Bruce C. Greenberg grew up in Collingswood, New Jersey, attended Princeton University and received his B.A. in Politics in 1965.  He studied Political Science at the University of Michigan and earned a Ph.D in 1972.  From 1970 through December 1973,  he taught Political Science at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. He then served as Assistant Provost of Antioch College in Columbia, Maryland until December 1974.

Linda Ferguson Rosevear grew up in New York City and on Long Island.  She attended Syracuse University and earned a B.A. in International Relations in 1961.  She studied American Studies at the University of Michigan and earned a MA in 1967.

Bruce Greenberg met Linda Ferguson Rosevear when they were graduate students at the University of Michigan. They married in 1968 and have two children, Paul and Leslie.

In January 1975 Bruce Greenberg  founded Greenberg Publishing Company.  In 1976 he created Greenberg Shows to promote the hobby of model trains and his growing line of publications  In 1978 Linda Greenberg joined the company.  From 1975 through 1992 Greenberg Publishing Company published over 200 publications primarily concerned with Lionel, American Flyer and Marx toy trains including over 20 books authored by  Bruce Greenberg.  The Greenberg Guides provide very detailed and reliable descriptions of toy train production and market prices.  In later editions, the Guides contain explanations for changes in design and mechanical features. With each new Greenberg Guide edition, Greenberg Publishing Company sought to improve both the text and the photography.  Greenberg Publishing also reprinted important source documents for the study and enjoyment of toy trains including reproductions of Lionel, American Flyer and Marx catalogues. Some Greenberg publications are available for sale on this website.  In 1991 the Greenberg's sold both companies to Kalmbach Publishing Company of Waukesha, Wisconsin, the publisher of Classic Toy Trains and Model Railroader magazines. In June 1993 Bruce Greenberg resigned as President of Greenberg Publishing Company.  Kalmbach then closed the Greenberg Publishing office in Sykesville and moved its activities to Waukesha.  Greenberg Shows remained in Sykesville until sold by Kalmbach in 2005. 

After selling Greenberg Publishing Company, Bruce Greenberg turned his energies to real estate development.  He substantially rebuilt three buildings  that he owned in Sykesville, Maryland: the Rosevear Building, named for his father-in-law,  the Greenberg Building and the Firehouse.  He enjoyed the process of designing the building changes and managing the construction process.  In Linda Greenberg's book, Sykesville Past and Present, there are descriptions and photographs document these changes as well as changes to other Main Street buildings.

Bruce and Linda Rosevear Greenberg founded Brinkmann Publishing Company in 1997.  Brinkmann Publishing Company has published two family histories: The Brinkmann Family in 1997 and  The Rosevear Family History in 2005.  The Company has also published Sykesville Past and Present, a history and walking tour of Sykesville, Maryland, and  Harry C. Grant, Co-Founder and Inventor, Lionel Manufacturing Company.  It has also published God's Gift by Ruth Dodge and Harmony, History and the Hope of Heaven and Hell by Graeme Easson

Brinkmann Publishing Company LLC may be reached at 703-461-6991 or by email to brucegreenberg@comcast.net

The Man, His Books, And His Shows,

An Interview with Bruce Greenberg, as Told to Mike Mottler, RM 12394

Editor’s Note: Bruce Greenberg’s work in the model train industry is based primarily on gathering and presenting detailed information and applying it to publishing books and re-defining train meets held around the country. His involvement in both activities brought an amazing degree of order and organizational efficiency to the hobby.

Train Meets:  Why We Started

In early 1976, I had been on the road for almost two years selling my books at “train meets.”  This was difficult because of how train meets were organized then. Most train meets I attended lasted an hour or two in the morning. There was a great early rush, but the hall cleared by noon. Well, that may be sufficient for an event intended for a few hundred people who have very high levels of motivation, but the general public has a different perspective. They aren’t going to be there at opening bell at 10 o’clock in the morning, and they expect afternoon activities. Or they already have Saturday plans and want to attend on Sunday.

