On June 10th, I paid a visit to the Twin City Model Railroad Museum in St. Paul, Minnesota to take some pictures for an article I was working on for the Model Train Tips Newsletter. I also just wanted to check out the trains; I hadn’t been to the museum in several months and this seemed like the perfect excuse.
The centerpiece is a large O-gauge model railroad on display for the public. Each of the four main lines are 220′ long which translates into two scale miles of track! In addition to the four main lines there are several yard lines, some of which can be seen in the photo at right.
Also seen in the photo is one of the trolley cars. The cars on the trolley line actually get their power from the overhead lines that run the length of the line from the foreground of this photo to the train station.
From their brochure:
On May 1, 1934, a group of modelers met to form the St. Paul Craftsman Club and begin building an O-gauge model railroad. From these humble beginnings, and through several location and name changes, the Twin City Model Railroad Museum has grown to a world-class museum.
Now located in historic Bandana Square, the Twin City Model Railroad Museum is an exquisitely detailed model panorama of railroads of the Twin Cities during the 1930′s, 1940′s and 1950′s. This was a time when both steam and diesel engines shared the rails.
Thousands of volunteer hours have faithfully reproduced Twin Citys railroad history in O Scale (1/4 inch equals 1 foot), an impressive sight and well worth your visit. Come watch the Empire Builder speed along miles of track through the Twin Cities, rumble over St. Anthony Falls on the famed Stone Arch Bridge and down the Mississippi. Freight trains haul the goods to and from the industries that made the Twin Cities famous.
The Twin City Model Railroad Museum is a non-profit organization. Our mission is to provide family entertainment for the young and old alike, while preserving this era of Minnesota railroad history.
While there, I got into a discussion with Paul Gruetzman, one of the volunteers, about the museum and my interest in model railroading. He told me that the museum was a volunteer organization and that they were always looking for volunteers with an interest in model railroading. It didn’t take me long to decide to volunteer. What better way, I thought, to learn about model railroading then to spend time at a model railroad museum!
Related Articles:
- Pictures from “The Circus Moves by Rail” show at the Twin City Model Railroad Museum
- New Book Chronicles 75 Year History of the Twin City Model Railroad Museum
- “The Circus Moves by Rail” show at the Twin City Model Railroad Museum
- Twin City Model Railroad Museum on Saint Paul Community TV
- Videos from “The Circus Moves by Rail” show at the Twin City Model Railroad Museum
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