Figure 1.--Here we see a French boy we think in the early-1960s enjoying a model train set. The photograph was taken by a Paris commercial photographer.

The French terms for toy trains and model railroading are: " train miniature " or " train modèle réduit ". In current children or adult' language one says = petit train " or little train. The model train were very popular in France. During the inter-war the model train were one of the best present for a boy. Fathers loved to spend time with their sons building model railroad set ups. In the 1950s, all boy dreamt of getting such a toy. In the 1950s the principal brand munufactory know was 'Jouef' This train functioned with a electric transformer. One could buy anothers iterms such as rails, crossings, rail yard machinery, signals, and much more to make a realistic set up. After the 1970s, model railroading declined in popularity. Boys became more interested in racing cars. A French reader writes, "When I was about 10 years old (1954), I was very interested by the model trains. I recieved a wonderful trains with many accessories. They werre wonderful metal trains, not the cheap plastic ones sold today. It was during this period, I started experimenting with many sorts of complicated signals and electric controls. Perhaps as a result, I became very interested in electricity. When I entered secondary school, I abandoned my train which was installed in my granparent's home. I did not play with it for some time. At this time I lived in Paris and my interest changed rather for all types of electronics. Inside my room one could find a lot of electronic apparatus as well as books and magazines about electronics. Sometime it was a real jumble, but my mother fussed about putting away my mess! Thank you Maman for you tolerance! Probably my Parents were right, because later I became a specialist in electronic in the Air force and the Ariane rocket program."

Created: 12:01 AM 2/14/2018
Last updated: 12:02 AM 2/14/2018