That is when I started to think about sponsoring my own “train shows” rather than train meets. Successful train shows have several components that intertwine and complement each other. It is essential to have enough appropriate dealers with goods to sell in a high-value,, relatively short-lived, two-day marketplace and to reach and bring in potential buyers. Train shows must provide entertainment –  large operating train layouts and even train movies.  Of course, it is just as critical to influence the media who will to tell the world about the show. Each of these is a challenge, and each relates to the others. As our shows evolved, we developed an efficient method for doing each one.

            Dealers want sales, a nice place to sell trains, and a comfortable environment with air conditioning in the summer and heat in the winter. The facility should be easy to find and recognize and have ample parking.

            Customers want convenient access and a high likelihood of finding what they are looking for, whether it is a specific train or the experience of watching trains roll along elaborate model railroads.  They want the option of attending Saturday or Sunday.

            As for the media, I asked, “How do I reach and interest them? What are their needs? And, what are they looking for?” Obviously, before the show, they need to be courted with attractive photographs and enticing information. The media are the information gatekeepers, and it is important they are well-equipped to inform the public and validate the show as a must-see event.

            As the show sponsors, we gave great consideration to the place and the time. The show must last two days so as to give the television people opportunity to run stories on the Saturday evening news about the Sunday show.  The show must last two days to secure an adequate financial return on the single largest expense other than hall rent – media purchases. One of our real challenges was convincing the dealers that our two day event which was different from the three hour train meet was in their best interest. That was difficult at the outset

            Toy train show dealers are not typical merchants. They are highly individualistic and want to do their own thing in their own way. For most, trains are a hobby as well as a business. Shows generate money for them to buy trains, but it is not usually their source of income for their rent or mortgage payments.

One of our challenges was to get these individualists to agree to some rules and to go along with them when “the rubber meets the road.” It required the floor manager, initially me and later, Ralph Barger, and the very skilled managers who followed, to understand when to press a point or when to appropriately back off.

Sold to Kalmbach

            We sold both the Greenberg Publishing Company and Greenberg Shows to Kalmbach Publishing Company in 1991, 17 years ago.

            After the sale, I stayed on for two-and-one-half years as the president of Greenberg Publishing, a Kalmbach subsidiary. I have not had involvement with Kalmbach management since that time. My wife, Linda, stayed on for eight years as the president of Greenberg Shows. When Linda retired, one of her senior managers took over. A year or two later, Kalmbach sold the train shows to another party.

A Cyclical Industry

American toy train manufacturers enjoyed booming sales in the 1920s, as did many other new manufacturers with new technology. The excitement continued into the early 1930s as late 1920s investments produced new products. However, the depression had a devastating effect on the toy train industry. In the late 1930s, as economic recovery began, the toy train manufacturers introduced new products that were exciting and generated increased demand.

In 1942, the government forced toy train manufacturers to convert to war production, just as consumer demand was rapidly growing. By 1945, the major companies, foreseeing the end of World War II, were planning new lines, and these lines were greeted with great public enthusiasm in 1945 and 1946. Toy train sales rocketed from 1946, and toy train companies produced new and exciting products: locomotives with smoke (as well as with whistles introduced earlier), reliable remote uncoupling, and clever, animated accessories such as the milk car and the cattle car. Many boys born from 1943 through the late 1950s were captivated by these great toys as I was.

Bruce Greenberg with his first train, a Lionel set, in 1947.

Lionel^® toy train sales peaked in 1953. I was amazed to learn this fact! What happened?

● In 1950, only nine percent of US households had televisions while by 1955, more than 64% of all US households had televisions.

● For households with adults who had graduated high school, the penetration was 82%!  

● Toy trains are a time-consuming hobby. Boys need time to learn how to operate trains and, more importantly, need time to learn the skills to build and decorate a train layout. Television swallowed up boys’ discretionary time. With far less time for their trains, they were consequently, less satisfied with their trains. 

● Other events in the late 1950s weakened the toy train companies, including the end of retail price agreements, the growth of discount stores, and problems in management transition.

Another amazing fact -- by 1960 less than half of Lionel’s revenues was from toy trains. Gilbert went into bankruptcy in 1967, and Lionel narrowly avoided it.

