We Are All About Model Railroading
The members of the Black Swamp Division of the North Central Region of the National Model Railroad Association would like to invite you to join us for our monthly meetings from September through May, centered around the great hobby of Model Railroading. New/curious individuals who would like to try out participating in the Black Swamp Division may attend a meeting as a guest. The NMRA is open to ALL scales and ALL skill levels of model railroad enthusiasts!
The educational component of the Black Swamp Division is always looking for new and better ways to share information for the good of the hobby and enlightenment of it’s membership. Our meetings include a clinic or tutorial showing new techniques or sharing some knowledge about the hobby. We welcome new ideas! Please use our contact form if you have recommendations for learning/clinics or have information to share.
In accordance with the National Model Railroad Association rules governing liability and insurance coverage for NMRA events, the Black Swamp Division is a 100% NMRA membership organization. Your dues to the NMRA automatically make you a member of the Black Swamp Division of the North Central Region and the National Model Railroad Association. Non-members are welcome to visit as a guest and experience the friendship and sharing of the hobby at the Black Swamp! Use the contact form to let us know your interest or visit the Join Us page for information on how to join the NMRA!
About the Black Swamp
The Black Swamp Division includes the Ohio counties of Crawford, Defiance, Fulton, Hancock, Henry, Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky, Seneca, Williams, Wood, Wyandot, and the Michigan counties of Lenawee, and Monroe. If you live within the bounds of our division we would really like to see and hear from you.
The Black Swamp Division is the name of Division 1 of the North Central Region (NCR) of the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA). The name “Black Swamp Division” was adopted because a large area of the division was at one time covered by the “Great Black Swamp”.
The Great Black Swamp was a massive swampy area that covered areas of northwest Ohio, sections of lower Michigan, and extreme northeast Indiana, that existed until the late 19th century. The area was about 25 miles (40 km) wide (north to south) and 100 miles (160 km) long, covering an estimated 1,500 square miles (4,000 km2). The great swamp was gradually drained and settled in the second half of the 19th century creating some of the most fertile farm land in the mid-west.
More information about the Black Swamp can be found on the Division page.
How to Join
Joining is easy and can be done at the NMRA website! See our Join Us page for additional details and why joining can benefit you. Before you join, we highly recommend you visit one of our monthly meetings as a guest, meet the crew and get to know what we are about.
Joining and participating in the NMRA gets you discounts from suppliers, the NMRA Magazine, the annual calendar and much more. The real rewards from being an NMRA member is sharing, growing and learning about the Worlds Greatest Hobby, Model Railroading with friends!