Age of Steam speaker series hosting Neiswander
Russ Neiswander, a lifelong collector and assembler of Erector Sets, will be the keynote speaker during the upcoming Age of Steam Roundhouse Museum Winter Speaker Series on Thursday, Jan. 23 from 6-7 p.m.
The Age of Steam Roundhouse Museum will continue its Winter Speaker Series on Thursday, Jan. 23 from 6-7 p.m. with a presentation from Russ Neiswander, a lifelong collector and assembler of Erector Sets.
Neiswander has assembled a collection of Erector Sets, many of them decades old.
“My mom bought me one in 1951 when I was 8 years old,” said Neiswander, who for decades owned and operated Russ Electric in Sugarcreek. “I still have it. I guess I’ve kind of been at it ever since. I’ve always been interested in building things and seeing how they work, so this was one toy that has always captured my fascination.”
That passion to collect and build the time-honored Erector Set toys never left Neiswander, and the Sugarcreek native’s collection of more than 100 Erector Sets that come in the famous red metal boxes is evidence of his ardor for the toy.
Over the decades Neiswander’s zeal for Erector Sets blossomed, and he began a collecting career that has spanned a lifetime. Some of the sets are rare and expensive, true collectible items. He has collected sets from the smallest sets available to the largest. He said he really dove into collecting the sets around the year 2000.
Basic Erector Sets include various metal beams with regularly spaced holes for assembly using nuts and bolts. Flat or curved pieces of sheet metal in various shapes and colors could be added, and hardened steel rods and screw clamps allowed the construction of hinges and the transmission of mechanical power via rotating parts like pulleys, gears, wheels and levers. Sets also included a small motor that allowed the constructed piece to be fully operational.
Admission to the event is $5 per person. Age of Steam Roundhouse Museum is located at 213 Smokey Lane Road SW in Sugarcreek. For more information visit www.ageofsteamroundhouse.org or call 330-852-4676.