NS

Mon Oct 28 11:59:44 EDT 2024

 Actually it isn't free, its $20.  My club which is a 100% NMRA club has offered 6 months of free membership and the after that we will pay for both an NMRA and club membership for one year.  So far we have had no takers.
Larry Smith MMR

    On Monday, October 28, 2024 at 10:12:26 AM CDT, NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:  

 The NMRA offers a free six-moth membership to potential new members.
Carl BarnaFrom: NW-Mailing-List <nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org> on behalf of NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
Sent: Monday, October 28, 2024 9:18 AM
To: 'NW Mailing List' <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
Subject: RE: NS 
I support this as out lined by Tim but no further  than that . Saying that I seriously doubt  it will attract any younger members . Face it  If your young and interested in NS 

You’re not going to reach out to N&WHS when it’s all at your fingertips on the internet for free . So for other ideas for membership I will throw this out again . You totally rejected it at the convention. I would like to start a guest  membership program where a member can buy a guest membership for another person at cost for one year non-renewable non- voting. In hopes that the person likes it and renews as a member . How can that be wrong no cost to us what so ever. And to add to that  got to get more into Multimedia Media publications for this younger generation  I have advocated for this ever since being on the board . Our sister organizations C&OHS ,NYCHs and others offer hundreds of PDF publications we offer none. not that we don’t have them .  It should be a goal of this board to have 100 Pdfs on the Web- site for sale within a year . If you don’t offer it you can’t sale it.

Larry Evans  

From: NW-Mailing-List [mailto:nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org]On Behalf Of NW Mailing List via NW-Mailing-List
Sent: Monday, October 28, 2024 8:02 AM
To: 'NW Mailing List' <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
Cc: NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
Subject: Re: NS

All,

All this means is that we may have generally one page of NS-era information inThe Arrow.  The primary criteria is that it must be relevant to the parameters of original railroad between Norfolk and Cincinnati-Columbus. It will not focus on new diesels, what's going on in Ft. Wayne or Kansas City, Altoona, etc.; we'll leave that for and not try to compete with N&WHS member Scott Lindsey's Railfan & Railroad Column.

We may focus on things like the Heartland Corridor, replacement of the twin Hatfield Tunnel bridges at Matewan, WV, major new customers locating on-line, coal loading statistics and trends, things of that nature.  Initially I have volunteered to write the column; in contrast the BOD/Officers decision was made during the October 19 virtual meeting in an effort to attract new and younger members.

It is intended to be just one page of a 34-page issue.  So there is really no need for everyone to get in an uproar over this editorial experiment. We are NOT selling out our beloved Norfolk & Western.

Tim Hensley

President

On Sunday, October 27, 2024 at 09:03:45 PM EDT, NW Mailing List via NW-Mailing-List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:

Jim,

I agree with you. 

In my case, I joined the NWHS in 1985, so saw NS/NW/SOU/etc. Many of my models are NS and some NW and SOU and other railroads that merged into NW/NS. My models range from the early 80’s when I purchased models of what I saw in Roanoke to things running today in the same area. I’m looking forward to getting a few more VGN diesels soon and have a kitbash planned of a VGN PA passenger locomotive along with a scratch-built Roanoke VGN station.

I focus on the lines in Virginia, especially between Roanoke and Norfolk, both NW and VGN, due to many trips I made in the 80’s to 2010 when travelling due to military duty and taking photos of what I could see then.

I like to study the things that are here today, but looking at them as to how they evolved from the previous century, from steam to now. I have lots of books about our railroad and others that are great to learn about the past. I’ve looked at satellite photos of things like Sewells Point to see where the VGN coal yards and piers were, comparing them to things which are now Navy property. It’s been interesting to take photos near the Navy Exchange and compare items in the background that appear in VGN photo books. Examples of this would be a water tower with red and white checkerboard to protect it from the nearby military runway and Navy power plant smokestacks. I’d love to explore the fenced in area near the PX where you can still make out where the VGN yard was. I’d love to get some lumps of coal and a couple rail spikes from that area, but it’s not permitted.

We do have books that were published and offered through the Society that explored the evolution of locations that are now NS, but were previously VGN. I think if looking at the present with how it ties to the past is done, then NS related items should be included.

Keeping any organization alive as we move through this century is important. We face the same thing with a small train museum I volunteer at in Fredericksburg. We have old people who just can’t physically do the work they did long ago and not enough young members coming in to take it over. Younger people see NS more than NW, because they never knew NW. The Society is a way for younger people to make that connection, to appreciate and learn about it and grow their interest in it, much as my interest in NW/VGN has grown over time.

If we can’t generate interest from younger people with things they can relate to, we’re doomed to extinction.

Respectfully,

Phil Miller

From: NW-Mailing-List <nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org>On Behalf Of NW Mailing List
Sent: Sunday, October 27, 2024 6:14 AM
To: NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org>
Subject: NS

I am sorry I forgot to sign my submission.  I am Jim Cochran, member of the BoD and chairman of the society's model committee.  I served on the board 40 years ago and even back then we were discussing NS inclusion to broaden the audience to which our efforts might appeal.  For all intents and purposes the N&W ended in 1982 with the formation of NS.  The number of folks with "first -hand" knowledge of N&W is getting smaller every year and many people out there have only ever seen "da hoss" in daily operations.  Further, I personally believe that many people like to model what they see out there in use.

As those of you who pay attention to the status of the society may know, our membership has been in decline for a number of years such that today we are a mere shadow of what we were in our heyday.  This means our revenues from both membership dues and sales are correspondingly reduced making it harder and harder to produce the Arrow or fund any other projects.

Embracing NS has always been considered as a way to get additional and perhaps some younger members into the society. 

It is not our intent to diminish our devotion to the N&W in any way and that will always be the primary focus of our society.  However we will be giving limited space in the Arrow to NS topics related to N&W in hopes of appealing fo people interested in more current aspects of the road.

This is a thumbnail of the reasoning behind our decision.  Please send your specific question and I or other BoD members will answer them as best we can and thank you for your continued support without which we cannot provide you with the Arrow, the archives, the database, and all the other things that you may take for granted. 

Jim Cochran 

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