David Tice - shared about his first train / and memories - here is my story - written a few years ago - unedited and a bit syrupy - but my story - the train around my tree every year - last year we had a big 65th anniversary run
Christmas of 1947 was and is a very special one. That was the year that Santa brought me an electric train. My memories are so vivid. I was awakened that morning by the sound of a horn. I woke Ted up and told him, “All that Santa has brought us was a horn.” And we scurried down the stairs to the tree. And there it was – In a darkened room – lit only by the lights of the tree – it was running – Santa had left it running – there was a tunnel and the headlight on the engine was darkened as it passed through the tunnel – and there was a beacon – that turned with a red and green glow – an un-coupler that really worked, and a horn that blew when you pushed a button on the transformer – and a work shed that had a little man that came out and waved his lantern when the train passed. Wow, what more could one ever wish for – an electric train. Five cars, an engine, a coal car, a silver tanker, a flat car and a red caboose.
That afternoon Bill, Jack and Paul came to see the train and the lined the track up- put all the straight track together and was playing – the rain ran off the track hit the wall and the headlight never worked again. Through the years the brass electric pick-ups under the engine would wear out and my Grandfather Sojourner would take the train to the mill and re solder the worn places and off we would go again. When the train was over fifty years old I took it to Leyland’s in Hildebrand and had some work done on it. The headlight was fixed, and Leyland said, “Oh! By the way, I fixed the light in the caboose, the bulb had not been snapped into place.” A lighted caboose, I had had a lighted caboose and for over fifty years had never known it.
