About us

Milwaukee Road Historical Association, European Division: MRHAGBI is the European arm of MRHA. For historians, enthusiasts and modelers, and anyone interested in North American Railroads, the Division has, since 1999, been making the Milwaukee more widely known over here. Every year we have an away weekend in Ilkley, Yorkshire, when we take the MRHAGBI Roadshow and our “0” gauge layout to the Lionel Collectors Convention. We also take the roadshow to other events.

For visitors to this site who are new to the Milwaukee - it got going in 1850 and sold up in 1985 - it went bust in 1925, 1935 and 1977. In 1905, years after everybody else had got there, it decided to build an extension known as Lines West to the West Coast and because of the grades over the mountains 2 separate electric sections were incorporated into the new build. Unique and exceptionally interesting electric locomotives were utilized on these. Trans con passenger trains ended in 1961 and electrification in 1974 - Lines West finally being abandoned in 1980. During its life the railroad built a large proportion of its uniquely designed motive power, passenger and freight cars in house in a large complex in Milwaukee, its approach to business was extremely innovative - it claimed to be “America’s Resourceful Railroad”. The Lines West cessation in 1980 was highly controversial and members can join the Milwaukee Road discussion group where there are often spirited discussions over the merits and disbenefits of this action. Modellers of the Milwaukee also have a discussion group and operators in O and HO gauges have a big range of MR RTR available. N, S, Z & I also have manufacturers producing prototypes based on the railroad. Every year parent MRHA holds a convention anywhere on the railroad and Lines West also fields one on the Western end. Info. on these are at the MRHA and Lines West web sites.

MRHAGBI operates a discussion group that is available to members