Melvin Richards, local Model Railroader and Allen Heritage Guild member, is working on revamping the HO model railroad that was donated to the Guild a couple of years ago. The model railroad sits in the Depot Museum, and the goal is to make the train operational whenever we have public events and programs in the Depot.
Melvin has updated buildings that were on the original layout by giving them names of businesses that were in Allen in the 1940s through 1960s such as the gasoline station, the bank, the grocery store and the lumberyard.
He has also built new buildings such as the depot, a new house, and the school. He is adding automobiles and people figures to create a vibrant scene that kids of all ages will enjoy viewing.
Melvin has purchased some more appropriate train cars that connect the Houston and Texas Central and Southern Pacific Railroads that would have travelled through Allen. He found two Houston and Texas Central boxcars.
He is still trying to locate a HO model prairie style church like those built in early Allen.
Watch for updates on the layout as it grows in 2021!
