About The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad Historical Society

THE MARYLAND AND PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD
HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Preserving history...in prototype and in miniature!

219 PRINCETON LANE
BEL AIR, MD 21014

About Our Society
The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation and Historical Society consists of members from all over the world who have discovered the charm of "The Famous Ma & Pa" .

The Society conveys its accumulated knowledge of the railroad to members through it's journal, the Timetable., which contains articles authored by our members. Past issues have included:

Scale modeling articles and tips.
Drawings of Ma & Pa stations, motive power and rolling stock.
Old newspaper clippings.
Photos taken by our members and/or from our archives.
News reports about present-day descendants of the Ma & Pa.
"Then and Now" articles comparing old photos of the Ma & Pa with present day shots.

The Timetable also contains the "Muddy Creek Trading Post" column which is used by members to trade, sell, or communicate interest in Ma & Pa related items and collectibles.

A subscription to the Timetable is included in our yearly membership dues.

Services:

Our Society makes various items available for sale to benefit our Preservation Fund. This merchandise includes patches, calendars, HO scale decals for modelers, locomotive specifications, boxcar drawings, and craftsman kits of boxcars, hoppers, and flat cars used by the Ma & Pa. Back issues of the Timetable are also available.
To order any merchandise or publications, complete an order form and mail to the above address with your check or money order.
Merchandise may also be purchased from the Society at The Great Scale Model Train Show, usually held four times a year at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium. Look for the black and yellow Ma & Pa banner!
Our Annual Meeting
The Society holds an annual meeting each June for its membership. Past meetings have been held at the Baltimore Streetcar Museum, the Agricultural and Industrial Museum of York County, the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, the Highland Presbyterian Church in Street, Maryland, and the Miniature Railroad Club of York. Members have toured the Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad enginehouse, the former Red Lion station, and ridden on special excursions at the Strasburg Railroad!
The annual meeting is now held each year on the second Saturday of June in the auditorium of the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania in Strasburg, Pennsylvania. The doors open at 9:00 a.m., and members need only to show their Society membership card to gain admittance to the meeting. Members are encouraged to bring their Ma & Pa related memorabilia, models, photographs, etc. for display in the auditorium. The business meeting begins at 10:00 a.m., and some form of educational entertainment is presented after lunch.
Planning a vacation or just a day off?
Consider including one of the following places in your plans. You'll find Ma and Pa equipment here:

The Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society in Muddy Creek Forks, Pennsylvania.
The B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Baltimore Streetcar Museum, Inc. also in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania in Strasburg, Pennsylvania.
The Strasburg Railroad also in Strasburg, Pennsylvania.

You might also enjoy the many friendships that you will cultivate with other members of the Society. Whether you are interested in modeling the Ma & Pa or studying the history of this famous short-line, you will meet others with similar interests who are willing to share their knowledge and ideas. Keep your ears open to hear about some of our members who spend some special days traveling along the route of the Ma & Pa and witnessing its legacy first hand.
Past Projects

Engine 81 The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad ordered two NW2 diesel locomotives in 1946, numbering them 80 and 81. Locomotive 81 pulled both passenger and freight trains through 1954. Number 81 was sold to the P.H. Glatfelter Paper Company in the 1980's, where it was used at their Spring Grove, Pennsylvania plant.

In 1997, Glatfelter donated the locomotive to the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. Once the engine was delivered to the Museum by Conrail and the Strasburg Railroad, our Society members prepared the locomotive for painting and the Society then donated funds to purchase the paint. The Railroad itself provided for the lettering of the locomotive in the original scheme. The Museum held a Dedication Ceremony on Saturday, June 27, 1998 in the Museum Yard.

Engine 82 Some years earlier, members of our Society helped the railroad re-paint Locomotive SW9 Number 82 into its original colors. Complete with old style classification lights and a cow-catcher pilot, Number 82 continued to serve the railroad until recently. It now resides in Muddy Creek Forks, Pennsylvania at the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society's historic village, a home suitable for the historic engine - one of the last surviving diesels purchased by the Ma & Pa.

Society Bylaws now available on-line!

View the Society's Bylaws. Click here!