CENTRAL ELECTRIC RAILFANS' ASSOCIATION

A not-for-profit technical & educational society, established in 1938

Upcoming Programs

What's new at CERA?


CERA 2nd Friday Zoom Presentation

CERA’s July 10, 2026 Zoom Presentation

Newer Short Link to Zoom

https://tinyurl.com/2ndFridayCERA 

Link to Zoom Meeting

DAVID WILSON

Traction and Steam – Sixty Years Ago

Sixty years have passed since David – your presenter – carried his Brownie Hawkeye and then Sears 35 mm camera to Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and New York to photograph traction properties there. Closer to home he documented traction on the CTA, South Shore Line, I C Electric, and RELIC trolley museum with occasional attention to steam powered excursions. Take trip in CERA’s time machine!

David Wilson has been infatuated with trains and trolley cars since infancy. As a teen-ager, he worked at the RELIC (now Fox River) Trolley Museum near Chicago. He joined CERA in Chicago at age sixteen and has presented transportation and history related programs in the nearly six decades since. He holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in transportation. In his forty-eight career he worked for four railroads and a freight forwarder. He finished his career in 2015 as a bus route planner for the Chicago Transit Authority. He has authored From Garfield ‘L’ to Blue Line Rapid Transit as well as transportation history articles. His new book Towns Along the Q, will be published this summer.

Older Longer Link to Zoom:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88929318526?pwd=ICg6ZpFwsa6fpHIQ7PDvgowdyzD1HV.1 

Meeting Number 889 2931 8526  Passcode  022656



There will also be a short In The News program preceding the regular program.

This program is open to all CERA members, their guests and the public.

Mark this date on your calendar!


If you have not yet paid your 2026 CERA Membership dues please do soon or contact me

for more information: Elmer Haneberg

elmer@corpevent.com

(773) 972-0470

DONATE

RENEW NOW

2026

Click  2026 Membership Renewal Form.docx to get a hard copy of the 2026 Membership Form for mailing


Click   2026 Membership Renewal On Line Credit Card to renew with a credit card


Please consider donating to CERA. Our members and non-members alike help us keep providing monthly programming, annual books, periodic trips and events and more. Simply click on the donate button.


JOIN OR RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP TODAY

Renew Membership On Line Here

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Year In Review: Since 1938,  Central Electric Railfans’ Association has presented programs, published books, and hosted fan trips. In 2025 CERA Published B153, The Illini Trai, and continued its successful online programs on Zoom, offering both “open-to-all” Zoom programs and programs marketed exclusively to members and prospective members. We also returned to our in-person programming at a new location and hosted a fan trip to the Minneapolis St. Paul, Minnesota where we had personal guided tours of two Trolley Museums and conducted our Fourth Friday In Person meeting and dinner. In On June 6, 2026 we have a Fan Trip planned for the East Troy Railroad Museum.

Publications: Since falling behind schedule in 2020 due to the Corona virus issues, we have been strenuously  striving to get caught up with our membership entitlements issuing B153, The Illini Trail, to our 2020 Membership, distributing three Shore Line Dispatches (a $90 value) to our 2021 Members and publishing B154, The Pittsburgh Harmony Line for our 2025 Members, scheduled to be mailed out in early 2026 and yet another entitlement for our 2022 Members before September of 2026.  That means we will have made FOUR entitlement commitments in the space of less than a year.

Historical Slides: The board has authorized exploring digitizing our extensive CERA Historical slide collection at considerable expense. Please consider an extra donation to help cover this or consider a one year bump up in your membership level .















B153 The Illini Trail

available now

CLICK HERE



Copyright 2018 Central Electric Railfans' Association. All Right Reserved 

Central Electric Railfans' Association is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.  P.O. Box 503, Chicago, IL  60690

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