Paul Deusing has been a model train lover since his younger days of being elementary school age. For the past several years, he and Dennis Hank teamed up to create a model railroad landscape that is not shy on exact detail.
You can see the display at the Chippewa County Historical Society in Sault Ste Marie.
Deusing is somewhat of a perfectionist when it comes to model train layouts.
While Hank works on the electrical part of the set, making sure the trains run smoothly, the crossing lights work, and smoke comes out of the engines, Deusing concentrates on the buildings.
From the slightest detail to people working inside some of the buildings, to the exact lighting, to the logo's, to the windows, Deusing is focused on making the historical buildings as close as possible to what they were back decades ago.
"This year, the major task has been upgrading about 12 of the buildings to make them more historically accurate", Deusing says.
"One of the most rewarding things I have heard is when the Soo Depot was made, there was a gentleman that came in and was staring at it and told me that he sold newspapers in that building", Deusing added.
While the younger ones might like the lights and whistles of the trains themselves, the older folks enjoy seeing just how well the buildings and area are represented on this layout.
The Chippewa County Historical Society will have their open house this Saturday from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission is free! It is located on the corner of Ashmun and Portage....behind Island Books and Crafts.
