This profile is in active compilation — some details are awaiting a cited source.

Doc’s Caboose is a model train shop in the West Bottoms, specializing in HO and N scale, and it has the best address of any hobby store in the city: the northwest corner of Hickory and Union, within sight of a working Union Pacific mainline. It has operated since 2002. The stock runs to Kato, Micro-Trains, Walthers and Brekina alongside scratch-building materials, scenery supplies, and the railroad-history publishers — Morning Sun, White River, Arcadia — that a serious modeler needs as much as the rolling stock.

Description

Doc’s Caboose is an independent model railroad shop in the West Bottoms, operating since 2002 and specializing in HO and N scale.12 It sits at the northwest corner of Hickory Street and Union Avenue, beside a Union Pacific mainline — a location that is not incidental to the business and that the shop notes itself.1

The stock spans the categories a working modeler needs rather than the impulse-purchase range of a general hobby store. Rolling stock and locomotives come from Kato, Micro-Trains and Brekina; scenery and structures from Walthers SceneMaster and Chooch; and the shop carries scratch-building materials, tools and scenery supplies.12

Unusually, it also stocks railroad history in print — Morning Sun Books, White River Productions, Firecrown Media, Arcadia Publishing, and merchandise from the Missouri Pacific Historical Society.12 For modelers working a specific prototype railroad, that reference shelf is often the harder thing to source than the models.

The shop sells online as well as over the counter, with free shipping over $200.2 Its retail hours are limited and have been marked as temporary on the site, so a visit is worth confirming in advance.1

Goods and services

  • HO scale model trains and accessories12
  • N scale model trains and accessories12
  • Rolling stock and locomotives — Kato, Micro-Trains, Brekina12
  • Scenery and structures — Walthers SceneMaster, Chooch12
  • Scratch-building materials, tools and scenery supplies1
  • Railroad history books and media — Morning Sun, White River Productions, Firecrown Media, Arcadia Publishing12
  • Missouri Pacific Historical Society merchandise2
  • Online ordering with free shipping over $2002
  • Digitrax dealer — DCC digital command control products3

History

The shop has operated since 2002 and states its identity as “Kansas City’s Premiere Model Train Store since 2002.”12 Beyond the founding year, no history was located: the site carries no about page that resolves (the /pages/about-us path returns HTTP 404), and no press coverage of the business was found in this pass.

The owner is identified as Doc Snyder in a search-surfaced summary of directory material, and the shop’s name is consistent with that, but no first-party page located this pass names him.3 The claim is recorded rather than asserted, and flagged below.

Sources

Footnotes

  1. Doc’s Caboose, Inc. — official site, “Kansas City’s premiere model train store” — asserts: “Since 2002, we have been dedicated to serving model train enthusiasts with the best products and expertise in the area.”; located at the northwest corner of Hickory Street and Union Avenue in the West Bottoms, Kansas City, near a Union Pacific Railroad mainline; specializes in HO and N scale; carries Kato, Micro-Trains, Walthers SceneMaster, Brekina, Chooch, Arcadia Publishing, Firecrown Media, Morning Sun and White River Productions; carries scratch-building materials, tools and scenery supplies; hours Friday and Saturday 11 A.M. to 4 P.M., noted as temporary. (Fetched 2026-08-14.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  2. Doc’s Caboose, Inc. — official site, “Kansas City Model Train Store” — asserts: “Kansas City’s Premiere Model Train Store since 2002! We specialize in HO and N scale model trains and accessories.”; brands Kato, Micro-Trains, Walthers, Chooch, Brekina, Arcadia Publishing, Firecrown Media, Morning Sun, White River Productions and Missouri Pacific Historical Society merchandise; online shopping with free shipping on orders over $200; brick-and-mortar retail location with staff assistance for hobbyists and collectors. Primary currently-operating proof. (Fetched 2026-08-14.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  3. Digitrax — authorized dealer listing, Doc’s Caboose Inc — asserts: the shop is a current authorized Digitrax dealer, corroborating active trading through the manufacturer’s own channel. The street address 1400 Union Ave, Kansas City, MO 64101, the owner name Doc Snyder, and hours of Thursday-Sunday 11am-4pm come from the search engine’s surfaced summary of this and adjacent directory listings rather than a direct read — see method note. ↩ ↩2

Categories

On the record — ks.city/registry/docs-caboose · record updated 2026-08-14