meeting info - Wisconsin Chapter, NRHS

Wisconsin Chapter meetings are held on the first Friday of every month (except July & August), at 7:30 p.m., in the lower level meeting room of the North Shore Congregational Church, 7330 North Santa Monica Boulevard in Fox Point, Wisconsin. Click here for a Bing map and directions.

Our meetings are always open to members and anyone who has an interest in railroad history or today's railroad operations. No admission fee is charged.

We stream our meetings via Zoom for the benefit of anyone who cannot attend in-person. To be advised of Zoom connection information, and to receive occasional chapter updates, become a member today.

Upcoming meetings:

Friday, May 3, 2024, 7:30 PM CDT: Wonderous Wisconsin with Paul Swanson

Paul Swanson presents "Wonderous Wisconsin - from Benton to Superior," a Badger state buffet of selections from the collections at Lake States Railway Historical Association. Several photographers and eras will be presented throughout the state.

C&NW turntable and depot at Benton, Wisc, 1947. Photo by F. R. Ritzman, collection of LSRHA.

Soo diesel locomotive at Fond du Lac, 1965. Photo by Ralph Wehlitz, collection of LSRHA.

LSHRA is a non-profit archive located in Baraboo and accessible on-line at www.lsrha.org, with over 100,000 images available to search and view.

If you are able, please attend in person at our regular meeting venue in Fox Point; doors open before 7:00 pm for social time. Those who cannot attend in person are encouraged to download the latest version of Zoom software to their computers (or tablets, or smartphones) to attend virtually. Advance registration is required to access this event remotely. Information on how to connect will be posted here a few days prior to the meeting. Contact membership (at-sign) nrhswis (dot) org with any questions.

Friday, June 7, 2024, 7:30 PM CDT: Railfan Routes Railcars via Rondout to Resolve Receiver's Remorse presented by Bill Edwards

In this presentation we will hear about the presenter's project in 1993 to fix rail transit times from steel mills in Northwest Indiana to his facility in Minneapolis.

This involved using the railfan's knowledge of the EJ&E/Soo (MILW) interchange at Rondout, buying a Trackmobile, and creating a 1,000 foot long private railroad.

We will hear why a customer said, "I hope you don't want us to use more rail shipments" and why a railroader said "I hope you don't grow your business with us!", see why a Soo Line crew was paid to watch football games on Sunday afternoons, look at some Rondout history and operations, learn about A.O. Smith cars to Milwaukee, and, finally, create a switching railroad using two derails and a Trackmobile!