Our 38th annual convention was held inAustin, TX on October 4-7, 2018.

The convention hotel was the Drury Inn & Suites Austin North. 

Our activities, this year, included a charter train trip on the property of the Austin Steam Train Association. During this event, we had an opportunity to inspect some former MoPac rolling stock which included passenger equipment and a caboose. Following the train trip, we will had an opportunity to tour the Georgetown Railroad faclities which are located nearby.

We had all of the usual events including presentations, business meeting, swap meet and model display.

Registration information: Click Here

Hotel information: Click Here 

Convention Flyer: Click Here

Charter Train Ride: Click Here 

Convention T-Shirt: Click Here

Activity Schedule: Click Here

Note from the President:

I made a “reconnaissance” trip to Austin during the second weekend of March. I am happy to report that all looks very good. The hotel facility is quite nice and has been recently renovated. I was quite pleased with the quality of my room. As we have pointed out, elsewhere, the free breakfast, and the evening drink and food offering (5:30 Kickback) are good values and help offset the cost of your room. Please use the reservation link above or ask for the MPHS rate when you call to make your reservation. The cost of our meeting space is significantly reduced if you reserve your room as part of the MPHS block of room nights. Due to traffic conditions and other factors, I highly recommend that you use the Drury Inn for your stay. You may find a different facility with a cheaper rate, but I think you will find the frustration of getting back and forth not to be worth the financial savings.

I visited the Austin Steam Train Site in Cedar Park and I was very impressed by their operation. Negotiations for the charter train trip should be completed by the end of April. Once finalized, additional details will be posted on this page. Our train will consist of seven to eight cars and will be pulled by a GP40 in a quasi MoPac paint scheme. I toured all of the cars and they are all nicely restored. Our trip will take us to Burnet and back with a stop at the depot in Bertram. This is on an active railroad that sees both freight and commuter operations with a maximum speed of 40 mph. This is about as close as you can get to real railroading on a tourist type operation. The trip will begin on Friday morning with a return to Cedar Park in the early afternoon. A box lunch will be offered as an extra fair amenity. This is a must do activity. Make your plans, now.

We are still seeking some individuals that are interested in making a presentation. This year’s schedule will have a reduced number of presentation slots due to the train trip and other activities. So, get your name in the hat real soon. If your are interested, contact me, ASAP, at [email protected].

For you T-Shirt fans, we will have a special shirt created for this event. It will feature a reference to the I-GN which was the predecessor road to MP’s operation in Austin. A listing will be posted just as soon as the design is finalized.

Austin is a very popular vacation and leisure destination. There will be plenty of activities for spouses in addition to the train ride. Additional information will be coming very soon. I strongly suggest that you get your work schedule adjusted and your hotel reservation made very soon. 

I hope to see you at Austin in October.

Kevin