will soon have space for additional programs as well as a lunch area for up to 350 students. Once electrical service is installed, nighttime events will see the trains transformed into a dramatic backdrop, recreating a station platform scene with several lighting options. Music and food & beverage service will create an experience like no other in Frisco.
"Museums are about more than their daily offerings – much more. They have the potential to entertain a much broader audience through creative use of their holdings after hours and during special events. We are uniquely positioned to do that here in Frisco, a town founded by the railroad," said Murphy.
Watch for updates on the Museum's Events Pavilion construction. Weather permitting, we look forward to completion and naming of this exciting structure early next year!
Our sincere thanks to those who have provided funding for this project thus far. We will acknowledge their gifts as the fundraising phase wraps up in a few weeks.
Events Pavilion Contractors:
Lunsford Associates, Arlington
Lingle Engineers, McKinney
H&H Concrete, Fort Worth
Barnes Enterprises, Celina
RMI Electric, Denton
Christmas 1962 - Seven Spot’s Final Season at Union Terminal
While Big Boy #4018 garners most of the attention among visitors to the Museum's steam locomotives, another has a place in the hearts of those who grew up in early Dallas. Sitting silent on Exhibit Track 10, the little (by comparison) Dallas Union Terminal Locomotive #7, was a staple of Dallas railroading for 40 years. Its history spans twice as many years as Big Boy, and undoubtedly more miles – without ever leaving the city limits.
The Museum’s Locomotive #7 switches a Southern Pacific consist by its observation car at the north end of Dallas Union Terminal’s platforms. Likely the Dallas-Houston “Sunbeam” in this pre-1955 view, the train is being positioned for a southbound run departing at 5:00 PM. Photo courtesy of Paul Moffett.
The venerable Baldwin-built engine shuffled (more like hustled) cars at Dallas Union Terminal around the clock from 1922 to 1963. Moving cars between connecting trains, setting out Pullmans, and servicing nearby mail and express facilities along the station's labyrinth of 14 tracks was a daily logistical feat.
But as the 1960s dawned, the "7-Spot" saw its days numbered as ridership dwindled on passenger trains and diesels fully supplanted steam. The Christmas rush of 1962 ended up being #7's last stand at Union Terminal, ending four decades of faithful service in Dallas.
In these two views, DUT #7 is passing alongside another passenger train on its switching duties at the station. This familiar sight played out countless times until the locomotive’s final act in December of 1962. While only snapshots, these views capture the essence of operations during the waning years of passenger service in Dallas.
For one final season, the 7-Spot gave a show to holiday crowds along the platforms. Steam and the smell of cylinder oil filled the December air as cars were transferred among the small but notable number of trains still calling on the station – trains like the Texas Zephyr, Texas Eagle, Texas Special, Twin Star Rocket, and Texas Chief among others. And for a few brief days, Union Terminal was bustling with activity, as if the looming demise of travel by train was ebbing. Sadly, most of these trains were gone by 1967, a pivotal year for passenger service when postal contracts were won over by trucks.
As January 1963 opened and the holiday crowds subsided, #7's fire was dropped and the aging engine was placed in storage on Track 1. This quiet ending not only saw the finale of steam at Dallas Union Terminal, but it was also the cessation of regular mainline steam in Texas as well.
We've chronicled the 7 Spot's rescue from the scrapper's torch and preservation at the Museum in previous eblasts. Click here for more info.
When researching Seven Spot’s operational history, we ran across a treasure-trove of videos on YouTube showing the engine working out its last years at Union Terminal. We made contact with the person who posted the videos, and he was kind enough to allow the Museum to use them for interpretation of Seven Spot and other pieces in our collection. His YouTube content includes priceless videos and stills featuring passenger operations in and around Dallas in the late 1950s-early 1960s. View an example here. Our sincere thanks to Paul Moffett who shared these amazing glimpses into the past thanks to the foresight of his parents Hamilton & Foy Moffett of Lancaster, Texas who traveled throughout North Texas with their 8mm movie camera.
Consider an End of Year Gift to the Museum
As we wrap up 2025, we want to express our gratitude for your support of the Museum of the American Railroad’s ongoing operations, including educational programs, historic preservation, special projects, construction, and events.
During 2025, we provided more educational programs than ever before! And, we continue to serve more visitors each year. But we only cover a portion of our operating costs. This is where the community we serve can give back and continue to support the great work we do in North Texas.
As we say thank you, we’d also like to invite you to consider an end-of-year donation. It’s easy!