Program Meetings are held, unless otherwise noted, at 8:00 PM on the Third Thursday of the month at the Union Church in Waban, 14 Collins Road, Newton, MA. These feature programs with speakers knowledgeable about railroad operations, history and travel. Upcoming programs are listed below.
On the first Tuesday of each month we hold a more informal social gathering: FIRST TUESDAY. This is where we usually prepare a trip flyer or our monthly newsletter, the Callboy, for mailing. These sessions are also held at the Union Church in Waban, starting rather casually about 7:00 PM and are usually followed by an impromptu slide show or video program unless there is a Board meeting or the work session runs unusually late. Members and non-members alike are welcome.
For last minute updates or meeting cancellations in bad weather, please call our information line at 978-470-2066.
UPCOMING Third Thursday Program Meetings
With the surge in infections as a result of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, we have once again suspended in-person meetings at least through April. Meetings will continue to be held monthly and streamed remotely via Zoom video webinar and simultaneously live-streamed on the Mass Bay RRE Facebook page. Video of our Third Thursday programs is available for later viewing on Facebook or the Mass Bay RRE YouTube channel.
You DO NOT have to be a Facebook user to access our live stream!
PAST Third Thursday Program Meetings
Past Third Thursday program meetings may be viewed at any time on the Mass Bay RRE Facebook page
or the Mass Bay RRE YouTube channel. For details of previous Third Thursday programs that are available for viewing, go to the PAST MEETINGS PAGE.
Thursday, February 17, 8:00 PM via Zoom & Facebook live stream:
Carl Fowler presents 'Colorado Steam Adventure 2021'
A"Trains of Memory" tells the story of the end of the private carrier services in the USA and Canada, and argues that amazingly, fifty years on from 1971, many of the routes are "Living Ghosts", still providing real services every day. The program includes Mr. Fowler's photography from over 50 years, including last run coverage of such famed trains as the true Santa Fe Chief, the Rio Grande's Prospector and Yampa Valley Mail, the final Texas Zephyr and survivors like the California Zephyr (and the Rio Grande Zephyr). Pre-Amtrak pictures are contrasted with contemporary shots and, because Mr. Fowler served as an agent for both Amtrak and VIA, he will show some superb advertising work that was rarely if ever seen. The great trains live on in memory – but also reality, more than we might realize. (Right: The last Rio Grande Zephyr train 18 at Salt Lake City on April 12 1983, just before its departure for Denver. The mudslide at Thistle, Utah closed the line the next day. (Carl Fowler)
Carl Fowler spent most of his adult life running Rail Travel Center/Rail Travel Adventures, a passenger train specialist travel and tour service. As a result he was able to accumulate over 350,000 miles of rail travel all over the world. He has been a member of the Rail Passengers Association/NARP for 50 years, was an RPA Vice Chair, and serves on the Vermont Rail Advisory Council, which helps VTRANS with its Amtrak and freight rail programs. Mr. Fowler made the original proposal to create the daylight Vermonter when Amtrak announced it would cancel the Montrealer in 1995. He attended college in Colorado in the 1960s and worked in Denver through 1981, using his indestructible VW Beetle to chase trains both standard and narrow gauge. He rode the private passenger services pre-Amtrak (including far too many "last runs"), and since 1971 has ridden virtually every Amtrak route, including some that are no more.
To view the program LIVE, click the link below
on Feb. 17 at 8:00 PM.
(Zoom Webinar link will be available about 1 week before the program)
VIEW IN ZOOM WEBINAR
Thursday, March 17, 2021, 8:00 PM via Zoom & Facebook live stream:
PROGRAM TO BE ANNOUNCED
To view the program LIVE, click the link below
on March 17 at 8:00 PM.
(Zoom Webinar link will be available about 1 week before the program)
VIEW IN ZOOM WEBINAR
WE NEED MEETING PROGRAMS AND PRESENTERS!
We are now developing our Winter and Spring 2022 programs. To offer or suggest a program, contact us at info@massbayrre.org or call us at 978-470-2066.
We are also seeking volunteers for our Program Crew, to take responsibility for all aspects of our Third Thursday meetings, including refreshments, room set-up, audio-visual setup, etc. If you are interested in being part of the team, please contact us. No long-term commitment or special skills necessary - we need people who can be relied on the show up and make sure the program is ready to go at 8:00.
First Tuesday 'Members' Night' Meetings
(Held on the first Tuesday of odd-numbered months)
First Tuesday 'Members' Night' meetings are currently being conducted as a Zoom video webinar and will be live-streamed on our Facebook page, where they are also available for viewing later. The next 'Members' Night' will be Tuesday, March 1, 2022.
If you have photos or video that you'd like to show, please contact us!
To view the First Tuesday program LIVE, click a link below
on March 1 at 8:00 PM.
(Zoom Webinar link will be available about 1 week before the program)
VIEW IN ZOOM WEBINAR
Meeting Location
MBRRE Program Meetings are usually held at the Union Church at 14 Collins Road (corner of Beacon Street), Waban, MA, (near the Waban MBTA stop on the Green Line):
If you are arriving on the T, exit the station onto Beacon St.; the Church is adjacent to the Waban Station.
If you are driving, take Exit 21 East off Route 128 (I-95) onto Rte. 16 (Washington St.). At the first traffic light east of 128 fork right onto Beacon St. and go 0.9 mile. The Union Church is on the right just before Beacon Street jogs to the left over the Green Line. If the church lot is full you may park on the street or in the Waban Station parking lot. CLICK FOR MAP
Check the Callboy or the website to confirm date, time, and location of meetings.
Contact Us:
Massachusetts Bay Railroad Enthusiasts, Inc.
P.O. Box 4245
Andover, MA 01810-0814, or
Information Line 978-470-2066
Email: info@massbayrre.org or visit our "Contact Us" page.
