Southern Pacific / Santa Fe – Gilbert Model Railroad Club (GMRC)
The GMRC (Gilbert Model Railroad Club) consists of railroad enthusiasts who are modeling central Arizona during the 1950’s in HO scale.
The layout includes parts of the SP (Southern Pacific) and the SF (Santa Fe) railroads. Modeled areas include Gilbert, Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, Glendale, Wickenburg, Prescott and more.
There are yards in Phoenix for both SF and SP plus a yard in Picacho and a yard in Mesa.
Most of the layout is double-decked with two helixes at the north and south extremes.
GMRC is a club of railroad enthusiasts who are modeling (HO Scale) middle Arizona during the mid 50’s era.
Our layout is located in the basement of the Gilbert Historical Museum and includes part of the Southern Pacific and the Santa Fe railroads serving Arizona.
Key focus areas include Gilbert, AZ and the surrounding area; Phoenix rail yards, passenger service and notable industries;
The Southern Pacific serves select Arizona mines and also serves surrounding communities including, Mesa, Tempe, Chandler.
The Gilbert Model Railroad Club was started by a nucleus of modelers from a former home based layout in Tempe, AZ.
Working through mutual contacts, this group and key leadership at the Gilbert Historical Museum launched the concept of a functional layout in the basement of the museum with Gilbert as the key focal point and diorama.
From this beginning, the GMRC was able to establish a long term agreement with the HD South (Gilbert Historical Museum) and develop both the club and the layout simultaneously.
The basement entrance is on the north side of the building along Eliot road just west of Gilbert Rd.
Access to the club area and the layout are achieved through the exterior museum entrance from the parking lot on the north side of the museum.
| Owner | Gilbert Model RR Club |
| Location | Gilbert AZ |
| Prototype | Freelance SP and SF |
| Scale | HO |
| Era | 1950’s |
| Locale | Central Arizona |
| Forwarding | Car Car & Waybill |
| Control System | NEC DCC |
| Size | 38′ x 38′ |
| Style | Walkaround |
| Communication | Verbal, visual rules |
| Access | Stairs to basement |
| Pets | No |
| Smoking | No |
| Website | www.GMRCTrains.com |
| Crew Size | 8 |
| Jobs | 4 Yard, 6 Local & Road |