Lionel and the beginning of Model Railroading

[Anonymous]

I got The Art of Lionel Trains for Christmas.... great book.... but it really showed how Lionel's view of it's customer base evolved over the years. It started as toy trains, but during the classic period, they dropped the toy reference and called it model trains and model railroading. I know MR (the magazine) came out somewhere near the time that Lionel came out with scale models.... and that O scale was very popular first.

My question is; could Lionel be considered the Father of the scale model railroading hobby? Was their scale Hudson the first true scale model? Or were other manufacturers already there?

How about an article on this?

[martinden]

Others were "already there," but ... at $75 the Lionel Hudson was about half what any other similarly detailed engine cost. That's why practically every O scale railroad of the time had one (or more) of them, generally regardless of the prototype being modeled.

And just FTR, the first issue of Model Railroader was January of 1934; the Lionel Hudson came out in 1937.

[Anonymous]

Lionel might be considered the "father" of scale model railroading in the U.S. only in the sense that Lionel introduced the majority of model railroaders to the hobby in those earlier years. Their interest gravitated to other scales for more realistic (and affordable) model railroading as those other scales evolved and as their product lines became more extensive. The same thing contines to happen today, to some extent.

[Anonymous]

Oh, okay.... Looks like Lionel just came to recognize a market that was already there, and perhaps pushed it along some....

[cnw1995]

This makes me wonder a bit about the early history of MR. Wasn't there was a (relatively) booming toy train market in the UK and Europe a bit earlier than Lionel's earliest days. Let's see if I remember - the toy train market in the US as I'd personally define it early last century didn't exist before electricity came along - JLC had a lot to do with popularizing it - Ives and Gilbert and Dorfann battled him out in the early days - I think per-WW1, German companies had most of the US market - have to dig out my old Lionel history books. Maybe 'Bing' was the company at the true beginning of MR.

[3railguy]

QUOTE: My question is; could Lionel be considered the Father of the scale model railroading hobby? Was their scale Hudson the first true scale model?

It's just the opposite. Lionel was loosing sales to a group of cottage industries producing O scale kits and built ups. Lionel later came out with a J1E hudson, B6 switcher, scale freight cars, and heavyweight coaches later know as Madison or Irvington cars.

Frank Ellison was written off as the Godfather of scale model railroading.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't call them the father, personnally. BUT, they did promote the hobby of Model Railroading. Model Builder Magazine for example. Frank Ellison used outside third rail on his Delta Lines, and supposedly used Lionels scale Hudson. He is one of the early, model railroader "Greats"! Not the first, but arguably did more to steer people toward "model railroading" than others. Old Joshua was quite the sales and marketing guy!
Greg

[1688torpedo]

I think that what happened with Lionel is That Joshua Cowen was the equivilant of Henry Ford in the Auto Industry in that both men made their respective companies household names for many,many years and That Cowen Hired the best salesmen & Marketers to present his products to the public and helped make them popular as well.Also the People who helped design & manufacture Lionel Trains 50-75 years ago were some of the best around. Just look at how many of the old Lionel's are around and how well made they are. There will never be the likes of Joe Bonnano, Mario Caruso, Arthur Raphael, or Frank Pettit around again. These men did so much for Lionel when the company was in it's prime. Just my [2c]

[laz 57]

For my two cents, I think without earrly LIONEL TRAINS there would not be a market today. They, LIONEL did pave the way for all other manufacturers to get into this GREAT hobbey and without them, well who knows?
laz57