My 1st. Layout 1959/Photo added 12/04

Spence GREAT! photos thanks for sharing them!

Looks like fun!

The bench-work looks a little shaky. Good thing you didn't have

a 773 Hudson on it ... 

Cool, Spence! You had a number of classic Plasticville buildings there.....did any survive?

Great photo Spence, that comfy chair next to the layout looks like a good place to watch the action while thumbing thru the latest Lionel catalog.  

franktrain

Jay jay; All of the Plasticville buildings survived. I gave them to my brother several years ago. He is into O gauge as well & still has his original Lionel train set but is more into MTH.

Great Photo's, Thanks. I wonder if the person who sat in that easy chair ever thought there would come a day when he could have a remote in his or her hand.

Hi Spence

I still have my parents folding "card table" that is identical to the one supporting the left side of your layout! It was from the 1950's. Thanks for posting.

Sam

Great, Spence. The only piece of mine that survived was the platform of the Union Station, although I suspect one or two may have been taken by my brother. I'll have to take another look at his layout. 

J.J. LOL

Casey LV; I'm looking for another photo that I have showing the chair, magazine rack, & the old TV. In the magazine rack is a "Look" magazine. Anyone remember Look?

Look: You bet spence.

I remember Look, that's where Ralphie stuck the ad for his Red Ryder!

Thanks for sharing.

Nice looking layouts 

Great photos Spence! I wish I had some photos of my layout from my youth. Thanks for posting them.

Very cool photo.

Great pictures Spence. I got my first set in 1957. I still have it. I have a 8mm movie of it converted to DVD but I don't know where any pictures might be and yes, I remember Look, Life, and The Saturday Evening Post too.

Love it!

peter

It is great you have these photos, I wish I had a picture of mine.

Art

I refuse to answer on the grounds that it might date me.

Art

Spence - Looking at these pictures makes me remember my promise to my mother to never sell my first Lionel set.  I still have it and always will.

Art

I'm not sure they had cameras when I had my first train set. 

Art

Great photos,   1959 WOW.  We do have a bridge like the one on your layout.  Amazing how some things can survive that long.  Nick

AWESOME!

Spence, your photos show that when we started out in the 50's, it didn't take a lot of over priced scale trains to make us happy a 4x8 was all we needed. Thanks for posting.

Very nice!

Bob

Great pictures, Spence.  It's always fun to see back-in-the-day pictures of model trains.

Sure wish I had pictures of my dad's first trains. Unfortunately, unlike today where everything is photographed, no one thought to take a picture. 

NICE - love the old pictures and 1959 was a great year

Paul - until August I can still "Drive 55" - Licata

Nice that you have photographic memories. My first layout was in 1947, but there are no photos.

I have some.  Unfortunately they are "stuck" on 8mm movie film .

Spence just great. I wish my father took some pictures of our 3 rail OO layout when I was 6 in '59.

All I remember was mine was a 0-6-0 and my elder brother had the 2-6-2 British outline.

Shame it was all left behind in Africa when we moved back to the UK. 

James 

Those are real time capsules you have there, Spence.  We used whatever materials we had available back then.  And yes, Homasote was available in 1959.  A neighbor and my granddad built a bedroom addition onto the house in 1959, and the inside walls were Homasote with lath over the joints, instead of drywall.

Great pictures Spence !!!!!

Alex

Thanks for sharing that with us. There are some nice Plasticville items there, too.

Jeff

Spence,

This is my first train set Marx 1958. I really was a truck/car kid though.

franktrain