Christmas brings back fond memories for lifelong model train collector
Some people have a man cave, but Robert Sheldon has an attic in his garage, where he stores the largest collection of model trains in Canada.
Sheldon, who lives in Stanstead, Que., says his wife refuses to let his massive 11,000-piece spill collection over into the house.
"She says 'either the trains stay here, or I'm leaving.' And I can see her point of view," said Sheldon.
Recently, Sheldon loaned out a portion of his Christmas-themed collection to the Beaulne Museum in Coaticook, Que. for an exhibit that lasts until the end of January.
Sheldon got his start collecting trains at Christmastime more than 60 years ago.
"Well, I started when I was five years old," he said. "My dad bought me a train and we ran them into the ground the first year. I mean we really ran them, we played with them so much."
He says it's a shame that more young people today don't share the same passion for collecting.
"Most of your collections now are going down in value because there's no demand for it," he said.
"All us baby boomers, we got all these nice collections, but kids look at that like 'what do you want me to do with that?' They're not interested."
Each train in his collection has a special meaning for him, he added.
"Everyone of them has a story," he said.
Some specialty or limited edition trains are very hard to come by though.
"You have to wait for someone to pass away or a member of the The Train Collectors Association (TCA) to sell it," said Sheldon.
Sheldon says that even though his wife banishes his trains to the garage, he still finds time to enjoy them all year round.
"I don't smoke, I don't go in the bars, so this is my hobby. I come up here, I pass time away here. I enjoy this."
