Growing up in NYC (Manhatten) we had the Lionel Showroom on 26th street & AC Gilbert over on 25th & 5th Ave. Wanamakers Dept. Store had a Monorail set up on the ceiling of the main floor that ran around the entire overhead. Back on Fifth Ave. there was Altmans that had a large Lionel layout and they had a lake with real water in the center of the layout. A clear plastic or glass tube was in the lake & the SF F-3
2343 with alum. passenger cars went through it. That was an incredible sight especially in the 1950's. Of course Macy's on 34th street always had a wonderful layout as well.
As a side note in 1963 I worked at Macy's during the Christmas season selling Lionel Trains & Aurora Race cars. A woman came in one day and said she wanted to buy her husband a train set for him for Christmas. I talked her into buying a Lionel Hudson ($200.00) and various freight cars.
She said "My husband will kill me." I told her he'll probably say that it was the best Xmas present ever. A few weeks latter a gentleman came up to the 5th floor where we were selling the trains and he asked if I was the one who sold his wife the $200.00 Hudson and assorted cars. He wasn't smiling and I hesitated to say I was but I eventually said that yes it was me. He reached over and shook my hand & thanked me profusely. Said it was the best Xmas present ever.
Those are my best department store memories of Christmas.
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