You’ve never seen so many smiling faces waiting for the train, but the room was positively glowing Saturday at the 27th Annual Train and Merchant Show in the Southern Ohio Medical Center’s Friends Center, on 18th Street in Portsmouth.

Mark Harris, of Market Street Hardware in Portsmouth, said there were about 20 train displays at the show this year — including seven or eight different gauges of train, from Z-scale up to G-scale. He said the show was the kick-off to the train selling season inside his shop.

“Trains have been a Christmas tradition for years. My grandfather had a big setup in the 1940s, and it seems like everyone back then had a train around their Christmas tree. So the train show every year kicks off our train selling season at Market Street Hardware,” he said.

Just down the hall from all of the trains were local merchants selling their own homemade crafts and gifts.

Dolores Schuman of Portsmouth has participated in the show for many years, and she’s back this year selling her popular Longaberger baskets and products. Customers cad either order baskets from her catalog, or choose from her selection of cash-and-carry baskets available at the show.

“Longaberger was setup originally as a home-show way to buy, and you could not buy anything at the time. You had to order it all. We still have the order system, but we are now allowed to purchase any of the baskets that retire and have them for sale also,” Schuman said.

She said that all of the products ordered will be shipped in time for Christmas.

The Slocum Garden Club was also at the show selling handmade “Garden Pal” dolls to raise money for garden therapy projects for cancer patients at SOMC and residents at Best Care Adult Daily Living in Wheelersburg.

The annual Train and Merchant Show continues today at the SOMC Friends Center from noon until 4 p.m. Admission is $2.00 at the door, and children under 5 are free.

RYAN SCOTT OTTNEY can be reached (740) 353-3101, ext. 235, or rottney@portsmouth-dailytimes.com.