Chapter News

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E-MAIL TEST will be sent on Friday, October 2, 2026. Please check your spam folders for Lackawanna.chapter.rlhs@gmail.com.

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OCtober 25, 2026, Chapter Meeting at Steamtown

Our next Chapter meeting with be on Sunday, Ocober 25, 2026, 10:00 am at Steamtown, Scranton, PA. We will meet in the OSB Conference Room, located in the Maintenance Building, 150 South Washington Street, Scranton, PA. As you enter the gate, bear right, pass under the overhead crane, bear left and park.

DO NOT ENTER Steamtown via the main entrance at 350 Cliff Street, you will not be able to access the Maintenance Building from the main parking lot!

After the meeting, we will have the opportunity to inspect the MEC 645, which is housed in the Roundhouse as we continue to repair water damage in the caboose copula. We will also have the opportunity to see the WWII Troop Sleeper, which the Chapter has taken on as a restoration project. Chapter Golf Shirts and MEC 645 T-Shirts will be availabe at the meeting. Please reachout to President Mark Krisanda if you can attend, so he can better plan the meeting, 609 439-3481, or mdkrisanda@yahoo.com.

Caboose MEC #645 Displayed at Steamtown Railfest 2026.

MEC 645 Has Arrived at Steamtown!

MEC 645 arrived in this morning and will be cleaned and made ready for display at RAILFESTthis weekend.

MEC 645 Caboose is on the move!!

Our caboose is on the move! Yesterday, 8/21/26, our caboose was interchanged with the Norfolk Sothern at Three Bridges, NJ and was moved to Allentown, PA. Attached is a link showing our caboose passing the PU Tower, Phillipsburg, NJ, westbound late Friday, 8/21/26, https://www.youtube.com/shorts/QiLiAuvfY7U?t=21&feature=share It is expcected that the 645 will arrive at Steamtown NHS early next week, after interchanging with the Delaware & Lackwanna at Taylor Yard. President Mark Krisanda, (609) 439-3481, will coordinate a clean up crew to prepare the 645 for display and tours at RAILFEST 26, please reach out to him with your availability.

RAILFEST 26, will run Friday, September 4th through Sunday, September, 6th. Jim Parolski will be on site all 3 days, (609) 306-9349. Volunteers are encouraged reach out to Jim with your availability, and to celebrate the successful completion of this Chapter Project!

DL&WRR Historical Society Symposium

The Delaware Lackawanna & Western Railroad Historical Society, will conduct it’s annual Symposium on Friday, October 16 and Saturday, October 17, 2026, at the Hotel Carbondale, Carbondale, PA. Check their website for details, https://dlwhs.org

MEC 645 Caboose Update

Our caboose has had it’s COT&S completed and we are waiting on it’s ULMER Registration. Norfolk Southern will be contacted shortly to inspect it and give us a quote on the cost of shipping to Scranton. The Chapter has recieved another $2500 donation towards the move, bringing the total to $5000. More details to follow.

Steamtown & Big Boy’s Visit to Steamtown

See the Events page for details about the May 24th Steamtown clean up project in conjunction with The Iron Horse Society. Also go to the Events page for details on Big Boy’s visit to Steamtown and to purchase timed tickets for the display on June 15 & 16.

MEC Caboose 645 Update

The Chapter received a donation of $2,500 to help offset the costs involved on the movement of of the Chapter’s caboose from Ringoes, NJ to Steamtown. We have not had good luck with our brake mechanics, one died last Thanksgiving and our currnet mechanic is recovering from retina surgery. We are acquiring reporting marks for transit as well as Ulmer tracking tags.

Jersey Central Train Show, March 2, 2026, Clark, NJ

The Chapter has space at the Show and we have a great fundraising opportunity! We need several members to help out during the Show, set up is 8:00 am and the Show runs from 9 AM to 3:30 pm. If you can help out, please reach out to Mark Krisanda, 609 439-3481, mdkrisanda@yahoo.com. The Show website is www.jcrhc.org/rrshow.html.

