Hudson's at Christmas

[p69rrh51]

Sandhouse, could you provide the catalog numbers of the Alcos and Passenger cars?

I guess this thread is hopelessly jacked to toy trains, but that's still intimately associated with Detroit department stores at Christmas. And I've always wondered about this train set. It doesn't appear in the published antiques guides.

It contained powered and dummy Santa Fe Alcos both numbered 218, the three "President" coaches Nos. 2521, 2522, and 2523 [[no numbers on the gold-foil labels, just the names McKinley, Harrison, and Garfield), a whopping KW transformer, and an oval of Super "O" track with a passing siding and a pair of powered switches. A weird combination for a department-store special, but I'm confident it came in a single brown box and wasn't thrown together by Sears personnel. I don't know if the 218 had a horn. I've got two pairs of these, one with and one without a horn, and don't know which came in the set.

I also don't remember which Christmas I got it. I want to say 1964 for various reasons, chiefly because I associate it in memory with the Sears Macomb Mall store, which Wikipedia tells me opened in 1964. But it could have been as early as 1962, which means my dad would have stopped at the Sears Gratiot store on the way home from Hudson's. That would have been a bit out of character, but he would have done it to pick this up for his kid, who always wanted a passenger train. Of course I yearned for the 4-car $100 sets at the back of the Lionel catalog, but these were out of the question. I believe this set cost less than that, which made it irresistible to my bargain-hunting dad, even if it did come from Sears instead of Hudson's 12th floor. I suspect he was steered to it by a family friend at the Sears Macomb Mall store. My guess is this set was put together of slow-moving items as the Super "O" line was about to be phased out, and the Lionel operation was collapsing in 1964.

Like a lot of kids from 1955-65, I distinctly remember the reflections of Christmas-tree lights on these fluted aluminum train cars. In fact, it's under the tree in the next room as I type this. Horn still works, too, if you tickle the adjusting screw just right with a narrow screwdriver. Beep! Beep!

I have seen this set before but without the KW. I hope you do not use the Super "O" track anymore, as the track is brutal on any piece of equipment with roller or slide pickups. You might try the archives of the Train Collectors Association, they may have more information on the set.

[Dfd]

Not quite 60 [[probably about 56 or 57) but straight from Hudsons [[customization by my Grandfather which at GM Diesel). I rescued it from my folks attic couple of years ago and it's around my Christmas tree right now. Not running right now, I need to clean the engine and get a new transformer. The transformer is down right scary looking.Attachment 28959

That's the Texas Special! I had one of those.

[G-DDT]

Of course "Images of America" has a book about Hudsons. History Press is now part of "Images", and if one goes to Barnes & Noble they will see huge table[[s) displays with Images, books by Dan Austin and Aaron Foley, and lots of History Press books about Better Maid, Vernors, Crowleys, and, Jacobson's.

[beachboy]

For a while in the late `60's, there was a counter by the Farmer Street entrance, carved out of the women's beauty stuff, where they sold unusual games and puzzles and "executive toys" and that was fun, too.

Recall the "trapeze" with the suspended balls [[a.k.a. Newton's Cradle)?



I thought this was magic [[shouldn't have...) 'til Dad explained
how it worked. Black marble base, chromed uprights / spheres;
we didn't know how good we had it, just to be able to look at
that stuff...

[Sandhouse]

"Recall the "trapeze" with the suspended balls [[a.k.a. Newton's Cradle)?"

Yup, that's exactly what I remember. I also remember that they didn't last long on the counter before some kid would yank the balls off-center.

But for cool stuff to look at, it was hard to beat the Adler/Schnee store on Harmonie Park during the same period, which we would pass on our way back to the parked car opposite the Music Hall.

[dguy4evr]

I attended Wilbur Wright during the 60's and being from the Eastside I would get off the Gratiot bus on Farmer at the East side of Hudson's and walk through Hudson's to catch the Grand River bus at State and Griswold. This gave me access to the wonders of Hudson's at Christmas five days a week! During that time I kind of took it for granted? Left me with a lot of great memories especially the elevator operators that would shout out the items on each floor. Found out that I did not like roasted chestnuts though. I did stop in the Nuthouse plenty of times on the way home to get a bag of fresh roasted nuts. [[Anyone remember that little shop?) Good Memories and Great Times!!!!!!

[p69rrh51]

Now we can really discuss Toy Trains at Hudson's. Image from the Burton Historical Collection. Judging by the rolling stock early 1950's.

[stromberg2]

That's amazing!! Thanks Merry Christmas!!

Stromberg2

[Honky Tonk]

Recall the "trapeze" with the suspended balls [[a.k.a. Newton's Cradle)?I thought this was magic [[shouldn't have...) 'til Dad explainedhow it worked. Black marble base, chromed uprights / spheres;we didn't know how good we had it, just to be able to look at that stuff...

An early version of Windows 10.

[Zacha341]

Yeah, you know eventually it will come to a halt, and that each orb contains all your personal information!