National Railway Historical Society
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to promote interest in, and appreciation for, the historical development of railroads
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
. It is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
and organized into 16 regions and 170 local chapters located in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The NRHS sponsors the popular RailCamp summer orientation program in partnership with Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
and the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
, offering high school youth hands-on experience in the railroad industry.
History
The NRHS was formed in Baltimore, Maryland on August 18, 1935, when railfanRailfan
A railfan or rail buff , railway enthusiast or railway buff , or trainspotter , is a person interested in a recreational capacity in rail transport...
s from Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Lancaster is a city in the south-central part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is the county seat of Lancaster County and one of the older inland cities in the United States, . With a population of 59,322, it ranks eighth in population among Pennsylvania's cities...
, Philadelphia, Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
, and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
gathered there for a farewell excursion on the then soon-to-be-abandoned Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Electric Railway
Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Electric Railway
The Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Electric Railway , now defunct, was an American railroad of central Maryland and Washington, DC built in the 19th and 20th century. The WB&A absorbed two older railroads, the Annapolis and Elk Ridge Railroad and the Baltimore & Annapolis Short Line, and...
. Officers from railfan clubs in those cities decided to merge and form a national organization, which they dubbed the "National Railway Historical Society".
Leon Franks of the Lancaster club was elected the first chairman of the NRHS and William P. Hamilton III of Trenton was the first NRHS president.
Currently
The NRHS has 16,533 members as of October 2007 and is the largest rail historical society in the U.S. The NRHS is a non-profit section 501(c)(3) organization. Gregory P. Molloy of Cincinnati, OhioCincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
, is currently national president and there are 16 regional vice presidents. Its headquarters address is: 100 North 20th Street, 4th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19103. Molloy said the NRHS is "a historical preservation charity", with its future focus on education and preservation.
The organization began a "Railway Heritage Grants Program" in 1991, to provide financial grants to "organizations that educate, publish, and preserve railroad history to benefit future generations", according to an NRHS news release. As described by the NRHS, projects assisted by the Railway Heritage Grants Program "range from refurbishing historic railroad stations and restoring vintage steam locomotives for operating and museum display, to the cataloging and storage of historic railroad archives".
Commenting on a decline in membership from its 1994 peak of 21,840 and a rising median age of its members, Molloy called in 2008 for increased efforts to "welcome young people ... and offer things they wouldn't get otherwise". An increased internet presence and activities that cannot be done on the internet such as the successful RailCamp, railfan trips, and "behind-the-scenes" tours to railroad shops were cited as ways to attract youthful members.
"RailCamp" program
The NRHS conducts week-long "Railcamps" each summer at Steamtown National Historic SiteSteamtown National Historic Site
Steamtown National Historic Site is a railroad museum and heritage railroad located on in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, at the site of the former Scranton yards of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad . The museum is built around a working replica turntable and a roundhouse that is...
in Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
, and at the Nevada Northern Railway Museum
Nevada Northern Railway Museum
The Nevada Northern Railway Museum is a railroad museum located in Ely, Nevada and operated by a historic foundation dedicate to the preservation of the railroad....
for high school-age youth. The program offers firsthand experience of rail history and operations, offered in partnership with the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
and Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
. In 2008, participants toured Steamtown's roundhouse
Roundhouse
A roundhouse is a building used by railroads for servicing locomotives. Roundhouses are large, circular or semicircular structures that were traditionally located surrounding or adjacent to turntables...
and shops, operating some of the shop machinery. The youth also visited Amtrak's massive Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
, maintenance facility, where they went inside locomotives and met with Amtrak employees to learn about railroad careers. One participant wrote afterwards in Trains magazine that, "The experience truly increased my respect for the men and women who ... care for these huge machines."
Local chapters
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
, the Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, the Western Maryland Railway
Western Maryland Railway
The Western Maryland Railway was an American Class I railroad which operated in Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It was primarily a coal hauling and freight railroad, with a small passenger train operation. The WM became part of the Chessie System in 1973 and ceased operating its lines...
, and the Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad
Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad
The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad , familiarly known as the "Ma and Pa", was an American short-line railroad between York and Hanover, Pennsylvania, formerly operating passenger and freight trains on its original line between York and Baltimore, Maryland, from 1901 until the 1950s...
, all of which once operated in the region.
In addition to the study and preservation of railroad artifacts, NRHS chapter activities may include periodic excursions using historic railroad equipment, such as steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s. Some chapters are involved in restoration of rail equipment and structures . Others operate rail museums or own locomotives, such as the Central New York Chapter's two former Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
EMD E8
EMD E8
The EMD E8 was a , A1A-A1A passenger train locomotive manufactured by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division of La Grange, Illinois. The cab version, or E8A, was manufactured from August, 1949 to December, 1953, and 449 were produced – 446 for U.S., and 3 for Canada...
diesel locomotive
Diesel locomotive
A diesel locomotive is a type of railroad locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine, a reciprocating engine operating on the Diesel cycle as invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel...
s. A few chapters even own and operate entire short-line railroads, such as the New Hope Valley Railway
New Hope Valley Railway
The New Hope Valley Railway is a heritage railroad in Bonsal, North Carolina operated by the North Carolina Railway Museum, Inc., an all-volunteer, nonprofit, and tax exempt educational and historical organization....
.
See also
- Black Cat Station
- Cooperstown and Charlotte Valley RailroadCooperstown and Charlotte Valley RailroadThe Cooperstown and Charlotte Valley Railroad Company is a heritage railroad in New York operated by the Leatherstocking Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society since 1996.-History:...
- Delaware Otsego CorporationDelaware Otsego CorporationThe Delaware Otsego Corporation is an American railway holding company which owns the subsidiary New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway as well as other, smaller branch line railroads, collectively known as the DO System...
- Hull Street StationHull Street StationHull Street Station was a railroad station in the City of Manchester and later the independent city of Richmond, Virginia. It was built by the Southern Railway to replace Mill Street Station across the river in Richmond...
- Rochester SubwayRochester SubwayThe Rochester Subway or Rochester Industrial and Rapid Transit Railway was an underground rapid transit line in the city of Rochester, New York from 1927 to 1956. Contemporary photos show it used single streetcars, like Boston's Green Line, as a light rail line, with a large portion underground...
- Henry H. RogersHenry H. RogersHenry Huttleston Rogers was a United States capitalist, businessman, industrialist, financier, and philanthropist. He made his fortune in the oil refinery business, becoming a leader at Standard Oil....
- Ulster & Delaware Railroad Historical SocietyUlster & Delaware Railroad Historical SocietyThe Ulster & Delaware Railroad Historical Society is a chapter of the National Railway Historical Society . It focuses on the history of the railroads and related social, economic, and cultural institutions of the Catskill and Hudson Valley regions...
- Union County Industrial RailroadUnion County Industrial RailroadThe Union County Industrial Railroad is a short line railroad that operates on approximately 12 miles of track in Union County in the U.S. State of Pennsylvania. It is part of the North Shore Railroad System....
External links
- National Railway Historical Society - official website
- Rivanna Chapter, NRHS, (Charlottesville, VirginiaCharlottesville, VirginiaCharlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
) - Baltimore (Md.) Chapter, NRHS
- Washington (D.C.) Chapter, NRHS
- 2010 Annual Convention, Scranton, PA, June 22-26, 2010