Sinnissippi Station Garden Train Exhibit
December 7, 2024 - January 26, 2025
The popular Sinnissippi Station Model Garden Railroad Exhibit returns to Rockford Park District’s Nicholas Conservatory & Gardens.
Visitors are transported to a magical miniature world as seven G-scale trains and trolleys run down, around, and above the lush indoor tropical setting of Nicholas Conservatory. Miniature Rockford landmarks and willow trestle bridges add to the enchanting ambiance. The exhibit is sponsored by Daniel P Weyrauch, DDS LTD
The trains and trolleys in the exhibit are painted and personalized to depict those that traversed Rockford throughout its history. Also featured are intricately detailed bridges and structures expertly decorated with a variety of natural botanical materials such as pine cones, acorns, and sticks. Nine landmark structures are part of Sinnissippi Station: replicas of Nicholas Conservatory, Nicholas Conservatory Wildflower, Sinnissippi Floral Clock, Sinnissippi rose garden trellis, Sinnissippi Park Music Shell, the Trolley Barn, the Illinois Central Railroad Depot, the Symbol sculpture, the Rock Men Guardians sculpture), a replica of the Coronado Performing Arts Center, and a new Beyer Stadium ticket booth landmark made possible by an anonymous donor.
New this year - a new loop to run more engines and train cars, including the popular graffiti cars designed and painted by local artists.
The exhibit was designed and constructed by Applied Imagination Ltd., a garden railway company from Kentucky that creates exhibits for a number of public gardens throughout the U.S. (http://appliedimagination.co/). Purchase of the exhibit was funded by the Nicholas Family Foundation, and is owned by Nicholas Conservatory, so it returns each year, creating a new holiday tradition for the community to enjoy.
Regular Conservatory admission fees apply for viewing the exhibit, and vary according to age and residency; reduced fees are available for youth, children, seniors, and veterans.
