Bobby Hall

Hallmark brass importer.  Somehow I remember that "Bobby" was a woman.

Bobbye Hall as in Hallmark

Ms Hall owned a sizable hobby shop in Dallas, Texas.  She also started Hallmark Imports, one of several brass model importers that operated in the'60s and '70s.  She was a bit of a legend in the model railroad hobby business.

If memory serves, Hallmark's HO Santa Fe 2-8-0 holds the record for the best selling brass loco of all time.

Scott Chatfield

She was a hoot, and her shop

She was a hoot, and her shop was wonderful. 55 years or so in the business retiring @ 92. A good synopsis:

https://cowcatchermagazine.com/tracks-from-texas-to-tokyo/ 

Bobbye Hall

She passed in 2007. Here's her obituary:

https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/bobbye-hall-obituary?pid=86209291

Tim Moran Akron, OH

Model Railroad Hall of Fame

She's been in the MRIA (Model Railroad Industry Association) Hall of Fame since 1996. Linn Wescott was in the same MRIA HoF "class" as her. 

Hallmark!

Yup,l Bobbye Hall founded Hallmark.

My one and only brass purchase was a Hallmark VO1000 purchased new in 1970 (I think. But it might have been 1969?) Looked great (for its time). Ran like crap (regardless of time). Kept it for years, Then, in the early 1990s my confidence with soldering/etc had developed to the point that I disassembled it, and made the necessary modifications to drop in a Kato drive system (from a ConCor switcher of the time). Ran like a top. Finished it to the point it was ready for paint... but never had the guts to paint it. (Never painted brass before.) Then Stewart came out with their fantastic Baldwin VO and the Hallmark VO was sold.

Andre

I moved to Dallas

in 1976 and discovered Hall's Hobby House to be not far from where I lived.  Bobbye was someone you would never forget.  She made me feel welcome whenever I visited.  The first time I went there I spent all day.  I thought I had died and gone to the Walther's Warehouse.  Hall's was the local hang out for those 100* + Dallas Saturday afternoons.  Many of my modeling friends today were people I met at Halls 43 years ago.  So many great memories.

sounds like i have a couple

sounds like i have a couple keepers, from the praise of those here.

as the labels were not a cheap item, so i believed a quality thing, and i am right.

maybe? worth a couple extra bucks just for having her name on them. not that i am selling. but after i die if someone gets into my place before the tax man. there is a lot of not cash money to be had. (not just in trains).

Heaven

I discovered Hall's in 1981, when in town for a train show.  I had been in a couple of shops before, but nothing like hers.  Inventory was everywhere, including RC planes and cars.  When I moved to the Metroplex in 1984, everytime I had to go downtown, I spent time at Hall's.  Saturdays were special, as it seemed like there was a Who's Who of DFW modelers there. I made lots of friends and learned/listened from some great modelers. I spent lots of money and time at Halls. 

Mrs. Hall was a special person, and she and her hobby shop are truly missed.

Back to lurking.....

It's such a shame that good

It's such a shame that good things have to come to an end.

Now that the hobby is undergoing a lot of marketing changes, the "good ole days" like Bobbye Hall's contribution seem more like a significant loss to us than ever.

  Deane Johnson It's such a

I remember the Bobbye Hall advertisements in MR magazine, but didn't live in Dallas so never went to the shop.  I did live in Houston for a couple of years and they had a couple of nice shops there in the 80's.

Anyway, as I've watched brick and mortar shops since the 1970's, I've seen many close over the years, mostly because they are single owner stores and people don't live forever, shame as it is.  The old folks will lament things of the past lost and many of the younger generation won't know what the big deal is, sort of an ignorance is bliss thing.  But they may look at the online world and think, what's not to like?

Bobbye Hall wasn't the only

Bobbye Hall wasn't the only legendary woman in the model railroad business.  Carmen Webster, who owned the Model Railroad Equipment Corp. in MIdtown Manhattan, was equally noteworthy.  Though she relied on a male manager and counter clerks to deal with customers, she clearly called the shots, and as an outgoing redhead with a sharp wit, she made an unforgettable impression whenever she joined them in the store. Through her business acumen, she made the store one of the most outstanding model train emporiums during the post WWII era. The store itself was an underground warren of rooms on W 45th Street, stuffed with an incredible amount of hobby goods. It not only stoked all the current product lines on its shelves, but had multiple cases of older brass and out of production kits and parts. Up to my last visit in the 1970s, I had better luck finding things there than at Walthers in MIlwaukee. So going there was an exciting event of discovery.

That availability of the less than current and "hot" merchandise is something I miss these days. In this time of pre-ordering and limited runs, there's only a narrow and often inconvenient window in which to buy something. And the opportunity to actual hold a product in your hand to judge its worth and see it operate before purchasing it is now practically gone. I wonder how Bobbye Hall and Carmen Webster would have adapted to today's marketing scene had they survived this long. Probably better than most of us!

Frank

Information on Bobbye Hall and Hallmark Models

If you can translate Japanese language, see the following two my blog posts:

Bobbye Hall's Hobby House, Dallas TX, 40' boxcar

Tracks from Texas to Tokyo (Hallmark Models)

There is still one large

There is still one large train store in Dallas, actually Addison, and it is Discount Model Trains. There is lots to see and there are good folks working in the store, all of them are modelers. 

Bobbye Hall was one great

Bobbye Hall was one great lady and fun to be around. Was into RC aircraft when I lived in Dallas in the early 80's and her shop was one of the best as was John Clemens  Hobby Conner. Bobbye's was neat and modern were Johnny's was well- think he had everything that never sold still in stock from the day he opened in 1940, What a gold mine it was till it was set on fire in 87.  Two of the great ones from Dallas both were always there to help and just chat, Some of the best stories ever.

rich

Discount Model Trains...that's a fact Rob

Great train store, and the people are wonderful.

Discount Model Trains in Addison

Discount was opened by the Wilson's, who owned a limousine service.  The first store was two stalls in their fleet garage, with chicken wired walls and rows of metal shelving.  But on those shelves were lots and lots of product, in multiples.  And almost everything was 20% off, which was a first in Dallas.  I spent hours and hours there, and lots of dollars.