Mission and Purpose
The mission of the organization is the education of the public, its participants, and contributors through various published media, workshops and seminars, and through direct visitation to a scale model operating display. The educational purpose is to recreate and demonstrate how society functioned during a specific time and place of American history with a special emphasis on the railroads serving the industrial infrastructure. A secondary purpose is the demonstration of the craft of model building in its recent 100 years. The purpose is distinct from museums which collect and house pieces of railroad equipment. Or even those few museums that operate the antique equipment. Because the only practical way to represent a complete functioning system is through scale models; a scale model operating display will be the primary exhibit. Workshops and seminars for all levels and ages will present the history of the rail industry by hands-on participation, lectures, field trips and any other effective method of education. In addition to rail history, the craft of model building will also be presented with techniques for accurate representation and tool handling among many potential topics.
The display will emphasize and accurate, representational re-creation of specific periods of time in the early and mid 20th century. Initially the display will focus on the late 1920's (specifically 1927-1929) in southeastern Massachusetts. Other periods of emphasis are the Second World War (specifically 1943-44), the transition period (specifically 1953-54) and the transition from commodities to bulk transfers, spin-off of regional carriers, transfer of passenger traffic to Amtrak (specifically 1964-68). Each period recreated will include a minimum architectural models, complete scenes, railroad models and operation. The operation will be a representational reenactment of such things era appropriate. For example, in the initial period, the late 1920's, railroads were significant to commuter travel; mail handling; the supply of milk and other local agricultural products to large cities; the flow of coal as the primary source of energy; recreational train travel; the interfacing of railroads with harbors, other railroads, industry, and everyday life at that time. The models will be representational, believable, and integrated into dioramas that include, but not be limited to, industrial complexes, cityscapes, countryside, and seascapes.
Membership
