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 Posted - July 22 2010 : 01:26:07 AM
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One last place we went on vacation was the "World's Largest" toy museum in Branson. It's also the home of the Harold Bell Wright museum, which is really just a hallway so I'll skip it. The reason I mention it here is that they have a decent display of trains, mostly Lionel but several HO as well:
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This place was funny. First of all, let me say that we enjoyed it and I recommend it to anyone who is in Branson. But that aside, I have a hard time believing it's the "world's largest." If you look at the pictures above, imagine cases and cases crammed full like that with everything from 50's cowboy guns to Barbie to GI Joe to Star Wars to My Little Pony to Erector Sets...you get the picture. There's a lot of pop culture to absorb, but some of it seems kind of hastily thrown together. Maybe it's just because I'm a long time toy collector (I nearly have ALL the GI Joes from 82-86!), but some of the displays didn't seem to make sense to me. Things like He-Man in the middle of the WWF wrestlers, or Micronauts littered in between the Star Wars toys...but I'm getting away from the purpose of this forum....
There were a decent number of classic trains, especially the Lionels. Trains are mostly confined to one large display in the middle of a room, and none were functional at the the time. There was a track overhead, but it wasn't running.
Basically, if you're in town and you like toys of all type from about the '50's to now, it's worth a look. The exhibit gets off to a strange start though. It looks very whimsical and toy-ish on the outside, and then the first thing they do is give you a history lesson on the author Harold Bell Wright and how he influenced Ronald Reagan! This then somehow(?) segues into a massive toy collection. There's also a Bible verse placed conspicuously in nearly every display, so that will either motivate you or offend you based on your own beliefs. Somehow they try to tie together famed Ozarks author Harold Bell Wright, Religion, History, and Plastic Pop Culture. The connection is awkward to say the least. One minute you're looking at a heaping pile of Cabbage Patch Kids, the next you're looking at a display case of primitive firearms. I've read "The Shepard of the Hills," I've been around the Ozarks, and I've collected many toys, but this one's a little hard for me to explain. Overall it's fun, but a little kooky at the same time. Maybe that's the best way to describe the Ozarks, as well.
EDIT: Here's their site, if you're interested: http://www.worldslargesttoymuseum.com/
Edited by - burlington77 on July 22 2010 01:27:13 AM
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Country:  USA ~
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