TRAINS AT KER PLACE

We were invited to show our trains and scenery at Ker Place in Onancock on Saturday. It used to be spelled Kerr, but somebody found some documents that had Ker on it, so they pushed to have the name changed. I grew up with Kerr, so if I lapse into the old spelling, so be it. It has always been pronounced Car around here. http://www.shorehistory.org/ has more info on Ker Place. It was an 1800 Eastern Shore Mansion back then. It took 4 years to build, 1799-1803. We were in the Dining Room. With temps in the low 70s, the doors to the Garden were propped open.

We had 208 visitors, not including Santa Claus or any of the pups that came to visit! (I love Shelties! This is Rocky, the black & white and Dylan in brown. They discovered I had puppy biscuits in my pocket! Imagine!) We took the newest layout that was made specifically for this show, specifically to travel, and pretty much put together in a very short time just for this occasion and to see “how it could be done.” It has been a learning tool. The base is several inches of insulation foam with a half inch glued on top with spaces cut out the size and shape of other pieces of scenery from the O scale layout. This way I did not have to actually “make” any more bits of scenery, like a second Exmore Diner, since that piece (among others) was specifically requested. I was able to just lift the modular units, like the Farmer’s Market and Greenhouses and slide them into the appropriate slots on the Traveling Layout. We also took the Boxcar Children display (G scale – Garden size) Niall and I were the baby-sitters for this show. We have learned that someone needs to be in constant attendance or things, even things we thought were adequately glued down, can disappear. Sad, but true. Niall stayed with the O-scale (Lionel size) and I stayed with the little N scale – 1/4th the size of a Lionel Train. This N scale is not modular. Niall really loves kids and is wonderful with them. He loves sharing his joy of just running the trains and teaching kids how to run them, too. I enjoy watching the people “discover” the little people and animals on the layouts. Since I love nature (and hate cities) there are loads of trees, bushes, weeds, and sometimes flowers and gardens on my layouts. Someone mentioned I had greenhouses on both the O and N scale layouts. “You must be a gardener,” one person said. Mostly I enjoy creating little worlds within little worlds where everybody is happy, life is simple, and nothing bad is going to happen… even without crossing lights at the tracks! Anyway, here are some shots of the show at Ker Place. DSC_0425_01 DSC_0426_01 DSC_0416_01 DSC_0418_01 DSC_0415_01