Lesser known Railroad Museums in small towns

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Just back from Steamtown in Scranton PA. Stunning, as is the marble/tile lobby of the nearby Lackawanna depot, now the Radisson. Steamtown is part of the National Park system and free to enter. If you only have 15 minutes, spend it with the newly painted (last year) Big Boy 4012 in the parking lot. A tiny sign says you can't climb on it, but there are no ropes so you can touch whatever you can reach. It's like three stories high! ;)
If you have 30 minutes, Big Boy + inside the Roundhouse. (Actually inside, not just the turntable). But you should take several hours as all the exhibits are well done. Plus, starting this week, the steam train and trolley rides are going around the area. No one was there on a weekday afternoon and no guards are telling you not to touch things, but park rangers are there to answer questions.
 
Dassel, Minnesota about 65 west of Minneapolis has a small Railroad Museum in the old Great Northern Depot which was located to another place, but still along BNSF's freight line.]

And just a few more miles west is the Biggest Ball of Twine*! Live your dreams - just make sure to pack some potato skins and pickled wieners!

*made by a single person

 
After you ride on the Strasburg (PA) Railroad, tour the PRR Museum, see the huge Choo-Choo Barn layout, and visit the toy train museum...you can sleep in a caboose. I will be staying at the Red Caboose Motel with grandkids (for the 9th time)View attachment 28424View attachment 28425 June 24-26.
Just wanted to point out that even though the PRR is most prominent, it by no means is the only road featured here, for those not familiar…
https://rrmuseumpa.org/
 
My favorite so far, is in Ely, NV. Ely is small at 4k population, but the museum/yard is quite large. The part I really liked, is that most of the facilities are open to visitors. We walked through the large shop where they repaired locomotives, and came upon a 14 yr old volunteer who was working on a cylinder from one of the diesels. What a wonderful experience for a young gear head.
 
The Railroaders Memorial Museum in Altoona PA is also an interesting one. The museum is located within walking distance of the Altoona Amtrak station and is located in an old Pennsylvania RR roundhouse. The museum also operates the Horseshoe Curve site outside of Altoona.

It is possible to visit as a day trip from Pittsburgh via the Pennsylvanian. You do have to use Uber/cab to get to Horseshoe Curve, though as there is no public transit to that site (AFAIK). You do get to travel around Horseshoe Curve to and from Altoona in addition to visiting the site if you go by Amtrak from Pittsburgh.

https://www.railroadcity.org/
 
Not exactly a "museum" since it is the building that is the relic, not what's inside. Part of this Depot in Gainesville, Florida was built around 1860. It is one of only three surviving railroad depots in the state built prior to the start of the American Civil War

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Gainesville_Depot
 
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4 of the smaller museums/ heritage operations around the bay area

Niles Canyon Railway/ Pacific Locomotive associations Home | Niles Canyon Railway | Fremont CA
Northern California railroads with lots of steam and some rare diesels like SP 9010 a ML 4000 C’C’

Golden Gate Railroad Museum GGRM: Home
SP equipment from mid 50s typically used on the San Jose to San Fransisco commuter run

Western Pacific Railway museum WPRM Home
Western Pacific mixed with a bit of SP and other local roads

Western Railway museum Historic Train Exhibits Vintage Streetcar - Western Railway Museum
Focused mostly on interurbans from around California
 
Georgia State Road Museum in Savannah, GA. I visited years ago and haven't been back since. It's pretty cool. They didn't show everything. They have a big round house where they were restoring locomotives and cars back then. Good incentive to go back and visit.
We were there 2 months ago. It was pouring rain so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. It felt haunting. Multiple old engines and cars in a building essentially falling down around it. There is definitely a spirit presence there. On the bright side, we did get to see the roundhouse in action. That made the visit a definite must if in Savanah.
 
I would suggest the North Carolina Transportation Museum in Spencer, NC. The museum is mostly dedicated to Railroads but also has displays for cars and airplanes. They do seasonal train rides and
have a roundhouse with a turn table. It has been a few years since I was there but I would consider it one of the best rail museums in the U.s.
Years ago we lived in Blacksburg, SC would stop there almost every time on the way back from visiting family in New Bern, NC. It was a great place to visit with my wife and three preteen kids. Once we took the little train ride behind the 44-tonner.
 
There is a Lancaster & Chester Railroad museum in Lancaster, SC. The L & C was known as "The Springmaid Line". I used to live in Lancaster and went to the museum. There waere a lot of memorabilia and artifacts in it, but no train cars or locomotives on the grounds.
 
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