Paco Railroad Station Project

    The railroad line from Tutuban to Muntinlupa and Paco Railroad Station will celebrate its 100 years anniversary in 2008. The Manila Belt Line from Tutuban to Paco Station and Paco Station to Binakayan, Cavite of the Manila Railroad Company opened on March 25, 1908 while the branch to the south, the Paco to Muntinlupa railroad line opened on June 21, 1908. With the closure of the Manila-Dagupan line in the early 1990s, the Manila Belt Line to Paco Railroad Station and Paco Railroad Station to Muntinlupa is now the oldest railroad line still in operation here in the Philippines.

    On February 9, 1945, a group of American soldiers together with Philippine guerrilla forces gallantly fought the Japanese Army to retake the Paco Railroad Station. An Indian American and a Spanish American soldier received the Congressional Medal of Honor Award, the highest award that can be given to an American soldier, for their efforts in retaking the Paco Railroad Station. The capture of the Paco Railroad Station caused the crucial defeat of the remaining Japanese forces in Manila.

     The Railways and Industrial Heritage Society of the Philippines, Inc. will spearhead the research and complete documentation of the Paco Railroad Station and surrounding communities and will play a major role in securing the declaration of the Paco Railroad Station as a National Historical Landmark. The restoration of Paco Railroad Station to its old glory will also be part of the efforts of the society.

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 Restoration of PNR Buda 21 and 22

The Railways and Industrial Heritage Society of the Phils., Inc. signed a Memorandum of Agreement for the restoration and preservation of PNR Buda 21 and 22 railcars.  The PNR Buda 22 will be exhibited at the Tutuban Station Lobby while Buda 21 will be used for PNR heritage inspection of the society.  Both railcars are now currently being restored in the workshop of one of the members.

MRR 350 Collection Exhibit

The Railways and Industrial Heritage Society of the Phils., Inc. recently acquired from the U.S. National Archives more than 1,200 photos of the Manila Railroad Company from 1907 to 1917.  Part of the collection will be exhibited together with the Buda 22 at the Tutuban Station Lobby.  Photos of the Main Line South will also be exhibited at the San Pablo City Musem.