The Great River Amateur Radio Club is happy to announce that this summer, 2022, it will sponsor an on-the-air event celebrating Iowa's rich railroad history. It will be called IRROTA, or in other words, Iowa Railroads on the Air. The event will run through the months of July and August 2022. This will be a great opportunity to remember Iowa's railroad history and the railroad depots across the state. Website: The Great River Amateur Radio Club will have a website where you can upload the name of the depot(s) you worked from and the contacts you made. It will also contain the rules pertaining to the IRROTA event.

Iowa has approximately 375 former railroad depots. Most have been abandoned, others are active railroad depots, some, such as the one in Dubuque have become museums, some have become business buildings, and some have been drug to other sites to serve other purposes. You can operate from any of these train depots. However, if you work from one that has become a business you will of course need to have permission; and if you work from one that is an active train station you probably also need permission. Of course, you'll want to stay out of the way so there are no accidents or problems.

Background

While not as soon as on the more populous East Coast railroad routes, railroad transportation in Iowa began by the late 1840s. Iowa had approximately 655 miles of track in operation by 1860, and another 2683 miles by 1870. The mileage grew to almost 9200 by the turn-of-the-century and peaked between 1911 and 1917 with more than 10,500 roadway miles of track.

Iowa's farms with the rich black soil were growing prodigious amounts of grain, corn, and soybeans that needed to get to the markets. In addition, railroads were needed to send pigs and cattle to the Chicago slaughterhouses and Eastern markets. Coal and other minerals were mined and required transportation; and finally, manufacturing began for the agriculture market. John Deere and other manufacturers of agricultural tractors and implements needed transportation to reach markets beyond the state of Iowa.

It should be further noted that Iowa held, and still holds today, an important geographical transportation position in the United States. Major railways cross it as a part of a national network for coast-to-coast rail traffic.

Rules

1. Activators cannot use any terrestrial repeaters. Communications must be by HF or VHF/UHF simplex.

2. Activators can use any suitable mode, such as SSB, FT-8, CW, PSK-31, etc.

3. As usual, activators must abide by FCC rules.

4. Activators are cautioned to seek permission when operating from any train depot that is now a museum, a private business entity, on private land, or part of an active railroad station. However, public visibility is always an asset and an opportunity to represent amateur radio to the public.

5. Activators will exercise caution when operating from any of the sites mentioned above.

6. When claiming a certificate, your contacts must be uploaded on the club's website with the name of the site from which you operated.

7. The club will post on its website one or two pictures from each of your activations. However, they must show the depot from which you operated. In some cases, the name of the railroad station/depot may still be visible on the building. In which case try to capture the name in the pictures you submit.

8. The club reserves the right to remove any activations that do not comply with the rules.

QSL certificate

The Great River Amateur Radio Club will provide a certificate of acknowledgment to any individual or club activating five stations. And a special certificate will be given to the club or individual who activates the most railroad depots. The Great River Amateur Radio Club will also provide a QSL card to any hunter station that sends the club a SASE.