Neil Bromilow still remembers the thrill he got as a little boy watching his first Lionel toy train run countless laps around his family’s Christmas tree. It’s the same thrill he gets today as he watches G-scale model trains navigate the nearly 3,000 feet of tracks at the Gibsonville Garden Railroad, one of the town’s most popular attractions.
It’s also the thrill he gets when other children — and young-at-heart grown-ups — marvel at the electric trains as they travel through the layout’s miniature community.
“Lots of things in motion, going in many directions at different speeds, is soothing and slightly hypnotic,” says Bromilow, 77, who is president and board chairman of the nonprofit site. “The memories of older visitors are activated by seeing our trains, and they recall their childhoods. And when you see the joy and animation of our younger visitors, you can’t help but smile.”
Neil Bromilow shows off a reproduction of a 4-6-2 “Pacific” locomotive in front of the Gibsonville Garden Railroad, an outdoor model train layout that he turned into a nonprofit. photograph by Jerry Wolford & Scott Muthersbaugh
According to Bromilow, the tracks can accommodate up to 22 trains at a time. Sometimes you’ll see trains from his personal collection and those of other railroad volunteers. Visitors are also invited to run their own trains, so there’s no telling what’ll be on the tracks on any given day. You might see an Amtrak passenger train, a freight locomotive, or a Thomas the Tank Engine, a favorite among many kids.
Some buildings in the miniature town are arranged to represent Gibsonville in 1855, the year that the first train arrived at the Gibson Station depot. Others represent the year 1922, when the municipality became less of a sleepy rural village and more of a vibrant town with a church, a school, a bank, and more. The layout also includes landmarks from other parts of the state, like Grandfather Mountain, Blowing Rock, and the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.
Most fittingly, the layout was built in close proximity to the Norfolk Southern railway, and real trains pass by frequently. “We always stop and wave at the passing trains,” Bromilow says, “and the engineers typically toot toot back.”
Volunteer Doug Glass inspects a diesel locomotive in the middle of the Gibsonville Garden Railroad. Anyone is welcome to run a model train on the tracks. photograph by Jerry Wolford & Scott Muthersbaugh
The Gibsonville Garden Railroad was created in 1996 by Bobby Summers, a retired freight conductor who owned a hobby store in town. He ran his trains several times a year, but not on a consistent schedule. That changed in 2016, when Bromilow bought the tracks from Summers and turned the miniature railroad into a nonprofit.
The trains now run from 9 a.m. until noon every Saturday between April and November — weather permitting — and on other special occasions. The attraction draws as many as 7,000 visitors a year, and it’s free (although there is a donation box to help pay for its upkeep).
Bromilow points out that the railroad serves an important purpose: It’s part of Operation Lifesaver, an education program designed to teach people how to stay safe around trains and tracks. Beyond that, though, it’s just a fun, nostalgic way to spend a Saturday morning.
“We’re seeing a lot of young families come out, and little kids are just enthralled with it,” Bromilow says. “It’s mesmerizing for them to watch everything in motion at once. Eventually, Mom and Dad buy them their own choo-choo and caboose, and they’re hooked.”
Gibsonville Garden Railroad
220 East Main Street
Gibsonville, NC 27249
gibsonvillegardenrailroad.com
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