For the past year I have been compiling a list of hobby shops with a good selection of model trains. These shops all look like a lot of fun to visit, but what are the most popular? Here is a list for the great state of New York.

The most popular model railroading shops (based on online chatter) in the state of New York are:

Brooklyn

10. Dutchess Train and Hobby in Poughkeepsie

9. Trainland in Brooklyn

8. J and K Trains and Parts in Marlboro

7. Hudson Shores Model Train Depot in Blauvelt

6. Locomotive Works in Wilson

5. Got a Hobby in Bedford Hills

4. JR Junction Train and Hobby in Syracuse

3. Model Trains And Parts.Com in Schenectady

2. Aurora Rails and Hobbies in East Aurora

...and the most popular shop for model trains in New York is...

1. Empire Northern Models in Webster

Hobby shops not quite making my top 10 were Adirondack Train and Hobby in Saratoga Springs, Bay Shore Hobbies in Bay Shore, Bruckner Hobbies in The Bronx, Bud's H. O. Cars in Cortlandt Manor, Delhi Station Train and Lighting Shop in Delhi, Flying Scotsman and Walden Hobbies in Monroe, Groton Hobby Shop in Groton, Lantz's Train Shop in Horseheads, Nassau Hobby Center in Freeport, NHS Hobbies in Ridgewood, Norwood Hobby Shop in Norwood, Scag's Electric Train Shop in Staten Island, Trainville Hobby Depot in Levittown, TreatStation in Peekskill, Village Train and Hobby in Windsor, Walt's Hobby in Syracuse, Willis Hobbies in Mineola, World of Trains in Forest Hills, and Xtreme Hobby Shop in Deer Park.

Also in New York be sure to visit some of the great railroading museums including Empire State Railway Museum in Phoenica, New York Museum Of Transportation in West Henrietta, Railroad Museum of Long Island in Greenport, Rochester and Genesee Valley Railroad Museum in West Henrietta, and Salamanca Rail Museum in Salamanca.

So lots of great model railroading shops from all over New York in the top 10. Empire Northern Models probably made it to the number one spot by having a popular website as well as a fantastic retail store. I was a bit surprised that Trainland, where "Bobby Bacala" from the TV series the Sopranos purchased the Blue Comet was not higher on the list because of that publicity, but I guess that was a few years ago.

I compiled this list by searching for the hobby shops listed on a number of search engines and ranking them by the number of web pages, discussion forums, photos, videos, etc that are available online. I further screened this list to include only pages that mentioned model railroading.