Surprisingly, the early 1970s saw a spontaneous increase in market demand for toy trains. That revival was not due to the skill of manufacturers making exciting new trains and bringing people into the market nor was it due to strong macro-economic conditions. What happened?  Men in their mid- and late-20s with young families decided to resume their love affair with toy trains. They had the money to buy the trains they could not afford as children. And, they wanted to share their train passion with their children. The market was revived by people with a need rather than by manufacturers developing new or improved products that captured the public’s imagination. It was an unusual event driven by demographics – the formation of families by baby boomer-generation men.

            In the early 1970s, the toy train marketplace was dominated by one club, the Train Collectors’ Association (TCA), and it was the largest organization of its kind. It sponsored train events but limited attendance to members only. I saw toy train interest growing rapidly among the general public. However, the TCA did not want to open its marketplaces to the public.

Based on my belief about the potential toy train market, we sponsored our first train show in December 1976 at the National Guard Armory in Ellicott City, Maryland. We achieved the result we were hoping for.  We overwhelmed the dealers with buyers, creating a terrible traffic jam on the major highways nearby the Armory. The show succeeded because of media promotion and because the great demand for toy trains was not being met by traditional retailers. In essence, we created a toy train marketplace by creating a show that brought dealers, trains, and buyers together. Capitalizing on our knowledge and instinct, we happened to be at the right place at the right time. The market grew rapidly through the 1970s and 1980s, and we expanded our shows to very large buildings in Baltimore, Pittsburgh, northern New Jersey, Long Island, and Boston.  We even sponsored Florida shows.

            What happened subsequently was again driven by demographics. The last group of boys who enjoyed Lionel trains in number was born between 1955 and 1960. Add 30 years to those dates, and the matching time frame is 1985 – 1990. At this time, the last group of boys was now men between the ages of 25 and 30. If they married and had children, many would resume their toy train hobby. My data show that our toy train show market peaked in 1989 and 1990 based on what I call the demographic imperative described above.

            Toy trains will be with us for a long, long time -- maybe forever. But the hobby won’t have that special enthusiasm that came from boys of the 1945 to 1955 era who grew up and became men with fond memories of their boyhood trains.

About the Books

            Insert photo #3:  The first Greenberg Lionel Prewar Guide was published in 1975 with an initial press run of 500. The book was printed on a press in Bruce Greenberg’s basement.

            Insert photo #4:  The first Greenberg Lionel Postwar Guide was published in 1977. The book covered both Lionel production and MPC / Fundimensions trains and was 324 pages long. The press run was 10,000.

            The Greenberg Guides were my consuming passion. I recognized from my work on my first two Guides, the Prewar Lionel Guide published in 1975 and the Postwar Lionel Guide in 1977, that my goal was to recreate Lionel and American Flyer production records. No production records were available. Lionel and American Flyer catalogues, many of which I had already reproduced, gave production outlines although with some obvious errors. For the many items with multi-year production histories, the catalogues often did not indicate the changes that I knew existed.

            To organize and understand these observed changes, I needed the active cooperation of my readers -- collectors to help me report what was made and when it was made. I urged readers to write with their additions and corrections. Our policy was to promptly respond to reader communication.

            Initially, I received relatively little feedback, but over the years the number of contributors grew substantially. The books became more detailed and more accurate because of collector contributions and the knowledge and skill of our editors such as Roland LaVoie, Charles Weber, Chris Rolfing, Jim Patterson, Harwood Owings, Jack Fazenbacker, and others.  Because of their detail and reliability, these books became the standard reference works for the study of toy trains and defined the concepts and data for the field.

Why did I take this approach to our books?  It reflects my interest in gathering information, organizing information, and sharing it with others. I still have a childhood diary where I systematically wrote down what I was doing by recording family events, conversations, and trips.  As a boy, I had a lawn mowing business and recorded who I worked for and what I did for each customer. I also collected stamps and recorded these purchases.

Another part is organizing information; not just recording it but making sense of it. I have a great interest in this kind of work. In college, I conducted several major research projects and attempted to understand the implications of my data. After a year in law school, I decided to study political science because I wanted to understand why the political system produced certain kinds of leaders and policies. My Ph.D. dissertation involved the study of the changes in the political and social beliefs of University of Michigan college students from 1966 - 1968. I had several problems to solve in this study. The first was deciding what information to collect; the second was defining how to organize and use the information; and the third was determining how to interpret the information. 