4th Annual Local History Fair

Several members represented the Chapter at the Scranton Area Local History Fair at the Viewmont Mall in Dickson City, PA. Mark Krisanda, Daniel Smutek and Jim Parolski, manned the table where we offered R&LHS memberships, publications and several pieces Lionel DL&W rolling stock that had been donated to the Chapter for fundraising purposes.

Chapter Participated AT RailFest

The Chapter was represented at RailFest on all three days at our new pop up booth at the main entrance. We had contact with several hundred participants, introduced the Chapter and handed out membership pamphlets. A Big Thank You to our members who manned the booth, giving up part of their Labor Day weekend.

President Mark Krisanda presented The Iron Horse Society with the Chapter’s $10,000 check to start work on the WWII Troop Sleeper Restoration Project. Accepting the check is Mike Rinkunas, looking on is SteamTown NPS Superintendent, Jeremy Komasz.

Chapter Receives Donation Of Maine Central Caboose 645

The Chapter has received Maine Central extended copula Caboose #645, from William Basile. The caboose is currently stored in the Black River & Western Railroad’s Ringoes NJ yard. The caboose is good condition, Jim Parolski inspected it and placed new padlocks on the doors to secure it. BR&W has been contacted about the change of ownership and the need to have a COT&S inspection. BR&W has not yet responded to the Chapter. NPS Steamtown is interested in having the Chapter move the caboose their location. This should make for a great Chapter meeting and discussion at the September 27 meeting in Tobyhanna. Mark your calendars!

Members Only Web page is up

The Chapter’s password protected webpage is up! Those members who responded to this weekend’s email test blast will receive this year’s password later this week. If you did not receive the email, please check your spam folder for the email from Jim Parolski Treasurer (jwpnj@aol.com). Please contact Jim to update or confirm your email address.

Lackawanna Chapter RLHS Facebook Page

Over the weekend, Chapter President, Mark Krisanda, set up a Facebook page for the Chapter. Right now there is limited content, visit, friend and contribute content to the account. If you are interested in helping out or administrating the page please reach out to Mark.

WWII Troop Sleeper Project Page addeD

Chapter Merchandise

Chapter Golf shirts in Lackawanna Burgundy and gray have been designed and ordered. A price around $40 will cover the cost, with a small portion going to the Chapter. A gray embroiled baseball cap is in the design phase as well. Our Chapter golf shirts have been delivered and our RailFest volunteers may purchase them for $40 cash on site. We are not allowed to offer them or sell RLHS publications to the public at RailFest. The shirts and caps will be available for purchase at the September 27th meeting in Tobyhanna. We are working on the cost of shipping shirts and caps.

Passing of Ross Rowland, July 19, 2025

Ross was one of the founding members of the Lackawanna Chapter, R&LHS, a steam preservationist, operator of the High Iron Company and organizer of both the 1969 Golden Spike Centennial Limited and the 1975-76 American Freedom Train. He owned several mainline steam locomotives over the years and his last locomotive, C&O 614, is currently being overhauled at the Strasburg Railroad Shops. He will be long remembered and missed by the railfan community, especially in the Tri-State area.

Passing of Paul R. Hart

The Chapter lost another longtime member, Paul R. Hart, on June 1, 2025, in Scranton, PA. Paul was a lifelong resident of Scranton, who was deeply involved with several educational, historical and transportation organizations in the area.

Passing of Ken Miller

The Chapter is very sad to announce the passing of long time Chapter President, Ken Miller. Ken died on March 18, 2025, in Easton, PA. Ken fought a long-term battle with declining health but still remained very involved in preserving historical sites and artifacts in Northwest New Jersey. We have lost a great friend and historian. As per Ken’s wishes, there will be no funeral service.

Phillipsburg Station

Work Continues on restoring the Phillipsburg Union Station, headquarters of the Friends of the New Jersey Transportation Heritage Center. The front brickwork has been restored with the removal of the green paint. Interior work continues and much of the first floor has been completed.