National Train Day will be celebrated at Union Station with equipment displays, etc. Go to www.NationalTrainDay.com (http://www.nationaltrainday.com) for more information on this and other celebration locations.
Always a good event, but if you must go see the regular rotation of private varnish, oddball cars, Superliner sets, and Acela sets, go early. It becomes a zoo as the day goes on with the massive number of kids.
In 2008, I saw most of the exhibits and what I didn't see I caught at the Union Station Centennial exhibit. Last year, the 45 minute line to get into the Acela trainset was an instant turnoff.
Good point. The web site seems to allow you to buy "timed" tickets this year so you can avoid the lines.