When I approached the problem of getting information about Lionel trains, I approached it within that context. I said, “Okay, I have a 726 Lionel Berkshire locomotive sitting in front of me. What information should I collect? How shall I organize and use the information? What does this information mean?”

            As a student of mechanical things, I know that manufacturers make small changes and sometimes moderate changes during the course of production to solve a problem or reduce cost. So I looked for Lionel’s changes on the 726 locomotive to help build a chronology of Lionel production. After we had more data, particularly after we published the second and third editions of our collector guides, I started asking, “What else can we learn from what we’ve already collected? What will the data tell us about this company?” We put together articles, explained the products, and further expanded our understanding of these great toys.

            We could see patterns. One of the most important things observed, and one I focused on early on, was trucks and couplers. Since nearly every piece of rolling stock has two trucks and two couplers, toy train manufacturers gave special attention to coupler and truck production cost and reliability. So, we looked at and watched for changes in trucks and couplers. Sure enough, trucks and couplers became a very important part of our study of Lionel trains. The study of truck and coupler changes produced a very useful chronology of changes. This chronology in turn helped date other changes in equipment. Of course, the final goal was to link product changes to the on-going competition of Lionel, American Flyer^®, and Marx^® for market share.  Near the end of our book production, we started looking at toy trains in this context.

Perspective on the Marketplace

            In our books, we told our readers how we assessed toy train values. We published prices that reflected real sales in the train hobby marketplace -- not the asking prices set by dealers. Some dealers grumbled about this definition; they grumble to this day. However, the more thoughtful dealers recognized that the price guides were accurate and very useful to them. With price information gathered from many train shows, the price guides became recognized as the standard reference work.

The books were also very helpful for both people selling trains to a dealer and for the dealer buying trains. The books advised sellers to expect 40% to 50% of the prices shown in the books. The books explained that the dealer buys to resell. The dealer must have enough margin to cover the real costs of operating a business and to earn a profit.

            The price guides were exceedingly useful for dealers in another way. In the mid-1960s, toy trains were modestly priced collectibles. Buyers could purchase a #224 locomotive from 1938-1941 for about $30 in 1967,  a #10 Standard Gauge locomotive for $50, and a dual-motored Standard Gauge #402 locomotive for only $125.

            But in the late 1970s and through the 1980s, trains rapidly moved up in price. In other words, there was more demand than supply and trains became more expensive.  Our books helped create more demand by showing buyers what was available and reassuring buyers that the goods were worth the price. Our books created a set of shared expectations and beliefs among buyers and sellers. We priced an engine at $200 because everyone agreed it was worth $200. Because of our collector guides, buyers were much more confident about spending $200 on a locomotive. Before our guides, there was no point of reference, no systematic data to support a purchase.

            Some dealers were and remain unhappy to this day about our approach to pricing. But, the dealers were the beneficiaries of an organized market based on shared expectations. Dealers were also the beneficiaries of an enormous increase in knowledge about trains which gave them a market advantage as highly motivated students of train prices.

About the Next Generation

            Many people in the train world recognize the demographic imperative. There are fewer new train enthusiasts. Based on my passion and experience, I think toy trains are a great hobby and should be promoted. The dilemma is how to do it. In our market society, many products are promoted by substantial traditional media investment – through television, cable, and print advertising.  Existing toy train manufactures have undoubtedly considered such media and rejected them because they are not cost-effective. The Internet is inexpensive but not sufficient. That leaves promotion to the toy train enthusiasts. We have a great and very effective tool – the train show.  It is something that each of us can contribute to in our own way.

            Toy train shows feature operating layouts and impressive displays. Children see the displays and see other children enjoying them; parents see the children enjoying them. The participating club members convey their enthusiasm and love of trains very clearly to visitors. I am convinced that toy train shows are the best way to promote our hobby to the next generation; they are relatively self-sustaining and cost-efficient. Hopefully, new entrepreneurs will discover how to make money running train shows and clubs and manufacturers and retailers will recognize it is in their interest to participate in and support these shows.

