George Ellis has been buying Lionel trains since he was a boy, and for more than 30 years he’s picked up pieces wherever his travels took him. Every fall he and J. R. Carathers haul the collection into the Nacogdoches Railroad Depot and spend better than a month turning it into a miniature world — scenery, storefronts and Nacogdoches landmarks people recognize on sight.
This year makes 15 for the Loblolly Model Train Display. It opens Friday, Nov. 6, and runs 12 days between now and the middle of December. Admission is free.
When to go
The depot is at 101 Old Tyler Rd. The Veterans Day weekend run is Friday, Nov. 6 and Saturday, Nov. 7 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 8 from noon to 5 p.m.
The holiday display takes over after Thanksgiving, on three weekends:
Friday, Nov. 27 and Saturday, Nov. 28, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, Nov. 29, noon to 5 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 4 and Saturday, Dec. 5, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 6, noon to 5 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 11 and Saturday, Dec. 12, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 13, noon to 5 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 7 is a busy day in town. The Historic Skills Fair is at the Durst-Taylor Historic House and Gardens, 304 North St., the same day.
Why people keep coming back
A model railroad inside the depot itself does something a toy on a table doesn’t. Grandparents point out the Lionel engine they had. Kids find the buildings they drive past. The city puts it plainly: the display is about more than trains. It brings people together, sparks memories, and celebrates the history of the depot itself.
Fifteen years in, the two men who build it still start over every November.
