Organising an American-outline model railroad group for the South East was the brain child of Peter Wilson, our first Secretary. Formed in 1998 the first meetings were held in a pub basement in Sevenoaks, Kent, and then migrated to the Montefiore Hall, Three Bridges, Crawley, for 2 years. During this time, mainly on account of the healthy increase in membership, our club adopted the name Seaboard Southern (a play on words/names of American railroads) and placed on a more formal basis by way of a constitution and committee.
In December 2000 we moved into permanent premises in Crawley, provided by Crawley Council. Unfortunately, on 26th July 2010 our clubhouse was destroyed in a fire caused by arson, resulting in the loss of years of hard work and club members’ locomotives & stock.
In 2011 we acquired new premises with an initial four year contract, and new HO modules were constructed to the NMRA BR standard. Unfortunately our lease was terminated in 2015 and everything had to be put into storage.
After a brief period in shared premises, we have now acquired a new permanent clubroom in Crawley, not far from our original (burnt-out) premises, and are busy planning our next venture!