Welcome to the Los Angeles Division, NMRA
Love trains? So do we! We are a group of model railroaders in Ventura and Los Angeles counties who share our love of trains and modeling by educating people and promoting the hobby of model railroading, helping all modelers - from beginners to experts - build their skills and capabilities, and holding in-person and virtual events.
Please look around the site to learn more about the Los Angeles Division, the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA), local rail-related museums, groups, and hobby shops, and upcoming local, regional and national model railroad events.
Spotlight On The Southern California N Scale Meet & Train Show
The Southern California N Scale Meet & Train Show was held on May 30, 2026 and was a great success! The show is an annual event organized by Frank Hinojoso bring together SoCal N Scalers and raise money for the Lomita Cavalry Church youth group. It featured clinics, vendors, and layout displays by different groups. It was a great day of talking with friends, making new friends, buying more train stuff (you can never have enough!) and being inspired by the awesome work of different modelers.
There was more good stuff than can fit in one Spotlight, so I am breaking it up over two months. This month features layouts by the N-Trak Express modular railroad club and Ron Varnell's Anywhere East and West (AEAW) N-Trak modules. Click on any photo to see a larger version and some information about it.
Text and photos by the LA Division Webmaster, Mark Fischer,
We need your help! If you have photos of a model you are proud of, a cool train-related thing you saw in the area or on a trip, or have some interesting news, please contact us so we can share it with the rest of the world.
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Upcoming Events
Some of the upcoming railroad-related events over the next few months include:
- July 6 - Rapido Trains Meet & Greet at The Train Shack, Burbank
- July 11 - TTOS/Southern Pacific Division Trains and Coffee, Yorba Linda
- July 19 - Presentation on the Lincoln Funeral Train of 1865, Redlands
- July 25 - Roundhouse Gang Swap Meet, San Bernardino
- July 27-August 2 - NMRA National Convention, Chattanooga, TN
- August 1 - TTOS/Southwestern Division Meet and Like Steamers Picnic, Arcadia
- August 22 - Santa Susana Railroad Historical Society Swap Meet and Open House, Santa Susana
- August 23 - Southern Pacific Historical and Technical Society Summer Swap Meet, Buena Park
- September 6 - TTOS/Southwestern Division Meet & Open House, Arcadia
- September 9-13 - Pacific Southwest Region NMRA Convention, San Diego
- September 26 - Los Angeles Model Railroad Society Open House and Swap Meet, Harbor City
The Los Angeles Division
We are a group of more than 200 railroad modelers in Los Angeles and Ventura counties in southern California. We are one of 150 local groups, called "divisions", of the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) across the world. The Los Angeles Division is part of the Pacific Southwest Region of the NMRA, which includes three other divisions covering Southern California, Arizona, and Southern Nevada.
We hold a monthly virtual meeting on the first Thursday of every month at 7pm. These informal "Sand House Chats" are a round-table where members can share information and talk about whatever interests them.
All Division members receive the "LA Division Coupler," the Division's quarterly newsletter via email.
In addition to our website, we share information on multiple social media sites.
- The Los Angeles Division, NMRA Facebook page (a public page that anyone can "like" to follow)
- The NMRA Los Angeles Division - A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization Facebook group (a private group for Division members)
- The Los Angeles Division, NMRA Instagram page (Coming Soon!)
The NMRA
The National Model Railroad Association is a 501(c)(3) not for profit educational organization that was founded in 1935. It is a world-wide organization with over 16,000 active members, associates, families and clubs dedicated to the hobby of scale model railroading in all its facets, supporting a hobby of many diverse interests that all relate to the greater world of trains and railroads.