One of Maine’s largest model railroads will be relocated to Kennebunkport museum

KENNEBUNKPORT – The Maine Central Model Railroad will be relocating to a new home at Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport later this year, thanks to a generous donation from the Wyss Medical Foundation.

The beautifully crafted model railroad layout was built by Helen and Harold “Buz” Beal in Jonesport. For decades, the couple opened their home to guests from all over the world to view one of Maine’s largest layouts in HO-scale (1:87).

From Quoddy Lighthouse to the mountains of Maine, to the paper mills and Dragon Cement, street blocks representing the communities the Maine Central Model Railroad operated through and several roundhouses, tunnels, rivers and the ocean, the layout has it all. Best-selling author Stephen King even provided the designs of his Victorian home in Bangor to the Beal’s, and they replicated it expertly.

 

A few sections of the Maine Central Model Railroad, soon relocating to Kennebunkport from its current home in Jonesport. The scene on the left depicts downtown Bangor in the mid-1900s and the scene on the right depict the West Quoddy Lighthouse in Lubec. SUBMITTED PHOTOS

After Buz’s death in 2013, Helen continued to curate the layout while looking for another model club or nonprofit to resume ownership. Because of the layout’s impressive size, no one could accept the donation without taking the model apart and making the layout much smaller.

Hansjoerg Wyss, a friend of the Beal’s and a rail enthusiast and philanthropist, approached Seashore Trolley Museum in 2020 to ask if the museum might consider providing a home for the layout. Like the other groups approached, the museum did not have the space to display such a large model. The museum researched the layout for months to determine how it could be kept as intact as possible and relocated to Kennebunkport, and what type of facility would be needed to house such an artifact.

A custom-building design was developed by Museum friend and architect Herb Fremin. Fremin also helped the museum determine the most minimal way to adapt the model to meet Kennebunkport building codes and ADA compliance, including widening all the aisles to modern standards. Builders and engineers were approached for quotes to help the museum identify how much funding would be needed. The museum also put together a 10-year operating budget for the new building, including the new full-time staff and volunteers needed.

The museum presented Wyss with a preliminary plan and he agreed to have his foundation cover all costs of the project. The total cost of construction, relocation, and 10-year operating budget will likely exceed $2.6 million—the largest gift in Seashore Trolley Museum’s 82-year history.

The building project is currently in the pre-construction phase with Sheridan Construction of Fairfield. Sebago Technics of South Portland is providing the site and civil engineering for the building. RW Gillespie of Biddeford is providing geotechnical services. Seashore Trolley Museum also developed a new staff position—Construction Manager—and following a thorough search brought Steve Berg on in November to help navigate the complete construction process.

 

Best-selling Author Stephen King provided the designs of his Victorian home in Bangor to the Beal’s to recreate the home in their model railroad layout. SUBMITTED PHOTO

The new model building design includes a large, open space for the layout, office space for volunteers and staff, a combined workshop/conference room; a retail location so the museum can bring in additional revenue through model sales; and a mezzanine viewing gallery that has potential for community programming and other activities with elevator access. The building will be located across from the museum’s current Visitors Center.

The museum hopes to break ground this year in late spring or early summer. After the building is complete, a professional model railroad layout moving company will help set up the display in its new home, and add the new sections needed.

 Museum volunteers and a future model railroad club will help refresh the layout and build the landscape and new buildings on the new sections, most likely adding in trolley lines to better connect the layout to the museum’s overall mission.

The most exciting benefit to the museum of all is that after serving the community and the world for 82 years, once the building is completed and the layout is live, the museum will be open year-round for all to enjoy for the first time in history.

Located at 195 Log Cabin Road in Kennebunkport, the Seashore Trolley Museum is the world’s first and largest electric railway and transit museum. The museum will open for its 83rd season on May 1. To learn more about Seashore Trolley Museum, visit www.trolleymuseum.org