Welcome to Our Blog

The Akron Railroad Club is a group of  more than 100 railroad enthusiasts who meet monthly in Akron, Ohio, to share their passion for railroad operations and history.  On our site you will find information about our meetings, activities, how to join us, news and announcements, and much more.  There is always something new to read so be sure to come back again and come back often. We have feature pages describing popular railfan hotspots within a couple of hours drive from Akron, stories written by our members about outings they’ve been on over the years, and trip reports. Many features are illustrated with photographs.  Take a look around and enjoy yourself. Better yet, come to one of our meetings or join us on one of our railfan outings. We look forward to meeting you.

ARRC Banquet Ticket Deadline is Friday

The deadline to order tickets for the annual Akron Railroad Club banquet is Friday (November 27). Tickets will be sold at the ARRC meeting to be held on that same day.

Tickets are $25 per person for the banquet, which will be held on December 5 at the Martin University Center of the University of Akron, 105 Fir Hill. The punch bowl will begin at 5:30 p.m. and a buffet style dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m.

The featured speaker at the banquet will be H. Roger Grant, a professor of history at Clemson University and author of several books on railroad history. Grant, a life-time member of the ARRC, will speak about the development of the Akron, Canton & Youngstown Railroad.

For more information on ordering tickets, contact Marty Surdyk at (440) 884-6897.

Santa, Bob Rohal Coming to Town by Rail

Bob Rohal pauses with "Flash," which was decked out in Christmas gear, in December 2008. Rohal will once again bring Santa Claus to Kent this year. (Photograph by Craig Sanders)

If you haven’t been naughty, but have been nice, then be at the Main Street crossing with the former Erie Railroad tracks in Kent on December 5  ’cause Santa Claus is coming to town.

Akron Railroad Club member Bob Rohal will once against escort Santa into Kent in the cab of the Shelly Materials SD18 No. 321. Santa will arrive at Main Street at 6 p.m.

Santa will board “Flash,” the nickname for the unit because it is clad in the blue and gold and lightning stripes in honor of  Kent State University, at the Shelly plant west of town where Rohal works.

During the short trip into town, Rohal said he will “play” Jingle Bells on the locomotive’s horn. “I’ll bet my old music teacher would love to hear it,” Rohal said. Well, maybe not. But we will.

Thompson to Present at November ARRC Meeting

Richard Thompson will be presenting a program titled “A Busy Year Trackside” at the November 27 meeting of the Akron Railroad Club. Among the places that Rich will visit during his program are the CSX New River Subdivision in West Virginia, the Amtrak Keystone Corridor in Pennsylvania, the Altoona, Pennsylvania, area; and the vicinity of Akron and Cleveland. The digital program will feature 141 images.

The ARRC meets at the New Horizons Christian Church, 290 Darrow Road, in Akron. The business meeting begins at 8 p.m. and lasts for a half-hour. The program usually begins at 8:45 p.m. lasts for an hour. Guests are welcome.

The November meeting is officially designated the annual meeting and officers for 2010 will be elected.

Some members gather before the meeting for dinner at the New Era Restaurant, 10 Massillon Road, in Akron. After the meeting, several members meet at the Eat ‘n Park restaurant at Howell and Main in Cuyahoga Falls for desert, a late dinner or an early breakfast.

Open House to be Held at Orrville Depot

The Orrville Railroad Heritage Society will hold a holiday open house at its depot on November 28 and December 5. The restored station, built in 1868, will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. That same day, ORHS is also sponsoring four Riding With Santa trains between Orrville and Lodi. For further information on the Santa trains, scroll down to the post below about that service. (Photograph by Richard Jacobs)

Open House Set at Cleveland B&O Round House

The Midwest Railway Preservation Society is hold two open house events at the former Baltimore & Ohio Railroad round house in Cleveland. The events will be held on November 14 and November 29 between noon and 4 p.m.

The round house is located at 2800 West 3rd Street. Group members will provide guided tours of the facility and explain how railroads enabled Cleveland to become an industrial giant in the late 19th century.

Visitors can also tour a parlor coach built in the 1930s, learn the history of the former Grand Trunk Western steam locomotive No. 4070 and ride in a vintage passenger car if weather and equipment conditions permit.

Visitors are asked to make a donation of $5 for adults and $3 for children age 12 and under. Visitors are also asked to wear closed-toe shoes and weather appropriate clothing.

Further information is available on the MRPS Web site (shown below) or by calling (216) 781-3629

www.midwestrailway.org

Having a Royally Good Time on This Railroad

The Royal Gorge Route train heads west along the Arkansas River. (Photograph by Richard Jacobs)

Richard Jacobs closes out his series of articles on trains of the Rocky Mountains with an account of his trips on the Royal Gorge Route Railroad in mid September 2009.

