FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 14, 2018
MEDIA CONTACT: Cody Hefner (513) 608-5777, chefner@cincymuseum.org
Beloved Duke Energy Holiday Trains return to Cincinnati Museum Center
Holiday Junction Featuring the Duke Energy Holiday Trains opens Nov 17
CINCINNATI – One of Cincinnati’s most loved holiday traditions is back at Cincinnati Museum Center (CMC). The Duke Energy Holiday Trains return in Holiday Junction Featuring the Duke Energy Holiday Trains, marking their 72nd holiday season on November 17.
The Duke Energy Holiday Trains have been a Cincinnati holiday staple since 1946, delighting generations as more than 300 rail cars and 60 locomotives chug through a mini metropolis on 1,000 feet of track. Track-level views reveal the intricate details of the display, from anxious passengers waiting to board, to cars up to their hubcaps in snow, to a visitor from the North Pole circling the chimney tops. This year, CMC is also presenting the historic layout like never before. Guests will get a bird’s-eye view of the trains as they enter the gallery via an elevated walkway. The elevated vantage point also brings guests eye-to-eye with a whimsical take on the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky skylines, connected, appropriately, by the Roebling Bridge.
The Duke Energy Holiday Trains are surrounded by other incredible train layouts, some dating back as far as 1904. The Carlisle & Finch Company, based in Cincinnati, produced the world’s first toy electric train in 1896. The 1904 in Holiday Junction showcases meticulous craftsmanship and detail in its metal trains, cars, buildings and bridge. Nearby is a pre-World War II Lionel layout and a Lionel Super O layout from the 1960s, complete with ready-made structures specially designed to complement the O-scale trains.
Holiday Junction also includes an interactive whimsical winter wonderland where you can build a snowman, create footprints in the snow and climb aboard a riding train and chug alongside and underneath a snowy garden railway layout. Thomas the Tank Engine and his friends are back as well, steaming along mountainside tracks.
CMC’s holiday experience also includes a remarkable display of custom-built LEGO creations in the nearby William L. Mallory, Sr. Gallery. The blizzard of LEGO bricks features fantastical scenes of some of your favorite Disney and comic book characters, populating a world carefully curated to enchant and amuse guests. Keep an eye out for Union Terminal, Music Hall and the Roebling Bridge recreated in impressive detail with LEGO bricks.
All of this winterland whimsy is tied together by Cincinnati-based Reverb Art + Design who created a stylized Greater Cincinnati skyline above the Duke Energy Holiday Trains. The feature includes iconic buildings of Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky including Union Terminal, Music Hall, Paul Brown Stadium and more, connected by the Roebling Bridge. Each of the more than 100 pieces is custom-cut.
And no holiday is complete without a visit to see Santa. Cincinnati’s favorite Santa makes his grand arrival on Friday, November 23. Though his reindeer are resting up for the big day, Santa will make an airborne arrival at Union Terminal.
Holiday Junction Featuring the Duke Energy Holiday Trains is open November 17 through January 27, 2019. Visit cincymuseum.org/holiday-junction for more details.
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About Cincinnati Museum Center
Cincinnati Museum Center (CMC) at Union Terminal is a nationally recognized institution and national historic landmark. Dedicated to sparking community dialogue, insight and inspiration, CMC was awarded the 2009 National Medal for Museum and Library Service from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and received accreditation from the American Alliance of Museums in 2012. CMC is one of a select few museums in the nation with both of these honors, making it a unique asset and a vital community resource. Union Terminal has been voted the nation's 45th most important building by the American Institute of Architects. Organizations within CMC include the Cincinnati History Museum, Duke Energy Children's Museum, Museum of Natural History & Science, Robert D. Lindner Family OMNIMAX® Theater and Cincinnati History Library & Archives. Recognized by Forbes Traveler Magazine as the 17th most visited museum in the country, CMC welcomes more than one million visitors annually. For more information, visit www.cincymuseum.org.
