Lauritzen Gardens Shares Railroad Heritage With The White House

Earlier this week, three staff members from Lauritzen Gardens delivered a bit of Nebraskas railroad heritage and a touch of holiday magic to the White House for this years display.

A Children's Winter Wonderland" is the theme of Christmas at the White House, which on Wednesday unveiled room after room of festive decor showcasing the spirit of the season

Executive Director Spencer Crews, Director of Buildings and Grounds Andy Leick and Maintenance Specialist Neal Gloede were included in the more than 100 volunteers who helped to deck the White House for the holidays.

They shared the gardens expertise with g-scale model railroad trains in both its model railroad garden and in its annual holiday poinsettia show,

Crews was contacted in May by Coleen Christian Burke, author of Christmas With The First Ladies, and a speaker at the 2012 Lauritzen Gardens Antique & Garden Show. Coleen Christian Burke has remained in close contact with 2012 show general chairman Brenda Christensen and Susie Zindel.

The garden and its train exhibits came up in their discussions regarding holiday decorating, and upon Christensen and Zindels suggestion, Christian Burke consulted with garden staff regarding the use of trains in the State Dining Room and, in October, received an invitation from Christian Burke to help design and install the two holiday-themed train displays at the White House.

The nostalgic train displays in the State Dining Room are nestled around two 14-foot-tall Christmas trees (decorated with whimsical and child-like elements in red, white and frosty blue) that flank a mantelpiece, above which hangs a famous portrait of Abraham Lincoln.

One display features a modern freight line with a diesel locomotive and the other features an old wood-sided boxcar line with a steam locomotive.

Nearly all of the cars, engines and cabooses used are representative of Union Pacific, transporting our regions rich railroad heritage to the nations capitol.

Unlike the gardens train exhibits, which feature buildings made of natural materials, the trains at the White House wind through a winter wonderland of realistic farmhouses, barns, churches, gazebos, and watertowers, reflective of our national landscape.

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Lauritzen Gardens Shares Railroad Heritage With The White House