Club History
The club was first formed in June 1998 by 3 friends (David, John & Trevor C) who wanted to enjoy various aspects of modelling and their hobbies. The original name, the Group of Ellesmere Modellers (GEM) was chosen to reflect the variations of the hobby that the earlier members preferred. John and David worked closely with model railways and, like the others from those days, enjoyed radio controlled boats.
John sadly passed away on 23rd January 2015, but he still tinkered with kits up until he was hospitalized. In 2007 he presented his N gauge "ELLESMERE" layout based on the towns Cambrian / GWR railway to the club. He had also donated his 009 gauge "KWITCHABELIAIKIN" layout (a 35 .5 foot long) fictitious railway, loosely based on Ellesmere Wharf and the Peat Moss near Whixall) to EMRC with the intention that we continue to promote the hobby to all. Unfortunately the layout was very badly water damaged but we have managed to salvage the 3 main sections he was most proud of; we have now rebuilt and run the shortened layout under its new name "MERES & MOSSES LIGHT RAILWAY". He had plans to start a new layout for winter 2014 - 2015, but it was never started.
Trevor eventually moved away from the area. His model boats were absolutely superb and were of the highest museum quality finish.
David had worked in several film & tv departments over the years with sci-fi props & models and was then worked for the Dapol Model Railway & BBC Exhibition Centre in Llangollen so has various skills and experience to pass on; hence why he initially started the club. As a Westerns fan, he always loved the old American Standard 4-4-0 wood burners and their like, with their wide smoke stacks belching thick black smoke and sparks, and the front triangular pilots or cowcatchers. Currently a Moderator on the History Forum of the Bonanza Boomers website, writing articles about the historic railroads of the west, he is designing his own HO layout loosely based on the old Virginia & Truckee Railroad in Nevada, with some influences from other more scenic railroads like the Durango & Silverton Railroad.
Twentyone plus years later, and David is now the last of the original founder members. The Club has moved on over the last few years from a general modelling group to concentrate purely on model railways, and now has a growing core membership of enthusiasts.
It was agreed to change the club name to Ellesmere Model Railway Club and the 2014 model railway show during the Ellesmere Festival weekend (13th & 14th September) saw the new club name and logo succeed the old one.
We welcome anyone who has an interest in model railways and would like to come to one of our weekly meetings. You never know, you might want to join us, the more the merrier. Tea, coffee and biscuits are the order of the day. Just contact us via the link on the contacts page. You can also look us up on Facebook, though I'm still trying to get my head around that one! Anyone interested in taking that on?
Twentyone plus years later, and David is now the last of the original founder members. The Club has moved on over the last few years from a general modelling group to concentrate purely on model railways, and now has a growing core membership of enthusiasts.
It was agreed to change the club name to Ellesmere Model Railway Club and the 2014 model railway show during the Ellesmere Festival weekend (13th & 14th September) saw the new club name and logo succeed the old one.
We welcome anyone who has an interest in model railways and would like to come to one of our weekly meetings. You never know, you might want to join us, the more the merrier. Tea, coffee and biscuits are the order of the day. Just contact us via the link on the contacts page. You can also look us up on Facebook, though I'm still trying to get my head around that one! Anyone interested in taking that on?
