DAGSBORO, Del.- Rev up the engine and hit the tracks with the Delaware Seaside Railroad Club.
Its members have constructed five tracks with each one having specific size train cars. They range from N-gauge, which is the smallest the club has, to G-gauge which is the biggest. As you walk through, you will see some trains riding around prominent pieces of Sussex County architecture like the Indian River Bridge.
According to President John Hodges, the club saw its biggest annual event get cancelled last year due to the pandemic.
"We lost the ability to hold our train shows that we sponsor twice a year due to the fact that the large gatherings were not permitted for indoors," Hodges said. "So, we had to scale that completely off the calendar."
Instead, a matching grant program from members and yard sales of trains generated money that went directly to the club.
Helping and educating the community is a big part of the club’s mission. For example, Vice President Doc Dougherty explained how it achieved that through helping middle school students pre-pandemic who went to school close by.
"They would come over once or twice a year for eight weeks for an hour and it was a course they had to take as one of their electives," Dougherty said. "So, we take a table and throw track on it and tell them here you design it."
The railroad club has a junior membership program with fifteen members currently participating. One of them is 19-year-old Paul Moore of Georgetown who was able to run thirty cars on one track smoothly for the public to see.
"My dad got me into trains," Moore said. "My family has always been into trains. It has always been an interest of mine. It can be more interesting than a video game. It’s hands-on and you can learn a lot from it."
The facility is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. every Saturday in Dagsboro. You must wear a mask to enter.
