St. Louis train stores

St. Louis Union Station is now a Mall and Hotel complex, but a grand old structure. It is the site of the photo of Harry Truman, standing on the platform of a train car holding a newspaper proclaiming Dewey's victory over him.

There's a store called Train Town That has a lot of really cool Lionel postwar and prewar items for sale. They also have some used modern era Lionel, and MTH stuff as well but the majority of the shop is postwar. Even if you are not into postwar it is still a really cool shop to visit as it has a very retro feel to it. I did a video on it about a year ago if you are interested https://youtu.be/6c_DuKJROWw I highly suggest checking it out!

the address is 9832 Manchester Road, Rock Hill, MO  63119

As a St. Louisan, I agree with both suggestions of Union Station and Train Town.  My recommendation is to visit St. Louis' National Museum of Transportation, about a 25 min drive from the downtown arch.  They have a large roster of locomotives including UP 4006 Big Boy, in addition to classic autos, planes, toy trains, and all types of transportation.

Train Town is a great store, and not too far from the Museum of Transportation.

I also would highly recommend visiting Union Station.  The architectural beauty is something most don't have the opportunity to experience everyday.

Thanks for the great suggestions, I’ll check them out!

Mark

Another great store:  The Switch Stand.  A smaller shop CRAMMED with all sorts of items, old and new.  It's on 9120 Lackland Road, across from the Overland City Hall.  (314) 733-1029.  My favorite store when I visit St. Louis family.

Last year, a group of us Pgh. Hi-Railers went to St. Louis to see/chase 4014, and we managed to visit a bunch of hobby/train shops:

• Mark Twain Hobby Center, 2793 West Clay St., St. Charles MO 63301
• Switch Stand, 9120 Lackland Rd., St. Louis, MO 63114
• Train Town LLC, 9832 Manchester Rd., St. Louis, MO 63119
• Schaefer Hobby Shop, 11659 Gravois Road, St. Louis, MO 63126
• Rodney's Trains & Toys, 9622 Gravois Road, St. Louis, MO 63123

All of these shops are fairly close to the National Museum of Transportation -  we managed to visit the museum and 3-4 of these shops in one day.  The museum is incredible and should not be missed.

Andy

I second the advice to visit Union Station.  It was once like the O'Hare Airport of train stations and a launching point for those heading west.  Every year for about a decade I used to attend a meeting and stay in the hotel within the station.  There are also numerous restaurants and stores within the old station.  There's a light rail station there which I've used to commute to/from the airport.  I've also walked from Union Station to the arch but I wouldn't do that at night.