IT’S all aboard at the Coffs Showground as the Coffs Coast Railroad Modellers settle into their new depot.

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Members of the club are setting up in the new station which sits near the Show Day entry gate.

Most know the group for the amazing display they set up annually in the Norm Jordan Pavilion.

While the new facility is modest in size, it’s a step toward one day realising the dream of having a much larger space where they can house a massive display with local historical significance.

“We want to build a layout that will represent Kempsey up to Grafton in the 1950s,” the club’s president Paul Baker said.

“That will include Coffs Jetty and other parts of Coffs and what they looked like in the 50s.”

A chat with these enthusiastic modellers with a keen eye for adding minute details to their displays included a quick history lesson about a train called ‘Old Misery’.

“Back in the 50s there used to be a school train from Macksville to Coffs,” the group explained.

“It finished in 1954 and it used to take the kids in the morning and take them home again in the afternoon.”

The group is trying to raise funds for the larger space it plans to measure 45m x 18m with an old train carriage at the front entrance.

It’s a project that local member Gurmesh Singh has spoken about and applications for funding grants have been made.

“The idea of the shed is to have the largest transportable display in NSW,” Baker said.

“We can start charging people to show it, make it a bit of a tourist attraction.”

Anybody wishing to join the railway modellers which gets together on Friday nights and Saturday nights can contact Paul Baker on 0439 566 391.

By Brad GREENSHIELDS