This was once part of the Denver & Rio Grande Western’s Tennessee Pass route between Denver and Dotsero, Colorado. Union Pacific has taken most of the line out of service, but the segment through the famed Royal Gorge provides excursion train service.

To read Jake’s account of his trip and view a gallery of photographs, click on the link below:

http://akronrrclub.wordpress.com/trip-reports/trains-of-the-rockies/royal-gorge-route-railroad/

Up, Up, Up to the Summit of Pike’s Peak

The summit of Pike's Peak provides a break-taking view. The elevation here is more than 14,000 feet. (Photograph by Barbara Cormell)

Richard Jacobs continues his railroad adventures in Colorado by riding the Pike’s Peak cog railway. The system uses Swiss-built cars to reach the summit, which is more than 14,000 feet. The view from the summit is breath-taking.

To read Jake’s account and view a gallery of photographs, click on the link below:

http://akronrrclub.wordpress.com/trip-reports/trains-of-the-rockies/pikes-peak-cog-railway/

Santa Claus to Ride W&LE Rails

The train ride is secondary to getting to meet Santa during the Orrville Railroad Heritage Society Santa train rides. (Photograph furnished by Richard Jacobs)

Santa Claus is coming to town . . . by train. The Orrville Railroad Heritage Society is offering an expanded schedule of Santa trains this years, using the rails of the Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway.

Trains will operate on November 28 and December 5, leaving from Orrville at 10 a.m., noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Tickets are $15 for children and $25 for adults. A limited number of first class tickets are available for $50 apiece. The boarding site is located at Chestnut and McGill streets in Orrville.

A ticket order form is on the ORHS website at http://www.orrvillerailroad.com

Tickets can also be purchased at the ORHS ticket office in the former Orrville Union Station. The ticket office is open on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from noon to 4 p.m. Information is also available by calling (330) 683-2426 or sending an e-mail message to questions@orrvillerailroad.com.

The train will operate between Orrville and Lodi, using ORHS passenger equipment. Motive power is expected to be push-pull style with ORHS GP7u No. 471 at one end and a W&LE locomotive at the other.

New this year is that the Santa trains will be picking up passengers at Lodi for a trip to Orrville and return. Those trips are being sponsored by the Lodi Railroad Museum, which is restoring the former W&LE passenger station in Lodi. Ticket information for those boarding at Lodi is available by sending an e-mail message to lodirrm@gmail.com.

Jacobs to Present Show to Marion Railfan Society

Akron Railroad Club member Richard Jacobs will be presenting a program this Saturday (November 21) to the Marion Railfan Society, which meets at the restored Marion Union Depot. The meeting begins at 7 p.m.

Jacobs will show slides of his visit to Train Festival 2009 in Owosso, Michigan, and the Heston Steam Museum in LaPorte, Indiana.

The main presenter at the meeting will be Bob Jetmore of New Albany, Indiana, who will present an hour and a half program of slides taken of Hoosier State railroads between 1971 and 1986.

ARRC Members Present Conrail Memories

Conrail is largely a memory now, but it provided many enjoyable moments during its 23-year history. A Conrail manifest freight is shown on the Fort Wayne Line east of Canton. (Photograph by Marty Surdyk)

Approximately 40 Akron Railroad Club members watched eight programs devoted to remember Conrail during the annual members’ night event on Saturday (November 14).

The presenters were Marty Surdyk, Roger Durfee, Craig Sanders, Richard Antibus, Richard Jacobs, Todd Dillon, Dave Mangold and the team of Richard Thompson and John Puda. The latter two members, both of whom were born well after Conrail was formed in 1976, presented the only digital program of the evening, showing Conrail locomotives and rolling stock in various places now owned by Norfolk Southern and CSX.

The other programs were slide shows that covered Conrail from its beginnings to its final day of opreation on May 31, 1999. Although most of the images shown were recorded in Ohio, most notably Berea, the programs also showed Conrail along the Northeast Corridor, Pennsylvania and northwest Indiana. A handful of images presented were taken in Illinois.

Two of the presenters, Durfee and Mangold, began their railroad careers with Conrail.

During an intermission, ARRC members honored member Clint Ensworth, who celebrated his 87th birthday on Saturday. The members serenaded Ensworth with a rendention of Happy Birthday and presented him with a card and a cake.

Those attending also put away 15 pizzas and munched on potato chips and other snacks while enjoying the programs.