Iowa Central Modular Railroad hosted at Green Hills Community

May 19, 2022 | News Releases | Reading Time 2:00 Minutes

MEDIA CONTACT: Bailey Upton Marketing Coordinator, Green Hills Community 515-357-5000

May 19, 2022 (AMES, IOWA) –Green Hills Community located south of Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa was the site host to the Iowa Central Modular Railroad Exhibit. Hundreds of modular train enthusiasts traveled from across the state to attend this model show.

The Iowa Central Modular Railroad was started over 40 years ago by a group interested in modeling the trains that were passing through Marshalltown. The group’s name was based upon a railroad that originated in Marshalltown in the late 1800s and grew through mergers and bankruptcies to the Minneapolis and St. Louis, Chicago Northwestern, and now the Union Pacific.

Green Hills Resident Joe Ludley, and model train connoisseur, presented the idea of hosting the event at the Green Hills Community Room. The campus large event spaces were the perfect space to host this huge crowd!

Electric trains have evolved from the simple transformer and two wires to the track to a modern digital command control processes (DCC) which requires a decoder in the locomotive and enables many locomotives to run on the same track. They can be controlled by an app on a cell phone. The decoder can facilitate with addition of a speaker to the locomotive sounds and speech announcements from the locomotives. Some modelers even like to add graffiti and weathering to their cars to replicate what they see passing through towns today.

Kat Kilbane, Green Hills executive director, said, “We always welcome hosting large arrays of events, social and civic groups, and continuing education programs for our residents and the greater community!”

For more information about Green Hills, please call 515-357-5000 or visit www.greenhillsrc.com.