Donating Items to the NKPHTS Archives

If you have historical material such as documents, drawings, or photos/slides relating to the Nickel Plate Road, we encourage you to consider donating these to the NKPHTS for inclusion in the Society’s archives as part of the Nickel Plate Road Historical Collections™. 

Contributions of historical material relating to the Nickel Plate Road, its predecessors and constituent railroads (the Toledo, St. Louis & Western, Lake Erie & Western, and Wheeling & Lake Erie) and affiliated railroads (the Detroit & Toledo Shore Line, Peoria & Pekin Union Railroad, Litchfield & Madison Railway, Illinois Terminal Company, Toledo Terminal Railroad Co., Cleveland Union Terminal Co., and Kokomo Belt Line) are accepted for deposit at the society's Historical Collections housed at the Western New York Railway Historical Society. The Nickel Plate Road Historical Collections™ is the largest archive of its kind dedicated to the Nickel Plate Road and includes thousands of items, including The Howard W. Ameling Photograph Collection and material related to the Nickel Plate from The Gustave W. Erhardt Collection. It is also the repository for the Charles H. Geletzke Detroit & Toledo Shore Line Collection.

Qualified historical material includes photographs, color slides, postcards, track plans, painting & lettering diagrams, public & employee timetables, books, pamphlets, promotional material, historical documents and other ephemera of historic significance to the Nickel Plate, its employees and its operations.

The NKPHTS accepts single items and complete collections for long-term preservation on a nonrestricted basis, as long as the material relates to the mission of the society and the objectives of its Historical Collections. All contributions of historical material are fully tax-deductible and those with a fair market value of more than $250.00 may be accepted under the provisions of a written Transfer Deed at the request of the donor.

Brian J. Carlson, Collections Management Director
NKPHTS, Inc.
P.O. Box 583
Ansonia, OH 45503-0583

If you are interested in more information concerning the NKPHTS’s preservation policies and our Digital Imaging Program, please click here.