Volunteers Are Building Gopher State Railway Museum!

The mission of Gopher State Railway Museum is to educate the public through collection, preservation, restoration, display, and operation of railroad equipment and artifacts.

 - IMPORTANT 2022 Covid-19 UPDATE -

At this time, we plan to be open for the 2022 season depending on the situation and CDC recommendations in May.

Volunteers are typically working at the museum on Saturdays starting around 10a.  Feel free to stop by and visit while volunteers are there.  You can always contact us via our Facebook page to make sure someone will be working there a Saturday you plan to visit.

We take the safety of our visitors and freinds of the muesum seriously.  Volunteers are still working on most Saturdays at the nmuseum.

For updates,  follow our Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/gopherstaterailwaymuseum

We plan to operate the 2022 Pumpkin Express in mid-October this year.

Thank you to all our neighbors, friends and visitors for your continued support.  With the closure of the museum, it also means a loss of income from visitor donations.  We realize at this time, many are out of work and budgets are tight.  For those who can, please consider continuing to support GSRM financially, even if you can't visit us right now.  Every little bit helps us continue to meet our mission statement.  If it makes sense financially for you to consider a donation, please mail it to:

Gopher State Railway Museum

PO Box 125

New Prague, MN 56071

Thank you!



Gopher State Railway Museum is a proud member of the Heritage Rail Alliance (formerly Association of Tourist Railroads & Railway Museums)

https://www.atrrm.org/

Caboose rides are a popular added attraction.  Visitors have an opportunity to ride GSRM's 1956 Milwaukee Road, bay window caboose and NSP 4.

(Not so) Breaking News!

M&StL caboose 1201 arrived at GSRM (July 2021).

The Hennes family of Jordan, MN has donated former Minneapolis & St Louis Railway caboose 1201 to GSRM which moved to the museum on Thursday, July 1, 2021.

The caboose was part of their late father Bill's vast collection of interesting artifacts.

In addition to the Hennes family, GSRM would like to thank Hayden Murphy of Bloomington for donating the use of one of their Manitou, heavy lift forklifts to help with the move.  Thank you as well to the crew of Vic's Crane and Heavy Haul for their help with the move.

The wood, bay window caboose was built in 1947 by the M&StL Railway in its company shops in Marshaltown, IA and it very likely passed through Jordan, New Prague and Montgomery on more than one occasion on the end of an M&StL train.

M&StL caboose 1201 is unique in it's only one of three remaining M&StL cabooses known to exist.  The other two being 1133 in Currie, MN at the Endo-O-Line Railroad Park and Museum and 1208 at the South Daklota State Railroad Museum in Hill City, SD.  The UP mainline running next to GSRM is a former M&StL mainline whichg once ran to Albert Lea, MN and on to Peoria, IL.  M&StL 1201 will be an important connection to the local community's railroad past.

A friend of GSRM loaned the money needed to cover the cost of the move, please consider acontribution to the moving cost to help GSRM repay the loan. 

(August 2020) GSRM has acquired another operating locomotive to help with caboose rides at its museum in New Prague.

The 1950  vintage Alco S-4 diesel locomotive comes from the University of Minnesota where it has worked since about 1982 shuttling coal hoppers in and out of the unloading facility at the Twin Cities Campus Steam Plant in Minneapolis.

Since the steam plant's conversion to natural gas around 2010, Foster Wheeler number FW1 has been stored servicable awaiting a new home.

GSRM moved the locomotive to New Prague on 31Aug2020. 

The cost to move FW1 to GSRM in New Prague by heavy haul truck was $38,000 and was covered by a loan from freinds of the museum.  The loan will need to be paid back.  Please visit our Go Fund Me campaign to see how you can help contribute to FW1's moving expenses: 

https://www.gofundme.com/manage/save-alco-s4-foster-wheeler-number-fw1

***  GSRM's Give Us Shelter campaign is underway.   ***

See the "Give Us Shelter Campaign" page for details

You Can Like Us on Facebook!

http://www.facebook.com/gopherstaterailwaymuseum 

Volunteer Meeting Dates and Work Sessions:

General Membership meetings occur the last Saturday of the month, 10:00am, at the Gopher State Railway Museum, New Prague, MN.

Work Sessions - Most Saturdays throughout the year at the Museum, weather permitting, 10:00 AM start time.

Annual Picnic

Join us for the GSRM Annual Picnic - Always the third Sunday of July at 1p - GSRM in New Prague, MN.

Gopher State Railway Museum is loacated at 25501 Helena Blvd, approximately 2 miles north of New Prague, MN on Minnesota Highway 21.

Call Us Today!

 ph: 952-758-8729 or 952-412-2145

email: gopherstaterailwaymuseum@yahoo.com

 Like us on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/gopherstaterailwaymuseum