Southport Model Railway Village facts for kids
| Location | Lower Promenade, Kings Gardens, Southport, Merseyside, England |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 53°38′55″N 3°00′38″W / 53.6487°N 3.0105°W |
| Opened | 1996 |
| Theme | Miniature village, garden railway |
| Operating season | April – October |
| Area | 1.5 acres (0.61 ha) |
Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). The Southport Model Railway Village is a super fun tourist attraction located in Southport, England. It's a special model village where tiny trains are the main stars! Imagine a whole little world built just for trains and miniature buildings.
Discovering the Village's History
How the Model Village Began
Back in 1995, a local couple from Southport, Ray and Jean Jones, had a brilliant idea. They got permission from Sefton Council to build a model village in Kings Gardens, Southport.
Building a Miniature World
Ray and Jean, along with their skilled team, worked hard to turn a part of the seafront into a detailed miniature landscape. This became the very first model railway village in the United Kingdom! It was special because it focused so much on the miniature trains.
Opening Day and Beyond
When it first opened its doors to the public in 1996, it was the biggest outdoor display of G gauge trains in the whole UK. The amazing thing is, the Jones family still runs the Southport Model Railway Village today, making sure it stays a fantastic place to visit!
All About the Trains
What Kind of Trains Run Here?
The Southport Model Railway Village is home to one of the largest 45 mm garden railway systems in the United Kingdom. If you're wondering what "G gauge" means, it's a type of model train that is quite large, perfect for outdoor tracks!
How Many Trains and How Much Track?
You'll see five special LGB trains constantly moving around the village. They run on an impressive 500 metres (that's half a kilometer!) of track. It's a busy place with trains always on the go!
Exploring the Tiny Landscape
The Size of the Miniature World
The entire model village covers about 1.5 acres, which is a pretty big area for a miniature world! Everything in the landscape is built at a 1:18 scale. This means that if something is 18 times bigger in real life, it's shrunk down to 1 unit in the model village.
What You'll See in the Village
There are over 200 tiny models to discover, all connected by the 500 metres of train track. The buildings are designed to look like real places from Merseyside and West Lancashire, showing off local architectural styles.
How the Buildings Are Made
The buildings are crafted from strong marine plywood and a special material called resin. Each tiny building is designed and built right there on site! They even make miniature resin items like doors, windows, roof parts, and tiny people to make the village look super realistic.
Waterways and Special Features
A lovely waterway flows through the site, connecting two natural ponds. It adds to the beautiful scenery of the miniature world.
Some of the cool things you can spot include:
- A detailed model railway
- A busy railway station
- An old-fashioned Castle
- A tall Windmill
- A charming Watermill
- Pretty churches
- A grand Manor house
- Tiny shops
- A busy Factory
