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A Little History...
Railroad passes were issued by railroad officials and managers to their counterparts at other railroads as well as to family members, visiting dignitaries, politicians, and other VIP's. These passes were usually made of heavy card stock with the word "Pass" on it, along with the railroad's name, the dates for travel, and were signed and numbered. The passes were prized since they allowed free passage on the railroad's passenger trains. The practice was common amongst the railroads and many thousands of railroad passes were issued over the years. Railroad passes are now sought by railroad buffs and collectors and can value from just a few dollars to several thousand. In December 2005, a silver railroad pass from 1892 sold for $13,145 at the Heritage Signature Auction in Dallas, TX.
The following is an example of a railroad pass issued by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1916:
With the advent of model railroading, the passes continued to be issued but not for free passage. They were collected through "pass exchanging" with other model railroaders, not unlike the practice of Ham radio operators exchanging QSL cards for contacts they made on the air.
With the arrival of the Internet and email, the card stock passes have been joined by electronic or e-passes that are usually exchanged through website visits or by requesting one. The National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) has a the NMRA Pass Exchange Program for their members and you can get more information by visiting http://www.nmra.org/pikepass or by writing them at NMRA, 4121 Cromwell Road, Chattanooga, TN 37421-2119.
The Hudson Central Railroad has begun issuing railroad e-passes. Below is our e-Rail Pass:
To obtain an electronic rail pass, valid for all boarding and transport on the Hudson Central Railroad, just click on the sample pass above and fill in the body of the email with your name, email address, railroad (Company) name, web site address and attach your own electronic rail pass, if you have one. We will issue you one by return email.
To see the e-Rail Passes that we have exchanged, please click here.
