The Northeast Large Scale Train Show, organized by the Amherst Railway Society, rolled into West Springfield, Mass., May 3-4 at Eastern States Exposition (ESE). During the event, show organizers presented ESE President and CEO Gene Cassidy with a model train diorama of the Young Building to be displayed in Eastern States Exposition Museum.
The Northeast Large Scale Train Show is committed to inspiring, entertaining and educating its attendees. It covers a wide variety of gauges and all facets of large-scale railroading: model railroads, art and photography, history, preservation, tourism, artifacts, books and videos. The occasion is a highly anticipated annual tradition for train lovers and show organizers use every inch of the 135,000 sq. ft. Better Living Center to accommodate its scale.
The model of the Young Building was created by Jim Spavins, a model railroader who has been attending train-centric events at ESE since his youth in the late 1980s. After spending a few years as a visitor, Spavins began to create and exhibit his own models.
Nearly a decade ago, Spavins was tasked with creating a model of Eastern States Exposition that showed the old railroad spur that ran through the property in the days when railways dominated travel. He united this vision of old with a snapshot of the train show as it exists today. He wove together the past and present to create a tribute to ESE’s early days while celebrating the growth the facility has seen in its more than 100 years of history.
Spavins said, “It’s a lot of traditional model railroad techniques: we scratch-built the building using plywood and some brick sheeting, painted it to look like the building, did the cutouts of the Young Building lettering and, of course, all the different signage for the vendors that were here at the time of the layout. We added all the different people from the time and all the little details to try to make it look more and more like the train show.”
John Sacerdote, director of the Railroad Hobby Show, is responsible for connecting the ESE team with Spavins. Sacerdote is also a member of the Railroad Hobby Show’s strategic planning and marketing committees and the immediate past president of the Amherst Railway Society’s Board of Directors. He has helped produce Amherst Railways Society’s events at ESE for the past 25 years.
When Spavins told Sacerdote that he was beginning a new project and wanted to gift the diorama to ESE, Sacerdote leapt at the opportunity. “It was an instant connection; let’s put it in the museum at Eastern States Exposition fairgrounds,” said Sacerdote.
“It's a nice ending to have this layout be given to Eastern States and to have it here, at the museum, and be shown off for many years in the future. It was nice to have it here, at the train show, but it’ll have a nice, long life in the museum,” Spavins said.
“The way I conduct business is odd to some people. I really value the friendship as much as the business relationship,” Sacerdote added. “I feel very strongly that I’m treated well here. I know these people like they’re my friends, and that just makes the relationship that much stronger.”
ESE is appreciative of the loyal partners that choose to host their events on its grounds throughout the year, with special thanks to Amherst Railway Society. For more information about the broad variety of hobby shows at ESE, head to EasternStatesExposition.com. Be sure to visit the Eastern States Exposition Museum to see Spavins’s marvelous model up close.