Tennessee CampersHiking? Campfires? S’mores? Not for the youngsters enrolled in Model Railroad Camp! At the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, camping is all about learning how to create, build and run their own N Scale model railroad layout, with all the geography, history, teamwork, construction and electrical lessons that go with it.
About one dozen campers participated, ages 8 – 12. During the one-week camp, each child built a small module with room for a building, which are then connected together to make one continuous layout. They are also given a freight car, model people, vehicles, and learn to use scenic foams for ground cover and trees. The program is conducted and overseen by the Knoxville Area Model Railroaders, (KAMR), a group with about 60 members that has been in existence over 16 years. The club renovated an unused building in 2001 which now has operating HO and N Scale layouts, as well as an HO layout in a separate room specifically for the museum. The DIY (Do It Yourself) television network donated a garden railroad to the museum after using it in one of their programs as part of the series, “Working on the Railroad”, according to KAMR President Lawrence Burkholder. The club operates and maintains the garden railroad for the museum as well. For the Model Railroad Camp project, Atlas donated freight cars, structure kits and some accessories, along with current literature and an Atlas sign for the museum. “The items you sent were a really big hit and we can’t thank Atlas enough,” Mr. Burkholder said when the week-long adventure was over. “The building kits really went together easily and looked good. They were some of the best fitting without a lot of trimming I have ever seen.” By their smiling faces, it looks like the campers enjoyed their ride on…The Right Track!
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