Lenny Welter was the late owner of Mohawk Valley Railroad Company. I first met him while he was driving a truck for a liquor/wine distributor. He started the business on a shoestring around thirty five years ago in a small storefront about a block from the present location. He quickly outgrew the original and a second location. He then relocated to the current building and rented the store for years before buying it. He expanded the store into the former back storage area and then in the front, by inclosing the original porch. Along the way he quit his day job and devoted himself full-time to the store. He lived in and then over the store until he remarried.
He loved his wife and the business (in that order). He was an unapologetic pipe smoker, as anyone who visited the store quickly would learn. He was also the most honest person I’ve ever encountered in the train business; no matter how much or how little you knew or what you wanted to sell, he always offered you a fair price for your trains or railroadiana. He was tolerant of ignorance, but did not entertain fools lightly. The shop had a wide range of trains and accessories, N – G, one of the best paint selections I can recall, and a large selection of plastic model kits.
The recession hurt business and when his wife died suddenly, he took it very hard. He had planned to sell the business and retire in the St Lawrence Seaway area, but his health deteriorated rapidly, aggravated by a significant insomnia problem. His body finally gave up the fight last spring.
He was a devoted husband, an honest man, and as good a friend as you could ever want. He will be missed.
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