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James Merlin "Jimmy" Fredrickson was born to Martin and Addie Biner Fredrickson on December 19,1926 in Tacoma, Washington. He graduated from Stadium High School in 1945. By that time he had already begun working as a call boy for the Northern Pacific Railroad Company while still a high school student. He moved up the line of progression to telegraph operator, train dispatcher, chief dispatcher, and finally Transportation Assistant for the Burlington Northern Railroad Company. His love for the railroad and his artistic eye with a camera made him one of the foremost authorities on railroading. He was also the author of three books on life on the railroad, with each page featuring a railroad photo and a personal story to go with it.

The Friends of the Burlington Northern Railroad (FOBNR) historical society was incorporated in the state of Idaho on January 3, 1993. It was chartered to gather, preserve, and share information about the history and the current operations of the Burlington Northern Railroad. The group began with about 140 members absorbed from the Burlington Northern Historical Society, an un-incorporated interim organization interested in studying the history of the Burlington Northern Railroad. In 1996, following the merger between Burlington Northern and Santa Fe, the group voted to follow the Burlington Northern from 1970 to 1995 and the BNSF from 1995 to the present. Then in 2018 we added coverage of the Montana Rail Link.
The Friends of the Burlington Northern Railroad‘s primary mission is to preserve the history and chronicle the operation of the Burlington Northern Railroad and its successors, including the Montana Rail Link. The organization strives to maintain and disseminate information and records of historical relevance from the railroad’s inception in 1970 and following the merger between Burlington Northern and Santa Fe from 1996 to the present.

The Society was founded by Charles F. Martin in 1973 under the name "The Fraternal Order of Empire Builders", and it was dedicated to the preservation of everything related to the Great Northern Railway. In 1982 the Society name became "The Great Northern Railway Historical Society". With this name change the Society also became chartered under the not-for-profit laws of the State of Illinois, and acquired tax exempt status from the Federal government under the provisions of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Under the original name of "The Fraternal Order of Empire Builders", journals containing facts, photographs, drawings and general information relating to the Great Northern Railway and its predecessor companies were published. With the revised name, The Great Northern Railway Historical Society (GNRHS) continues that tradition. Each quarterly issue of the GNRHS 'Goat' normally contains sixteen pages of general information and society affairs, new member lists, member sales and want items, and books/videos listings of subjects related to the GN and its pre/post merger corporate identities. Issues include 40 to 60 additional pages within separately stapled titles known as Reference Sheets. Each issue of the 'Goat' also contains a section of pages dedicated to GN modeling, the Modelers' Pages.