GREENUP, Ky.- Dale Smith was two years old when he got his first toy train.

"It was Christmas and my grandfather got it for me," Smith said. "To this day, nothing makes my heart feel a little better and my eyes more teary than when I hear an older gentleman look at a train and say 'I had one of those when I was a boy,' or when I see a man point to a train and then say to his son 'your grandfather used to have one of those.'"

Model train are in his blood: his ancestor, Charles Carroll, was on hand for the ground breaking of the B&O Railroad in Baltimore, Md., back in 1828.

Smith, and Ironton resident, carries on that family love of trains. He is one of the organizers of the annual Model Railroad Show at Greenbo Lake State Resort in Greenup, Ky. The show is in its 20th year and is sponsored by the Collis P. Huntington Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society. Exhibitors come each year from 11 states, the farthest one from Georgia. The displays range from the smaller

N-gauge all the way up to the

G-scale, which is also known as the "garden scale" train. Some of the layouts are the size of rooms: 16×20 feet, or 10×26 feet.

"Railroads are so much a part of our heritage," Smith said. "Where would out country be without what railroads have done for us? They opened up our country."

The show brings in an estimated 2,500 to 3,000 people each year for the two-day event. The hours are Saturday from

9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free and there will be shuttle service from the parking area to the door of the lodge.

"We take over the lodge," Smith said. "We have something on every floor."

In addition to the train setups, there will be 70 tables of dealers selling everything from books to toy trains and railroad collectibles. There will also be railroad videos each day in the Jesse Stuart Library. Door prizes include tickets for the fall New River train excursion.

"I see this as a wonderful opportunity for a family outting," Smith said. "Toy trains know no age limits."