Gopher State Railway Museum

Gopher State Railway Museum
Mailing Address
PO Box 125
New Prague, MN 56071
ph: 952-758-8729
alt: 952-412-2145
gopherstaterailwaymuseum@yahoo.com

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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.

For updates, follow our Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/gopherstaterailwaymuseum

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 attraction. Visitors have an opportunity to ride GSRM's 1956 Milwaukee Road, bay window caboose and 1940 EMC SW-1 model locomotive NSP 4.

2022 Pumpkin Express

Saturday, October 15 from 10a to 4p

The 2022 Pumpkin Express is back, don't let it leave the station without you - All Aboard!! For family fun for everyone.

Ride the train, choose a pumpkin to take home, enjoy a cookie from Sugar Rose Bakeshop and a beverage.

We're also excited to welcome special guests this year, members of the Minnesota Fire Engine Club and their vintage fire engines.

Hours will be from 10a to 4p, Saturday, October 15

Tickets:

$10 for adults

$2 for children under 16

Children under 2 FREE

* Ticket includes train ride, pumpkin, cookie and beverage *

We're sorry, tickets are only available at the museum, on the day of the event, we're working on an online option for next year.

(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

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