Introduction

Introduction Join the NAOTC - About Us and Membership Information Contact Us Collecting Timetables Railroad Catalog - Over 3,700 Public Timetables on display. Rail Employee Timetables - Updated July 2026 Timetable Reprint Guide The First Edition - About our newsletter The Timetable Collector - About our magazine Download over 200 Old Official Guides! 1874-1909 Links Trading Post - NOTE to Members: This page is being updated now upon request, but it still contains much outdated information. Please send updated details. Thanks!Convention Details - October 2 and 3, 2026, Owosso, Michigan Members - Our private clubhouse

Latest News

Publications:
The next issues of The First Edition and The Timetable Collector were mailed in late June. The first issue of the NAOTC Bulletin was e-mailed in June to those who provided their e-mail address to editor Steve Paris.

Current Employee Timetable List:
Updated July 2026.

2026 Convention Dates and Location Announced:
Our next convention will take place in Owosso, MI on October 2 and 3, 2026. Details and a registration form were provided with The First Edition in May 2026 and July 2026. You can also click the "Convention Details" tab in the left column for information on the location and schedule.

Website Updates and Electronic Membership Dues:
Many updates have been made to the website this year. Electronic payment for membership dues is now available via this site. "Join the NAOTC" and "Contact Us" tabs have been added. The Discussion Board for members is available now too under the "Members" tab.

As small railways grew into systems and long distance travel became more customary, the need for a timetable to display more information soon exhausted the limitations of a single sheet of paper. To facilitate this distribution and the presentation of timetables from various companies in an organized fashion, printers settled on a standard dimension of four inches wide by nine inches tall for most timetables intended for the public. First in the form of folded large sheets and later in the form of a double folded, stapled booklet, these timetables presented the offerings of the various railways to the public. Many were highly ornate and reflected the very latest in printing technology of their era. When the airlines began commercial operations in 1927, they followed along a similar path.
Left image: Classic Rail Timetables from 130 years ago!

Collecting Today

If you are fascinated by timetables - the paper that brings man into coordinated contact with the machines of transportation - then you will benefit from becoming a member of the National Association of Timetable Collectors. Serving as a forum for collectors all across North America and the world since 1962, the NAOTC promotes the enjoyable collecting of timetables. Whether collected as historical records of transport services in a particular area, of an individual company's activities, or simply as fine examples of the printer's art, you will find that timetables become more informative and enjoyable with membership in the NAOTC. Our members' interests range through a wide variety of bus, air, rail employee, rail public and marine timetables of all dates. Members gather at our annual convention, as well as at local shows held at various locations throughout North America. They keep advised of current activities through The First Edition, our monthly newsletter. They also receive our quarterly magazine, The Timetable Collector, which features articles on timetables from the past and present.
Right image: Classic Air Timetables courtesy of AirTimes