YOUNGSTOWN MODEL RAILROAD ASSOCIATION

OUR HERITAGE

1957 - PRESENT

55 Years of Model Railroading

In March of 1957, an ad was placed in the issue of Model Railroad Craftsman magazine inviting anyone interested in forming a model railroad club in the Youngstown area to contact Robert Folsom at a Struthers phone number. On Sunday, April 1^st, 1957, eight strangers with a common interest in “HO” model railroading met at the home of George Sankey of Tippecanoe Road in Youngstown... This meeting initiated the forming of the Youngstown Model Railroad Association. Of these original eight members only two are still members today, the other six have either moved or passed away.

During our first year, while searching for a location to construct a layout, the members built a 5’ x 10’ portable layout for the Railroad Community Committee of the Mahoning and Shenango Valley. They manned it for them at the Canfield Fair and an industrial show at Idora Park. This committee was comprised of representatives of the local railroads at that time. These included the Pennsylvania, New York Central, B&O, Erie, and the Youngstown and Southern railroads. Contacts through the committee finally resulted in the club obtaining layout space in the New York Central passenger station on Wilson Avenue in December of 1957. Shortly thereafter the club’s first layout was built. The club’s first Open House was held December 2 and 3 of 1961.

In June of 1964, as the Mahoning valley’s economic decline escalated we were forced to leave our first home. For the next two and a half years we held meetings at members’ homes until obtaining the old gymnasium on the fourth floor of the Eagles building at the corner of 5^th Avenue and Rayen in Youngstown. January of 1967 found us eagerly contemplating a king size layout in the gym as compared to the cramped quarters in the old NYC station. The group lost no time planning and building a large layout that filled most of the gym. Unfortunately economic hard times forced us to leave this location because the Eagles organization had to sell the building and move to smaller quarters. So in August of l977 the Youngstown Model Railroad Association was again searching for a new home.

Thanks to the help of club member Butch Phillips (1940-1998) the club acquired its present location in the old structure that was formally the Four Mile Run Christian Church and we moved in, in April of 1978. The club expanded its membership and interests with the addition of our “O” scale group in February of 1980. They have built a large layout in the old sanctuary portion of the church. The area is primarily industrial and rural. An impressive eleven stall roundhouse and coaling tower dominated the northern end of the classification yard. Of special note is the scenery filled river area crossed by a large, curved concrete viaduct. Behind the layout is a specially constructed caboose end utilizing hardware from a genuine New York Central caboose. The platform is a favorite viewing area for the youngsters. The controls for the “O” scale layout are located in a balcony overlooking the entire railroad.

The “HO” layout, located on the lower level, occupies an area of approximately thirty by sixty feet. It is almost fully detailed and provides a variety of industries, urban areas, mountains and wooded rural settings. A large city area, representative of Youngstown, Ohio in the late 1950’s dominates the layout’s south end. To the west of the city, a replica of the Pennsylvania Railroad’s coaling tower from Girard stands over the Mackey Freight Yard. In the center island of the layout a steel mill complex is under construction. It is a reminder of the golden age of steel making in the Mahoning Valley. The northern leg of the layout presents an operating amusement park and industrial complex.

In 2009, a new chapter was opened in our history as we completed the process to purchase our building from our landlords, of the last 30 years, The Four Mile Run Christian Church.

Both layouts represent the interests and dedication of the Youngstown Model Railroad Association members. They truly reveal the labors of the last Fifty-Five years.

Though your thoughtful donations and support you have made our past Fifty-Five years possible.