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The Brandywine River Museum Railroad
Returns for A Brandywine Christmas
With a collection of trains including 150 locomotives and 300 freight cars that run on nearly 2,000 feet of track, the model train display at the Brandywine River Museum is a popular holiday exhibition, delighting visitors of all ages. Toy trains in the collection are mostly Lionel products dating from 1915 to the present, often supplemented with trains loaned by visiting engineers. A "must see" for the youngest train fans is Thomas the Tank Engine and his friends from the Isle of Sodor, UK.
The first O gauge train display for A Brandywine Christmas was created in 1973 by Kirk Lindvig and Jeff Punderson. It was operated and improved by them over four years. Our present train expert, Steven Clarke, assumed responsibilities as "chief engineer" in 1976. He has entirely rebuilt the display, adding to it while overseeing operations and maintenance. He is on hand throughout the holiday season to operate and repair equipment, to keep the rails clean and to answer questions posed by visitors. David Jensen has worked with Steven for 29 years and has contributed many additions and improvements. A dedicated crew helps move and assemble the layout and serves as guides during the Christmas holidays.
Some quick facts about the Brandywine River Museum Railroad:
- Trains are O-gauge (the distance between the rails is 1¼")
- Layout size and shape - 40' x 60' in the shape of an "E"
- Layout surface - approximately 1,220 sq. feet
- Track length - approximately 2,000 feet
- Number of trains running at one time - 5
- Train length - the longest train is more than 70' long, pulled by two locomotives. Time period represented in display - late 1940s, early 1950s
- Video cam added in 2004
- Drive-in movie theater added in 2006
The Brandywine River Museum's train display is part ofA Brandywine Christmas,
on view from
November 27, 2009 through January 10, 2010.
The museum celebrates the season with fabulous holiday displays including a display of antique dolls and thousands of whimsical "critter" ornaments on holiday trees.
Sponsored by the Snelling Group at Merrill Lynch, Herr Foods Inc., and the Freylinghuysen Foundation.
Photos by Carlos Alejandro and Dave Jensen.
Brandywine River Museum, U.S. Route 1, P.O. Box 141
Chadds Ford, PA 19317 • Phone: 610-388-2700
© 2009 Brandywine Conservancy
This site is for personal, educational, non-commercial use only and may not be reproduced in any form without the express permission of the Brandywine Conservancy.
For more information send email to: inquiries@brandywine.org | 
