Zachary Kauffman wasn’t even born when the last passenger train ran between Reading and Philadelphia.
But for as long as he can remember, the 20-year-old Exeter Township resident has been fascinated by trains. Encouraged by his parents, he didn’t have to look far to find relics of the famous Reading Railroad, including the long-dormant Franklin Station (operated in recent years as the Saucony Creek Franklin Pub).
Zachary Kauffman’s Franklin Street Station model was built in LEGO bricks after repeated trips to Reading Royals games, where Kauffman would snap photos of the real building for reference. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
What he couldn’t see with his own eyes, he would find in books and museums.
Kauffman, a civil engineering student at Purdue University, transformed his love of trains and LEGO into an intricate and colorful exhibit called The Brick Reading Railroad.
The exhibit returned for the third straight year the weekends of July 19-20 and 26-27 at the Reading Railroad Heritage Museum in Hamburg.
Kauffman’s display, which he has expanded each year, covers a fascinating stretch of Pennsylvania railway history, of which Reading played a key part.
Kauffman’s interest in trains began as a toddler when he played with toy trains. He enjoyed watching the freight trains while riding in the car with his parents.
Kauffman spent years designing and assembling scale replicas of Reading Railroad locomotives, passenger cars, freight cars and stations — all built entirely from LEGO bricks.
The Reading Railroad’s Crusader is built entirely of LEGGO bricks during an exhibition of the Brick Reading Railroad at the Reading Railroad Heritage Museum in Hamburg on Saturday, July 26, 2025. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
The exhibit features multiple working trains weaving through a bustling village that includes standout features like a model of the Franklin Station and the historic Lorraine Station.
“I started with wooden trains, then moved into LEGO,” Kauffman said Saturday. “When COVID hit and I had all this time at home, I really got into custom building trains — and then I thought, why not make a Reading Railroad train?”
What began as a personal hobby quickly grew into a full layout. Encouraged by friends and family, Kauffman launched a YouTube channel, Lego Dreams, to showcase his creations.
But he didn’t stop there. Instead of keeping the project tucked away in his basement, Kauffman chose to share it with the public — and support a local institution in the process.
“If I have this in the basement, I might as well show everyone,” he said. “It helps support the museum, which is preserving the history of the Reading Railroad. I never got to experience the Reading firsthand, but this is the closest I can get to seeing what it was like.”
One of those who encouraged Kauffman to display his creations was his father, Bill, who is impressed by his son’s study of the history of the Reading Railroad as well as the city.
One scene Zachary Kauffman created in LEGO bricks is the anchor of the U.S.S. Maine in City Park. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
The popular image of today’s Reading is far different than a century ago. Reading Company, the name of the holding company for the railway freight and passenger entities, was once among America’s most prosperous corporations, helping to draw wealth to Reading.
“He started coming here on his own,” Bill Kauffman said of the railroad museum. “We had it in the basement and started talking about showing it to people, and I said, ‘Why don’t you make some calls.’’’
Zachary Kauffman’s passion for rail history and engineering is evident in the attention to detail. From referencing historic photographs for accuracy to designing parts using online LEGO software before ever buying a brick, he’s carefully constructed scenes that are equal parts playful and precise. He even included a model of Purdue’s iconic bell tower, complete with letters spelling out “Purdue” on each level.
“It’s a universal medium,” he said of LEGO. “Young kids love it. Older adults love it. And if I drop a train, I can just rebuild it.”
One popular highlight of the exhibit is the Franklin Street Station model, built from repeated trips to Reading Royals games, where Kauffman would snap photos of the real building for reference.
“It’s a simple model, but it even has a full interior,” he said, lifting the front facade to reveal benches and the ticket window. “If I built it again, I’d make it even better.”
When Robert and Susan Showalter of Spring Township saw an announcement in the newspaper for the Brick Reading Railroad, they knew their 10-year-old grandson, Declan Kerins, would love it.
Zachary Kauffman, 20, explains the details of his Brick Reading Railroad, made of LEGO bricks, to Susan and Robert Showalter of Spring Township and their grandchildren Declan Kerins, 10, and Avery Kerins, 6, at the Reading Railroad Heritage Museum in Hamburg on Saturday, July 26, 2025. (BILL UHRICH/READING EAGLE)
They brought Declan and his sister, Avery, 6, to Hamburg on Saturday.
After watching a short film on the Reading Railroad, they gravitated to the LEGO exhibit, where Kauffman explained his works.
The Showalters have a deep connection to the Reading Railroad. As a young couple a half-century ago, they rode the passenger train from Franklin Station to Philadelphia’s newly opened Gallery Mall.
Susan’s father, the late E.C. Rudolph, worked for Reading Company and later for Amtrak as its chief engineer for tracks and structures from Boston to Washington, D.C.
“It was his life,” she said of the railroad. “He worked at the Sixth and Spring office when I was little.”
For Kauffman, it’s all about keeping history alive — and inspiring others through a medium that’s as fun as it is educational.
“I never got to experience any of this history,” he said. “This is the closest I can get to seeing what this history was like. This is a way for me to keep the history of the Reading Railroad going.”