The National Railway Historical Society (NRHS) has announced fourteen recipients of its annual NRHS Heritage Grants Program. The 2016 grants total $35,000 and are awarded to organizations such as historical societies, museums, and NRHS Chapters.

This year’s grants were awarded to the following recipients:

• $1,500 to the Thompson Historical Society, Inc. in Thompson, CT for archival supplies to be used to preserve and make available to the public 6000 photographs and 2000 artifacts which comprise the Frank Ramsdell Railroad Collection, a collection which spans the period from 1830 to 1954.
  
• $3,000 to the Inland Empire Railway Historical Society in Reardan, WA (Inland Empire Chapter) towards the construction of a new library room to house a forty-year collection of books, documents, maps, and photos, which collection will be part of a new Inland Northwest Rail Museum presently nearing completion.
  
• $5,000 to the Colorado Railroad Museum Historical Foundation, Inc. in Golden, CO (Intermountain Chapter) for the labor costs of elevating and leveling one- half mile of narrow gauge track damaged by winter moisture, which track repair will make possible the resumption of train rides at the museum.
  
• $1,250 to the Wilmington Railroad Museum Foundation, Inc. in Wilmington, NC for preservation and display of an uncommon Railway Express Agency jack-bed cart used to receive caskets of World War 2 casualties and transfer other bulky items.
  
• $1,500 to the Friends of the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn, NY to restore 23 seat cushions and a seat back cushion on five early 20th century New York City subway and elevated rail cars to their original appearance and condition.
  
• $2,000 to Save the Northfeld Depot in Northfeld, MN to recreate and replace missing roof brackets for the roof of a Milwaukee Road Depot built in 1888.
  
• $4,000 to the New Mexico Steam Locomotive and Railroad Historical Society in Albuquerque, NM for the cost of modern (non-asbestos) boiler insulation materials for ATSF steam locomotive #2926.
  
• $5,000 to the Southeastern Railway Museum, Inc. in Duluth, GA towards the restoration of the sides of Western Union Tool Car #3558, built in 1929, which was used for maintenance by Western Union of its telegraph lines across the nation.
  
• $250 to the Hamlet Historic Depot, Inc. for rewiring and updating internal and external running lights on a Seaboard diesel locomotive and a Seaboard wooden caboose located next to active railroad tracks and part of a three building complex.
  
• $4,000 to the Oklahoma Railway Museum Ltd in Oklahoma City, OK (Central Oklahoma Chapter) for costs of materials to be used in the restoration of a unique MKT inspection car #1045.
  
• $1,500 to the Minnesota Transportation Museum, Inc. in St. Paul, MN towards the floor restoration of Great Northern Railway car #1084, the “Twin Ports”, a buffet-parlor-observation car formerly used on GN’s Twin Ports Line.
  
• $3,000 to the New England Electric Railway Historical Society, Inc. in Kennebunkport, ME to purchase materials for portions of the exterior restoration of interurban car, the “Narcissus”, the last surviving car from the Portland-Lewiston interurban line and the car which carried President Teddy Roosevelt in 1912.
  
• $1,000 to the Slaton Railroad Heritage Association, Inc. in Slaton, TX for the exterior restoration of a wooden caboose which sits in front of a restored and operating Harvey House.
  
• $2,000 to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Historical Society in Baltimore, MD to purchase shelves and acid free archival supplies to house a collection of B & O photos and paper files in a new building to be owned by the Society in Eldersburg, MD. The Baltimore Chapter NRHS sponsored the B&O Historical Society in their grant application.

For more information about the NRHS Heritage Grants Program, please go to: http://nrhs.com/program/heritage-grants