Monthly Archives: March 2018

Division 12 at Railfest 2018

Division 12 will have an information table at Railfest, an NMRA sponsored show presented by Division 5 of the Mid Central Region. It is one of the largest train shows in Ohio including dealers, operating layouts, and displays. Railfest is held at Lakeland Community College, 7700 Clocktower Drive, Kirtland, Ohio 44094. It is open on both Saturday the 17th of March and Sunday the 18th of March from 10 AM until 4 PM.

Meeting and Event Schedule 2018

  • February: First Membership meeting on Saturday, February 10, 2018 at the Quality Inn and Suites in Erie, PA.
  • March: Board of Directors meeting Saturday, March 10 at the Cambridge Springs Trolley Station. Planning for 2018 meetings and activities.
  • April: Membership meeting: Saturday, April 14th at 1:00 PM at the Cambridge Springs Trolley Station. Presentation: Blaine Hays on Erie Interurban transit.
  • May: Membership meeting: Saturday, May 12th at 1:00 PM at the Cambridge Springs Trolley Station. Presentation: Dick Bradley on short lines of the 1960s.
  • June: Membership meeting and Event: Saturday, June 9th Picnic and train watching at Gale Street in Westfield NY. Membership meeting at 11:00 AM and picnic beginning at 12:30 PM.
  • July: Membership meeting: Saturday, July 14th at 10:00 AM at the Cambridge Springs Trolley Station. Presentation: Dave Ellis on model railroad backdrops.
  • July: Event: Division 12 Information Table and T-Trak Layout at the Jefferson Historical Society’s Train Show on Saturday, July 21st from 10:00 AM-3:00 PM.
  • August: Membership meeting: Saturday, August 11th at 10:00 AM at the Cambridge Springs Trolley Station. Presentation: Brad White on model railroad operations on the Chautauqua Branch.
  • September: Membership meeting: Saturday, September 8th at 1:00 PM at the Salamanca Railroad Museum. Details to be confirmed
  • September: Board of Directors meeting: Saturday, September 29th, at the Cambridge Springs Trolley Station. Planning for November Division 12 events: Erie Train Show, T-Trak Displays, NMRA Layout tours.
  • October: Membership meeting: Tentatively, Erie area meeting with presentation on operations on a model railroad and then operating on the railroad after the meeting. Details to be confirmed.
  • November: Public Event(s): Erie Train Show and possible other public demonstrations of Division 12 T-Trak layout. NMRA only event: Layout tours.
  • December: Break and holidays.

Erie Train Show

Division 12 had a table at the March 4th, Erie Train show displaying our new signs and banner. Several visitors with interest in the NMRA, or our local division, stopped by and took hand-outs such as brochures and applications. The regular NMRA application and the RailPass (9 month discount application) are always available online at the NMRA website

As several members gaining an interest in T-Trak were gathered together, we started discussion on “guidelines” for our modules. Members of the I-80 group visited our table to share their insights into building and operating T-Trak. Having some trains running on T-Trak modules could add another layer of interest for visitors at future events.