TOYX Dining Car Society

06/11/2026

Coming in late July: Erie Lackawanna BBQ Sauce!

With the help of our friends at , we've been able to professionally reproduce and bottle the Erie Lackawanna's original 1965 barbeque sauce recipe. Now, you can bring the flavors of a bygone era into your own cooking! This smoky sauce was noted in the recipe as “a good basic sauce for all meat.” Try it on pulled pork, chicken wings, brisket, or even a BBQ burger!

We splurged for fancy glass bottles, so if you can come to Port Jervis to pick up a bottle, it would be much preferred to trying to ship them. However, we'll also eventually make these available on our online store (https://toyxinc.square.site/) after the event for those near and far who really want to try this unique part of EL dining car history!

03/07/2026

Our Lackawanna dining car #469 has arrived at the United Railroad Historical Society of NJ's facility in Boonton, New Jersey for much-needed window and gasket replacement. We're happy to partner with another non-profit organization to keep this incredible piece of history preserved and operating long into the future. Funding for this project was provided, in part, by a $25,000 grant from the Emery Rail Heritage Trust. We hope to have this car back to serving meals to the public by the end of the year!

📷 Kevin Phalon

02/06/2026

Since our Dining Car is getting new windows, we’re left making our recipes at home, both from our vast library of dining car recipes, or in this case, supporting a partner The Danbury Railway Museum. Presenting: Firebox Wings!

1/2 bottle of Firebox Sauce
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp lime or lemon juice
Combine and microwave for 30 seconds
Use a fork or whisk to combine.

Will do 12-15 wings depending on how much you sauce them.

Enjoy during the upcoming major sports event.

01/23/2026

We are pleased to announce that the City of Port Jervis, NY has initiated conversations with TOYX regarding a new, direct lease on the Erie Turntable property.

We are optimistic that a mutually beneficial agreement will be reached to continue and expand TOYX’s ongoing preservation and interpretation of this City-owned historic site, as well as provide a public space for residents and visitors to experience TOYX’s own railcars and artifacts that are so critical to the City’s heritage.

TOYX is grateful to the City of Port Jervis for this opportunity to renew our partnership. Further updates will be posted at the conclusion of lease negotiations.

01/17/2026

On the weekend of January 24-25, come and visit the TOYX booth at the Amherst Railway Society's massive Railroad Hobby Show in West Springfield, MA to learn more about all of our projects and initiatives and buy some cool merch!

01/16/2026

THE NUMBERS ARE IN! A total of 69 TOYX volunteers spent a grand total of 5,034 hours volunteering for our organization in 2025, with exactly half of those hours (2,517) spent working at the Erie Turntable site in Port Jervis! (NOTE: These calculations do NOT include volunteer hours for the Tri-States Railway Preservation Society, as those are maintained separately.) The remaining 2,517 hours were spent working on our other railcars stored in New Jersey, handling administrative or planning tasks, staffing TOYX tables or booths at off-site events, or volunteering on one of our toy collection trains across five states in November and December.

Using the nationwide $34.79 estimated value of a volunteer hour, our volunteers contributed $175,132.86 to our cause through their hard work and dedication. We thank all of our amazing personnel for everything they do for our non-profit organization and their tireless contribution to our mission of preserving and operating historic railroad equipment for public benefit. Here's to a bigger and better 2026!

12/09/2025

We're just here trying to figure out if any railroads had a recipe for popcorn.

12/05/2025

We’re taking care of the city’s residents, even when the city itself won’t.

Since the decisions of the City of Port Jervis, NY have prevented our toy train from stopping in the city this year, we’re pleased to make a financial donation - with a 25% match from one of our sponsors - to cover toy purchases for this year’s locally organized Port Jervis toy drive. Toys will be purchased from Ollie's, our neighbors at the turntable site in Port Jervis, which has graciously offered a 25% discount on toys for this local campaign so every dollar can go further to provide for local children. If you’d like to contribute and help fill the gap for some of the city’s youngest and most vulnerable residents, please contact the organizer Gene Hughes at 845-800-1944.

12/03/2025

We will no longer be operating any of our popular "Dinner on the Diner" events in Port Jervis, New York, as the City is forcing our dining car and other equipment to leave so they can sell the historic turntable property for redevelopment. See the recent post by Erie Turntable or learn more about how to prevent this at www.toyx.org/portjervis