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The original group was started by local Southern California model
railroad manufacturers in the early 1970s, as a way to display their
products at
hobby shows. Organized as the Southern California Module
Builders, the club met at the Campbell Scale Models factory.
They displayed
their first operating modular layout in 1973. At various times in
the
club's history it was known by several different names, inluding The
Orange
County HO Modular Group and Module Railroaders - Orange County
Division. In 1997, we streamlined the name to simply Orange
County Module Railroaders. In 2005, A separate corporation, Orange County Module Railroaders, Inc.
was formed as a nonprofit, nonstock mutual benefit corporation and the
assets of the original club transferred to the corporation.
We continue taking the hobby to the public, setting up displays at shopping malls, model railroad shows, including GATS, and NMRA conventions all around the southland, fulfulling our mission to demonstrate the hobby to the public.
Ask any member about the unique advantages this form of module
railroading has to offer -- beyond a static display.
Instead of building a large, permanent layout, members build and maintain modules that can be assembled with modules built by other members into a large, operating display. Each person works from the set of club standards that specify module construction. These standards include size, framework, track spacing, electrical wiring and interfaces. They assure interoperability amongst the modules, and permit the modules to be assembled in a variety of ways so that our display can be adjusted to the size and shape of the available space.
Beyond the club-specified main lines, the individual members decide the era and theme of their modules. Individuality and creativity can be exciting when designing a switching yard, service area, industrial complex, agricultural area, or snaking the mainlines though a remote mountain pass.
The trains we operate sometimes mix eras or locations, so it is not
uncommon to see a steam-powered train operating on the layout at the
same time as a
modern diesel-powered intermodal lashup.
Our club has two regularly scheduled meetings each month. The
first is our regular business meeting on the second Wednesday of each
month, held at the Sunkist Branch Library, 901
S. Sunkist, Anahiem, CA.92806.
The second is the meeting of our Executive Committee (also called "the
E-board") which meets at Spiro's Restaurant in Orange on the last Wednesday of the month. Both of these meetings try to get started around
7:00 p.m., southern California traffic permitting.
Click here for maps showing both these locations.
Several of our club members are active on the Internet, and a few have established sites on the World Wide Web that reflect some of their explorations into the history of various aspects of prototype and model railroading. Check them out:
Jim Fuhrman's site includes HO locomotive tuneup hints, Santa Fe's F3/F7/F9, C30-7s and FP45s and Seaboard Air Line's Baldwin switchers, along with some other topics.
Former Member Matt Hannes maintains a web site devoted to Intermodal Railroading. and Matt also has a Colorado Front Range photo collection..
Galen Gallimore's Blue Ridge Connection site describes, among other things, how a modeler of the Eastern US coal hauling railroad can get enamored of a bit of the Santa Fe railroad.Membership is open. You are welcome to be
our guest
at any regular business meeting. Applications and
printed copies of the By-laws and standards can be picked up there, and
you can get an idea about how you might fit into the club's
activities. Club meetings often start with a short clinic, move
through the formal business, and end with a session called "good and
welfare" where topical items of general interest, such a notices of
railfan events, swap meets, special train moves may be shared.
Effective with the By-laws as ammended April 12, 2006, all members must
also be members of the National Model Railroad Association
(NMRA). An on-line NMRA application can be found by clicking here.
To get a head start---become familiar with the corporation's By-laws, available here (119KB) in PDF format; (Read with Adobe Acrobat Reader) then, print a copy of the application (found by clicking here), fill it out and bring it to a regular business meeting, or mail it to the P.O. Box shown at the top of the application. Include a check for 3 month's dues (currently $3.00 per month), to cover the initial 3-month probationary period. After that, members are usually accepted by a majority vote of the active members present at the next regular business meeting.
Two types of membership are possible: active and inactive.
Active members participate in the regular business meetings.
Inactive members contribute to the club's operations in other
ways, by serving on committees, helping with display set-up/teardown,
etc., but do not vote at business meetings. You may select either
class of membership as desired.
Thanks for visiting!
