EnterTRAINment Junction facts for kids
EnterTRAINment Junction Logo
|
|
| Location | 7379 Squire Court, West Chester Township, Ohio |
|---|---|
| Opened | August 1, 2008 |
| Owner | Don Oeters |
| General manager | Bill Balfour |
| Operating season | Year round |
| Area | 25,000 sq ft |
EnterTRAINment Junction is a huge indoor display of model trains located in West Chester Township, Ohio. It's like a giant world built just for trains! This amazing place covers 25,000 square feet. You can see over 90 G-scale trains, which are very large models. These trains show different times in American railroading history, from the early days to modern times.
The building also has a museum about American trains. There's an expo center for special events and even a fun house. The name "EnterTRAINment Junction" comes from an older train display. That display was in the Mall of America from 1992 to 2000.
History
EnterTRAINment Junction was the idea of its owner, Don Oeters. Mr. Oeters is a successful businessman who loves model trains. He dreamed of building the world's largest model train display. He wanted it to feel like an amusement park.
He hired Bruce Robinson, who had worked on Ripley's Believe It or Not! Museums. Bruce helped create the plans for this huge project. Building started in early 2007. The first train tracks were put in during the spring of that year. EnterTRAINment Junction opened its doors to visitors on August 1, 2008.
Areas to Explore
Main Lobby
The main lobby of EnterTRAINment Junction looks like a railroad town from the 1930s. It has party rooms, a cafe, and a gift shop. All these areas are designed to look like classic town buildings. This makes you feel like you've stepped back in time.
Train Journey
The Train Journey is the main attraction at EnterTRAINment Junction. It's a 25,000 square foot train display. People say it's the world's largest indoor train display! It took over 60,000 hours of work to build this amazing display. It has detailed models and more than 90 G-scale model trains.
Each G-scale train engine is about 1/24 the size of a real train. The nearly 1,200 box cars are about the size of a loaf of bread. You can press interactive buttons along the path. These buttons let you control lights, sounds, and moving parts in the display.
The display is split into three parts. Each part shows a different time in the history of rail transport in the United States.
- The Early Era (1860s to 1900s)
- The Middle Era (1940s to 1950s)
- The Modern Era (1970s to today)
Early Era (1860s to 1900s)
The first part of the Train Journey shows the early days of American railroading. You'll see several trains that were common during this time.
The trains travel through mountains. This area shows the tough work involved in building America's first railroads. You'll see early railroad towns, including a 6-foot paddle boat. There's also an 11-foot tall waterfall that looks like it's pouring water. Trains go through tunnels in rolling hills. They pass buildings and homes that would have been around back then.
Middle Era (1940s to 1950s)
The Middle Era section shows how trains changed in the mid-20th century. This area features a 1950s American town. This town would have used the newer train technologies. Besides freight and passenger trains, you'll see moving street cars and a subway system.
Modern Era (1970s to Today)
The Modern Era section shows trains as they are today. This part has tall skyscrapers. They look like buildings from companies such as Boeing and 3M. You can also spot Seattle's Space Needle. The trains look like the big diesel engines you see now. Today, trains carry more cargo than passengers. This is shown in the modern display. You can interact with models like a railway turntable and a crane. The crane unloads cargo from trains. There's also a hot air balloon model.
Coney Island
EnterTRAINment Junction has a small-scale model of the famous Coney Island (Cincinnati, Ohio). This display shows Coney Island as it looked in the late 1960s. It includes a working model of the Shooting Star roller coaster. There's also a 4-foot tall Ferris wheel and other rides. These were all found at Coney Island back then. Some parts of the model were changed a bit to fit the space. But all the models are accurate for that time period.
Great Train Expo Center
The Great Train Expo Center is a large area inside EnterTRAINment Junction. From January, and then from March through August, you can see extra train displays here. One display was even given by the musician Neil Young. You can also find a large model of the Mount Adams Incline here.
In February, an outdoor electric train is moved inside for kids to enjoy. This area is also used for special yearly events. These include an indoor pumpkin patch for Jack o'Lantern Junction. There's also a special Holiday Trains Expo during Christmas at the Junction. The Cincinnati chapter of the National Railroad Historical Society also meets here.
At the back of the expo center, you can watch volunteers. They build, fix, and paint the trains and models. These models will later be shown in the Train Journey.
Imagination Junction
Imagination Junction is a 5,000 square foot play area. It's made just for young children. This area has a tube maze that kids can climb through. There's also a kids' carousel and other train-themed activities.
When the weather is warm, kids can ride an outdoor narrow gauge train. This electric train pulls two cars along 1,000 feet of track. There's also the Kids' Express. This is an outdoor hand-cranked train that goes along 400 feet of track. Both the electric train and the Kids' Express cost extra to ride.
A-Maze-N Funhouse
The A-Maze-N Funhouse is a part of EnterTRAINment Junction. It has five family-friendly mazes. These mazes use different optical illusions and physical tricks. The main area looks like an old-time circus. Inside, there are five different "tents." Each tent holds a separate maze.
The first maze is the Mirror Maze. It is the largest house of mirrors in North America. Kids can go inside and find dead ends. They will also see optical illusions and feel confused by hundreds of mirrors.
The second maze is called Clown College. It has several illusions. These include bent mirrors and objects that seem to float. There's also an Ames Room, which makes things look bigger or smaller than they are.
The third maze is called Curtain Chaos. Hanging curtains surround you as you try to find your way. You have to figure out which path leads forward and which one is a dead end.
Outer Limits: Journey Through the Black Hole is a space-themed maze. It has glowing stars, cool light effects, and a vortex tunnel. It also shares interesting facts about outer space.
The newest maze opened in 2012. It's called Crazy Caper. The story is that you are on a mission. You need to find the Ring Master's key, which is hidden in the tent. Along the way, you find "booby traps" and crazy alarms. There are also optical illusions like a Pepper's Ghost effect.
It's a Marbleous Life
In the summer of 2019, EnterTRAINment Junction opened the world's largest marble (toy) display. It's also the second largest marble museum in the world. This display was created with Larry and Cathy Svacina. They are a husband and wife who love marbles. The marbles in this display date back to the 1800s. You can see games, collectibles, and fun facts about marbles. It shows their history over many generations.
Annual Events
Jack o'Lantern Junction
Jack o'Lantern Junction is a yearly Halloween celebration at EnterTRAINment Junction. It's fun for the whole family. Families can walk through a trick-or-treat maze. It has friendly ghosts, skeletons, and more. The outdoor train rides are open with a special Halloween theme.
Christmas at the Junction
Christmas at the Junction is a holiday event. It runs during the Christmas season. A special area is added to the Fun House Junction. It's themed like the North Pole. Families can walk through this area to meet Santa Claus. Along the way, they see moving penguins, reindeer, and elves. They even see falling snow! The Great Train Expo Center is free to enter during this time. It shows several small train displays on snow-covered mountains.
Christmas in July
Christmas in July is a yearly celebration. It happens around July 25th. During this month, the Christmas activities from Christmas at the Junction open up.
Everything Thomas
Everything Thomas is a yearly event. It features PBS's Thomas the Tank Engine. Kids can look for small Thomas toys throughout the Train Journey section. Also, Thomas-themed activities are added to the Imagination Junction area. Special Thomas crafts are also available in the A-Maze-N Funhouse.
Escape the Room Challenge
In the spring of 2015, EnterTRAINment Junction opened a sister business. It was called Escape the Room Challenge. It was in a separate building next to the main complex. It offered four unique escape room experiences. There was also a virtual reality escape room. All games lasted one hour. However, as of 2020, Escape the Room has closed permanently.
See also
- Holiday Junction
