Another related photo for the Friendship train story. Also from the Louisville Journal/Courier: Fred Cannon, Assistant General Freight Agent for the Monon at Louisville is shown "prepping" the car that will carry Louisville's donations to Chicago. 

Was curious so I did a little research… here are a few highlights:
Founding:
The Yellowstone brand was founded in 1872 to honor America's first national park.
Resurrection:
After a decline, the brand was resurrected by the Beam brothers and is now produced by Limestone Branch Distillery.

Our Annual Convention, celebrating our 50th year is right around the corner. The registration fee is $125 before September 1. After September 1, the fee increases to $150. If you plan to attend, please get your registration form in the mail soon. This also helps us to better plan the logistics for the weekend. A registration form is attached to this email. (Remember transportation is provided to French Lick and return on Saturday only, you must provide for your transportation the rest of the convention.


Friday September 26 starts off in Salem, IN at 10:00 a.m.  Our archives will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Rick Dreistadt, former Monon Dispatcherwill be present to answer any questions you may have or assist you with drawings, plans, or records.



Friday morning at 10:00 is also our walk on the newly paved Monon South Trail over the former Monon roadbed.  We plan to walk to the site of the Fogg wreck south of Salem.  It is about 1 mile each way. (You may want to consider bringing your bicycle and riding the entire paved section of the trail).




At noon we will tour the Historic Becks Mill, which was restored by the late Bill Cook. The mill has a Monon Railroad connection as this is where the Monon purchased ground corn meal, provided special [not allowed]mas bags, and then handed them out to customers all along the Monon.



We move to Bedford for the evening. Our Social Hour begins at 5:00 p.m. at the historic Indiana Limestone Company Building (there will be a cash bar). We will have access to the banquet room and courtyard. Dinner will be in the banquet room at 6:30 p.m.



At approximately 7:30 we will have at least three presentations. Frank Van Bree and Rick Dreistadt will share their experiences while employed by the Monon Railroad. George Lortz will give a presentation covering the beginnings of the Monon Railroad Historical-Technical Society share the many accomplishments made by society members over the past 50 years.


Saturday morning the bus leaves for French Lick from the Indiana Limestone Building parking lot in Bedford at 9:00 a.m. Don’t miss the bus! We will tour the magnificent West Baden Springs Hotel which was also restored by the late Bill Cook.



Saturday at 1:00 p.m. we will be on board the French Lick Scenic Railway headed south on former Southern Railway trackage. (The Monon trackage ended a short distance south of State Road 56 crossing).


We return to Bedford for the evening and will meet back at the banquet room inside the Indiana Limestone Company Building. This is our traditional “night owl” and the evening begins at 7:00 p.m. with a special guest, Bob Schultz. Bob, like his father, worked for the Monon and is a true railroad man. He will share his experiences and answer any questions you may have. Additional programs will be presented later in the evening. You do not want to miss these programs!


Sunday morning we will have the annual business meeting at 10:00 a.m. in the Downtown Depot (former Milwaukee Road Depot) at 1401 J Street in Bedford.


Then at 11:00 we will have the Train and Collectors Show in the Depot . The admission is free to everyone and the show will end at 2:00 p.m. See you there!


We plan to return to the north end for the 2026 Convention.



Any questions contact Ron Simunic at 812 332-7306 or email simunic22@att.net

Below, a registration form is attached to this email.


                Thank you for being a member of the MRHTS!

Jim Craig President

jimcraig5185@gmail.com


Attachments:

1. THE 50th MONON ANNUAL CONVENTION Registration Form       
     
  THE 50th MONON ANNUAL CONVENTION Registration Form

2. CONVENTION FLYER 50th
  Convention Flyer 50th

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Download the 25-3 E-News PDF:

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Rick,

Great film.  Lots of Monon and pretty fair quality!!!

I downloaded it so have my own copy.  Let me know and I'll send it.

George L.

Volunteers are needed to work on 81532 the week of July 14 through 18 at the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum in North Judson, Indiana.
Your help is needed even if you can only help for just part of a day. Contact me to learn more about the schedule. 812 583-5185 or jimcraig5185@gmail.com.  Counting on you Heggi!!!



Annual Convention 2025  Convention Registration forms were mailed out June 18th to the membership. If for some reason you did not receive you convention information in the mail, both forms are attached to this email at the bottom. The society was started in 1975 so this year is our 50th year and a great MONON weekend is planned! Don’t get left out and be sure your registration form is received by September 1st! Tables for the Train and Collectors Show on Sunday are still available. Any questions contact Ron Simunic at 812 332-7306 or email simunic22@att.net


2025 Mini Convention was held at the Salem Depot on Saturday March 15 and was well attended. This was our fourth mini convention and another one is planned for 2026. It was a fun day of excellent presentations, models for sale, socializing and discussing our favorite railroad. We also made a few bucks to help with our expenses. We may have a limited number of vendor tables available next year at the mini convention only open to members.


A New Society Model will be available at the Stores table during the convention. These are Accurail / Digital Fox 40 ft box cars with four different road numbers. These cars have not been produced by the society before. (See photo below). After the convention they will be for sale on our website.



The other modeling project, headed up by MRHTS member Wayne Zeman, is the Monon Wide vision caboose. This is by far the most requested Monon model our membership has asked for. It will be a 3D printed model and we hope to have a sample to display by the convention in September. Below is some pre-production artwork, the model will have a complete interior also.





           Thank you for being a member of the MRH-TS!

Jim Craig President
jimcraig5185@gmail.com 



Attachments:

1. THE 50th MONON ANNUAL CONVENTION Registration Form       
     
  THE 50th MONON ANNUAL CONVENTION Registration Form

2. CONVENTION FLYER 50th
  Convention Flyer 50th

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Download the 25-2 E-News PDF:

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