The TTOS Cal-Stewart meet offers a tremendous variety of trains and fun.

When you throw a party and everyone comes, you know it’s a success. That’s the best way to describe the annual Cal-Stewart Train Meet held in Pasadena, Calif., and sponsored by the Southwestern Division of the Toy Train Operating Society (TTOS). To call Cal-Stewart merely a train meet is hardly descriptive of the event. In 1997, the meet began on Halloween with the annual Friday night party, this year a costumed affair. Drinks and appetizers preceded a full-fledged dinner dance. Saturday is traditionally reserved for TTOS members,

while on Sunday the show is opened to the public, and more than 1,000 people attended. A seasoned volunteer staff worked out the details, including assigning 650 tables, setting up the auction area, placing operating layouts, and setting up the Halloween toy train display and train race area. Though planning is year-round, the work began early Friday morning, so, by the time that the doors opened at 9 a.m. Saturday, everything is ready to go. Lionel, K-Line and MTH all showed off their latest trains in the 31,000-square-foot hall. Other manufacturers like Phoenix Railways, QSIndustries, Rich-Art Co.,

and Moondog Express, also attracted crowds. The variety of trains and accessories sold was amazing! You could find splendid, mostly pre-war Standard gauge trains just waiting to go home with someone, while nearby funky G gauge cars carrying everything from a gazebo load to a tropical forest were for sale. But there were more things to see than just tables of trains. The most recent show included a display of special Standard gauge trains all with typical Halloween color schemes.