Holiday Train Show
Recreation of
Yankee Stadium | Every model train enthusiast or anyone who loves experiencing the wonders of natural art must visit The New York Botanical Gardens Annual Holiday Train Show. This magnificent train show opens the Monday after Thanksgiving and entertains millions of visitors until the completion of the holiday season. People of all ages will enjoy the award winning arrangement of natural materials grown within the New York Botanical Gardens used as the scenery for the famous model railroad display. |
The New York Botanical Garden has a long history of providing a variety of mind bending shows dating back to April 1891 when the state of New York passed an act incorporating the New York Botanical Garden. The world famous botanical garden's founders, Nathanial and Elizabeth Britton, planted the seed for over 250 acres of city owned land to become the setting for over 50 gardens and observatories. The State of New York and a list of prominent benefactors, such as Andrew Carnegie, J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, and Cornelius Vanderbilt financed the project because of the overwhelming public support of the New Parks Act of 1884.
The Holiday Train Show's award winning designer, Paul Busse, arranges locomotives, with the names Holiday Steam Engine and Snowflake, onto model train tracks decorated with colorful twinkling lights. Holiday Steam Engine and Snowflake roll along a path flanked by miniature replicas of famous New York City landmarks constructed of all natural materials. For example, Busse's design team composes a lifelike replica of Statue of Liberty entirely of bark, seeds, straw, and other plant specimens.
Serving as another spot on the journey taken by the model trains, a rendition of St. Patrick's Cathedral is beautifully built with seeds acorns, reeds, twigs and bark and encased by miniature ivies and cyclamen. The train tracks also glide over famous New York City bridges, such as a twenty foot tall version of the Brooklyn Bridge constructed merely out of dried bark and twigs. Holiday Train Show visitors can become part of the show by walking under the bridges while the trains buzz over their heads. The Holiday Train Show's depictions of famous New York City landmarks make this event not only entertaining, but also an educational experience for everyone who visits.
Every year, the Holiday Train Show organizers add new features to the exhibit. For the 2007 Holiday Train Show, visitors will find exquisite replicas of Ellis Island and the George Washington Bridge for the first time. The famous train show would not be complete without a dedication to Ellis Island where over 12 million immigrants entered its doors after sailing across the Atlantic Ocean to America during the turn of the century. Like Ellis Island, the George Washington Bridge holds a special place in New York City culture because of its 75 year old history as the main route leading into New York City from all locations west of the Hudson River. As an added treat, show promoters are opening its doors on selected nights for guests to experience the lighted exhibits during darkened evening hours. |
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