Lansing Model Railroad Club

Home of the Hogsback and Southern Railroad

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September 8, 2005:

A new curtain valance has been installed around the underside of the layout, greatly improving the appearance of the club. Many thanks go out to Sue and Ron St. Laurent, who donated material and spent 3 days working on it.

June 3, 2005

Change in Vice President: Due to his impending deployment overseas with his National Guard unit, Jeremy Brown has resigned as Vice President and has been placed on Leave of Absence for the duration. Mike Frezel was elected to fill the office.

March 3, 2005

Lansing Model Railroad Club members elect officers:

Tim D. Childs, president
Jeremy Brown, vice president
Ron St. Laurent, treasurer
Tim D. Childs II, recording secretary
Chuck Holman, corresponding secretary

Special thanks got out to retiring President Michael Frezell, taking a well deserved break after 8 years in office, and to Robert "Bob" Herbst for his 30 years of service in various officer positions, including President and Treasurer. Bob remains our train show coordinator.

February 3, 2005.

Lansing Model Railroad Club members approved plans, at a “Town Hall” style meeting, to construct a new building and layout. Plans call for the new building to be constructed behind the existing Millett depot structure, which currently houses the existing HO scale layout. Once the new layout is built, the Millett depot will be restored and converted into a museum.

Jeremy Brown, Vice President, was pleased with the decision and feels the club is on the “right track.”

“I hope we can make this a reality!” Brown said. “I’m really excited at that fact the club could have a new layout and this will increase membership interest.”

Brown has been working hard meeting with officials from Delta Township and contractors to determine requirements and costs. Preliminary figures peg the project at costing $75,000 to $100,000.

Two committees were set-up to further the project. They include a building committee, to work on designs and requirements, and a fund-
raising committee charged with finding the necessary funding sources.

No date has been scheduled for groundbreaking as it may take several years to secure funding. Building plans also included a basement and handicap accessible restrooms.

For further information please contact the Lansing Model Railroad Club.

January 5, 2005

"On or about December 30-31, 2004 the storage boxcar was broken into at the Pere Marquette 1223
Preservation site in Grand Haven, Michigan.  Two locomotive classification lights used on Pere
Marquette Berkshire #1223 and three kerosene caboose lamps used in the interior of Pere
Marquette caboose #A986 were stolen. One or more of the caboose lamps is stamped ROCK ISLAND on
its black metal frame, and the others are stamped for some other railroad than the Pere Marquette.
These items were still in their original cardboard shipping cartons when stolen.
 
If you are offered any of the above items or have any information about this theft, you are urged
to please contact the Grand Haven Public Safety Department at 1-616-842-3460. Refer to case #04-9481.
 
-Fritz Milhaupt <mailto:afmaven@sbcglobal.net>  
Web guy, PM Historical Society, Inc.
www.pmhistsoc.org"

October 2004. The North Coast DCC system is installed and working.

July 2004. The Lansing Model Railroad Club will be participating in the North Central Region 2004 "Capital Crossing" Convention. The convention will be held October 22-24, 2004 at the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center in Lansing, Michigan. For more information on the convention, please visit their website at http://www.ncr2004.ncr-nmra.org/.

July 2004. Vice President Jeremy Brown installed new steps leading from the first floor to the basement. These new steps replace worn out steps that posed a safety hazard. In addition, Jeremy added new dry wall and painted the new walls. The future plans, for the basement, include installing a drop ceiling and improving storage. These projects continue to add to the ongoing improvement of the club facilities.

June 2004 - LMRC began conversion to DCC using North Coast Engineering hardware. A successful test run was made by disconnecting one of the DC cabs and substituting the NCE command station. The Cab Relay Cards of the CMRI system have been removed, as have the mainline DC throttles. The cab selector rotory switchs on the dispach pannel have been disconnected. While removing old wiring and hardware continues, work is underway to mount and wire the circuit breaker cards and command stations for the DCC system.

November 2003 - Cab signals have been installed on the layout and are working.

July 2003 - Replaced basement garage door with a new wall and a steel door. This will allow easy access to the backyard from the basement. In addition, it helps facilitates the movement of materials in/out of the basement and will provide better insulation.

Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Michael Frezell - Vice President

Phone: (517) 281-2544

November 2, 2007

A TRAIN LOAD OF FUN TO ARRIVE AT THE MSU PAVILION

“Model Train Show and Sale” continues to grow with more layouts and vendors.

EAST LANSING – All aboard one of Michigan's largest model railroad shows as it makes a whistle stop at the Michigan State University Pavilion on Sunday, November 18, 2007. The annual “Train Show and Sale” is sponsored by the Lansing Model Railroad Club and runs from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. Admission is $5 for adults, $2 for children 6-12 years, and free for children less than 6 years and scouts in uniform.

On track are over 400 tables and model trains running over 10 different various-sized modular layouts. One of these featured modular layouts is built by MichLUG, a Michigan Lego train club, members and made completely of the popular toy building blocks.

“Kids and even adults will enjoy seeing the Lego layout.” Ron St. Laurent, Train Show and Sale Co-Coordinator, said. “It’s amazing how they construct all those buildings and trains with those little blocks!”

Over 120 vendors will be selling new and used model trains, artwork, collectibles, DVDs, books, and much more. Shoppers will find things like “Thomas the Tank Engine” toys, big Lionel trains, precision model trains, old railroad timetables, lanterns, and beautiful paintings from local artists.

In addition to shopping, novice model railroaders can learn about building that dream empire from experts of the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) local Division 5 chapter who will offer demonstrations on scenery, electronics, and model building.

Tim Childs, Train Show and Sale Coordinator, states every year the show continues to get bigger and better, which benefits the Lansing area.

“Our train show and sale attracts people from all over the state and even from around the country!” Childs said. “Train show vendors benefit from their sales and after the show many hungry people will visit local Lansing restaurants.”

For further information on the train show or schedule an interview, please contact Michael Frezell at (517) 281-2544 or Ron St.Laurent at (517) 347-1831 or visit the club's website at www.lmrc.org.

About the Lansing Model Railroad Club

The Lansing Model Railroad Club is a 38 member, nonprofit, 501(c)(3), educational organization and owns the former Grand Trunk Western Railroad Millett depot in Delta Township. Model Train Show and Sale proceeds benefit the club's efforts to maintain the historic depot and expand the model railroad layout housed in it.

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