Central Pennsylvania in October is ablaze with color and unpredictable weather. One day the sun shines brightly and the red, orange, gold, and brown hues of the trees glisten, telling all that the winter snows are not far away. The next day it is rainy, blustery, and gray, announcing to all that Mother Nature is a force not to be taken for granted.

For approximately 15,000 TCA members, the changing weather is something with which they’ve learned to live. Layered clothing, good walking shoes, a satchel, the name badge, perhaps an umbrella, and lots of money are all that one needs to “shop ’til you drop.” After all, this is the Bi-Annual TCA Eastern Division’s famous York Meet. Where else can a toy train lover go and be able to speak with and voice opinions to the Owners, Presidents, and CEO’s of every major toy train company in the United States, and even some from Europe?

The many halls have colors as varied as the leaves which surround them. Blue, Silver, Green, Red, White, Purple, Black, Yellow, and Gold are their designations. Inside are roughly 3,000 sales tables of every item known to the world of Toy Trains. Nearly all of the “BIG” dealers whose ads appear monthly in CTT, OGR, MR, and MRC are here. So are the Parts dealers. If you can’t get it at York, chances are you can’t get it.

Care to find out about Marx? Ives? Wooden Trains? TCA Conventions? Paper? TCA Standards? OO gauge? Save your Wednesday and Thursday nights, as well as Friday and Saturday afternoons. Worried about your children? Don’t fret! They’ll have a blast running and riding all manner of toy trains, courtesy of the Eastern Division’s WB&A Chapter. Have a question about the upcoming TCA Convention? Merely walk into the Silver Hall’s registration area and there will be a committee from the convention site to answer any query you might have. The TCA National Office is set up to inform you about the latest happenings in Strasburg and another table in the Blue Hall is staffed and equipped to sell you a variety of National Toy Train Museum souvenirs. Finally, for the first time this most recent York Meet had a booth for the TCA’s newest Standing Committee, the Internet Committee. Had you stopped by, you could have availed yourself of several handouts which contained all of TCA’s web site and e-mail addresses.

This is but a brief overview of the largest of all toy train swap meets. To truly appreciate how large it is, simply get to the fairgrounds after 8:30 AM and TRY to find a parking place. Better still, wait until the last minute to book a motel room and you might find one in Harrisburg or Lancaster, both about 40 minutes away.
As I understand it, each member of the Muslim faith is supposed to make a pilgrimage during his/her lifetime to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Without intending any sacrilegious disrespect, ladies and gentlemen of the Toy Train World, York is your MECCA. Words really cannot do it justice.

Except for the Sanitation Workers and Security Personnel, everyone is a volunteer. In addition to the helpful committee members, you will also meet and enjoy speaking with countless persons whose interests and knowledge are as vast as yours, AND they’re ready, willing, and able to share it all.

Despite the weather, especially if it is cool, you are guaranteed to come away with a warm feeling and a wonderful glow about what a great hobby this is in which we all participate.

top photo courtesy of York County Convention & Visitors Bureau
bottom photo courtesy of Tony Donnadio