Paper Valley Model Railroad

05/17/2026

KAUKAUNA (WLUK) -- 80 years of trains and tradition.Tjis weekend, the Paper Valley Model Railroad Club is celebrating their 80th anniversary with an open house

05/17/2026

Thanks to all who came and helped us celebrate our 80th anniversary!

In addition to the multitude of trains running we unveiled our newest display of 2-rail O scale equipment that club operated all the way back in the 1950s! This was a project that was in the works for several months. Thanks to all members who participated in this impressive build! And special thanks to Pete Davis (member of the club from back in the 1950s) for donating the equipment and the turntable to the club so we could share this important history with all.

The Paper Valley Model Railroad takes pride in being one of the longest running model railroad clubs in the country. This longevity has given us a rich history that we’re excited to share with the community. We are also a very fortunate club to have such great members and guests that we’ve been able to stay operating for 80 years. We know that with that support we’ll be able to keep running for a very long time!

Thanks again for helping us celebrate!

05/16/2026

We are having fun today, 9 to 5 celebrating our 80th anniversary! Busy.busybusy! Stop by!

05/16/2026

We’re open! Come on down and check out our open house today from 9-5! We have a ton of history on display and trains running. Bring the whole family!

05/15/2026

Check out our story on WBAYs Small Towns!

The event is 9am-5pm. There is no cost required to enter, but we do appreciate any donations as it helps us keep our operations going!

The Paper Valley Model Railroad Club will celebrate 80 years of operation with an open house for the community on May 16. Emerson Lehmann takes us inside the club on this week's SMALL TOWNS.

STORY: https://www.wbay.com/2026/05/14/paper-valley-model-railroad-club-celebrates-80-years-with-open-house/

05/10/2026

On May 10, 1946 the Paper Valley Model Railroad Club was chartered as a not for profit club. During the last 80 years since then, the Club has gone through many different locations and layouts, but throughout it all we’ve remained a group of train enthusiasts who want to get together and share our love of railroading.

We’ve had the luxury of having many members who’ve been with us for a long time and have influenced our Clubs growth and development. From our departed members such as our Founder Karel Richmond and the original group around him like Louie Phillips and Les Manske, to our current long term members such as Dennis Fredericks, Don Coonen, Bill Moede and Craig Volkman, we’ve been blessed with a strong core of talent that has shaped the club. We also had several important former members of our club like Paul Hillmer who even though they are no longer active members still had an incredible impact on the club.

Today we stand at over 60 active members of the club ranging in ages from 12 all the way to members in their 80s. We work together like a family with all members contributing to the club and its continued success. Each member brings a unique set of interests and talents to our model railroad club which blend to help us bring our layouts to life.

We would like to invite everyone who can make it come and help us celebrate our 80th Anniversary at our open house next Saturday May 16th. We want you to get a chance to see the club and to come and see historical photos and documents of the club stretching back over the 80 year history that we have.

If you have any stories of the club and any impact it had on your life we’d love to hear those too.

Please join us in wish a very happy 80th anniversary to the Paper Valley Model Railroad Club!

04/17/2026

Some history connected to the Paper Valley Model Railroad building.

WKAU AM radio was the original occupant of the clubs building. The AM station, 1050 on your radio dial is still on the air as WJOK Relevent Radio station.

Some retired radio guys have revived the WKAU call letters and music format as an internet radio station.

The 3 Retired Guys having FUN at I-105 WKAU VJ (Vern) Schmitt, Jim Rammer, & John VanEss

02/09/2026

We had a busy day on the Paper Valley yesterday. We had our first official operating session in several years and it was a great time. From members who have done operating sessions many times, to first timers who’ve never done it before, to a special guest (Paul) we were bustling with operators making sure all the industries were properly served on the layout.

We hope this revived tradition of operating sessions will keep the railroad active and thriving for years to come!

02/05/2026

We have a new hours sign! Great callback to Paper Valley Scroll (which is one of our original club logos).

Thank you, Spencer!