Current and Future Status

            The current marketplace for toy trains offers the greatest selection of toy trains I have ever seen at the most competitive prices in real dollars. Never before have consumers had as large a selection as they have today from Lionel, MTH®, and other manufacturers. I just wish there were more consumers to enjoy these trains. Our fellow train enthusiasts should realize they are the beneficiaries of an extraordinary era of selection and creativity on the part of the manufacturers.

Going beyond Trains, Shows, and Books

            I have become interested in buildings, especially historic buildings that can be “recycled” and adapted to new uses. In graduate school, my wife-to-be, Linda, and I visited towns with older buildings and enjoyed learning about them. At that time, we were living in Ann Arbor, Michigan; the city had some wonderful 19th century buildings.  Then we discovered a town called Marshall, Michigan which was an hour west of Ann Arbor. It was once considered for the location for the capital of Michigan, and an anticipatory building boom occurred. However, Lansing was ultimately chosen. Marshall’s distinctive architecture remained; nothing happened to change it for about 100 years. We were intrigued and delighted to find stately homes in Greek Revival and Italian Renaissance styles.

            In 1984, the Sykesville Firehouse came with a 25-feet-wide door for access to the engine room.  This door was very useful for receiving book inventory and moving train layouts in and out. After Greenberg Publishing moved to a new building in 1987, Bruce Greenberg converted the lower level of the Firehouse to retail space and added showroom windows..        

The other part of the story is my penchant for “fixing things” and making things work. I had an interest in buildings and the mechanics that make them work. When the opportunity presented itself, I bought the Firehouse in Sykesville, Maryland, which had been replaced by a much larger building. I modified the building for re-use as our office and warehouse. The offices were upstairs. Downstairs, the former engine room was both our book warehouse and our workshop for building and maintaining our traveling toy train layouts. The fun part was changing it so that it would fit our needs. I found a very skillful and knowledgeable “Mr. Fix It,” Tom Zissimos, and worked with him to change the building to make it more suitable for us. It was very satisfying.

            When we outgrew that building, we purchased an office building down the street and modified it – a very interesting process. I was able to change the physical structure of the building -- the way it was supported. What fun!

            [Insert Photo #6: The Greenberg Building  and Union National Bank in 1987.  Our building had a California redwood façade, and the bank had an “aluminum cheese grater” façade.

            The Sykesville office building was built about 1907 with a handsome, traditional Roman brick façade. In the late 1960s, Sykesville’s Main Street lost its traditional market function. Half of the stores were vacant. There were two reasons for this: the Maryland State Highway built a bypass around Sykesville’s three block commercial core, and an entrepreneur built a shopping center on the nearby highway. Sykesville’s business activity rapidly declined. Building and business owners looked for ways to give new vitality to their older buildings. The traditional brick office building façade was modernized with a California redwood finish and new dark, metal framed windows. It was different. It was the first California-style building in Sykesville, and for a brief time, it was new and attractive.  A few years earlier, next door, the classic Richardsonian bank building was covered by an “aluminum cheese grater” front.

            By the time I bought the office building in 1987, the California façade was dated. Furthermore, I preferred the original traditional design. After a substantial dispute with the local historic district commission, I returned the building to its original appearance. That was a big project; one of the larger projects I have undertaken. Walter Sipes was the indispensable man on this project.

            Insert Photo#7: The Greenberg Building and Union National Bank in 1995 with restoration of their traditional facades.

Changing Times, Flexibile Uses

            I see the virtue of retaining some old buildings for adaptive re-use. However, I do not share the belief that all old buildings should be retained in their existing style forever. Commercial buildings need to change to reflect changing market preferences and uses.

            The decisions of some communities to give a preservation commission, a non-elected board of citizens, control over the external facades of buildings regardless of the market consequences for the owners is very shortsighted and very prejudiced. The people who volunteer and are selected for these commissions usually have a religious zeal about protecting old buildings.  They are not given to balancing commercial and preservation interests. They don’t understand that their rules will make “Main Street” less attractive to investors and entrepreneurs. These citizens do not have any psychic power to predict the future needs of a community. Giving non-elected government officials this power assumes that they have some special insight into what is good for a community over the long run.

            If we have learned anything from our 232 years of nationhood, it is the fallibility of political leaders. If the citizens of a community want to deprive the building owner of his property rights, then they should acquire those property rights by purchase not by fiat. 

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