Staff photo by Fritz Busch Shannon Schwictenberg, left, and Samuel Schwichtenberg, both of South Bend, look at the children’s interactive model railroad layout at the St. James Model Railroad Club Roundhouse Saturday.

ST. JAMES — Roger Peters got a twinkle in his eye when he talked about his railroad adventures in his younger days.

The St. James native toured the St. James Model Railroad Club Saturday with a number of other people from near and far.

Peters, who grew up across the street from the St. James railroad yard, talked of riding in a caboose with his brother and a neighbor who worked for the railroad.

“Mom never knew we were riding in the train caboose,” Peters said.

“We lived in the last house on the street. Across some grass from the track tracks. We used to go to the roundhouse and take a ride,” he added. “We weren’t supposed to, but we’d go 10 miles to Ormsby when I was 10 or 11 years old. We’d ride passenger trains to Windom too and stay with my cousins there. We had a blast.”

Peters reminisced about bums riding trains that stopped near his home decades ago.

“Bums would would stop every day. Once they got wind my mom made homemade bread, they’d stop and get a loaf,” Peters said. “They’d stay in a shanty building we had.”

Peters said his mother would put her wash on the line until she heard a train whistle and she’d run out and grab the sheets so locomotive soot didn’t get all over them.

“Trains would sit there and idle too. Black smoke would blow around too,” he added.

Peters worked at the Madelia House of Print, where The Journal is printed, for 43 years.

Seven model trains were operating simultaneously Saturday at the open house. Children operated an interactive layout. The process of an HO scale layout depicting St. James continues to grow in the clubhouse. O, S and G gauge layouts are also operating.

One model railroad visitor Saturday from Mason City, Ia. said he drove from Albert Lea to St. James after attending an event there.

Model steam locomotives make a chugging sound and puff smoke like actual locomotives. A nighttime layout includes thunder and lightning.

Roundhouse Inc. was founded in 1989 by a group of rail fans who wanted to promote the history.

The City of St. James allowed the group to use the old fire hall on Second Street. It was not uncommon for more than 2,000 people to tour the model open house during Railroad Days in June.

The old fire hall was demolished when the Watonwan County Library received a grant to expand its building. Roundhouse Inc. then moved to its present location in the park near the lake. A nearby depot museum is owned by the City of St. James.

St. James Model Railroad Club member Dale Hedlund said the free model railroad display is one of the best-kept secrets in the area.

The annual St. James Model Railroad Club Christmas Holiday Open House is planned for 7-9 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 8, 15 and 22 and 1-5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10 and 17 at the clubhouse, 307 Tiell Drive.

For more information, visit http://www.roundhouseinc.org/about.html

(Fritz Busch can be emailed at fbusch@

nujournal.com).