I am not a member of any historical society - I don't thing we have one locally that focusses on railroads. I do use online information posted by historical societies. It is extremely useful for model railroaders.
Would I be a member of a local society? Yes, but I now live on a fixed income (more or less), so membership cost would be a consideration. I would think that a brick-and-mortar association would be unecessary at this point. We have a few local museums that have railroad items, so I would assume that the bulk of the information would be in - or easily convertible to - digital format. So I would support a society that would host a Website with rich online information of the local railroad history. Hosting a Website does cost money, I would assume that membership fees to cover these would be fairly low. I would love to manage such a "branch" for our local MR club, but I don't think there would be sufficient support for it.
Simon
I've been with the Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac HS since the beginning. Regular membership is $20/year. Four quarterly meetings (held in Fredericksburg) and a quarterly magazine. Meetings are free and open to the public. I'm three plus hours from FBG so have never been to a meeting. They've sponsored special runs of models with manufacturers and have a variety of merchandise and books. The publication might focus on specific equipment, operations, or stories from former employees. The HS also maintains an archives which is available online to anyone.
For me, the $20 a year is well spent supporting the HS's activities. I think HS with a "niche" like the New Haven and RF&P will survive since they tend to have a "cult" following.
JeoffreyCat I've been with the Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac HS since the beginning. Regular membership is $20/year. Four quarterly meetings (held in Fredericksburg) and a quarterly magazine. Meetings are free and open to the public. I'm three plus hours from FBG so have never been to a meeting. They've sponsored special runs of models with manufacturers and have a variety of merchandise and books. The publication might focus on specific equipment, operations, or stories from former employees. The HS also maintains an archives which is available online to anyone. For me, the $20 a year is well spent supporting the HS's activities. I think HS with a "niche" like the New Haven and RF&P will survive since they tend to have a "cult" following.