I'm traveling very roughly the I-80 corridor from San Francisco to Michigan. What interesting, little known museums are out there?

Check out the Mendota Railroad Museum in Illinois. Take Illinois 251 north from I-80 at Peru, and drive about 8 miles north to Mendota. Find the Amtrak Station which also has a superb HO layout. Outside you will find a very well maintained CB&Q 2-8-2 #4978 and a wooden waycar ("Q" speak for caboose). Yes, 4978 is an unalterred sister of Grand Canyon's 4960.

Try calling in to see our 1887 C&S pullman car restoration in Cheyenne, we are only a mile off the I-80 College drive turn off.

Mike

Coming up out of Sacramento Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad Museumhttp://www.ncngrrmuseum.org/

Carson City has the Nevada State Railroad Museum.

You say I-80 corridor. Paralleling I-80 is Highway 50 through Ely, NV and it's facilities for the Nevada Northern Railway Museum (Budget cuts were rumored to have closed the museum) which is not to be confused with the Nevada Northern Railway Complex.

Just before you get to Salt Lake City there is the Tooele Railroad Museum http://www.tooelecity.org/citydepartments/railroadmuseum.asp

Just a half hour north of Salt Lake City the Ogden Railroad Museumhttp://theunionstation.org/index.html

Got some time? Of course, there is the Golden Spike National Historical Site at Promentory Point (another hour north of Ogden) http://www.nps.gov/archive/gosp/home.html

Don't want to go north? Just 20 minutes south of I-80 at Park City there is the Heber Valley Railroad. UP 618 still has a couple of steam days left on it. http://www.hebervalleyrr.org/

Back on I-80 and though not a 'museum' check out the Evanston, WY Roundhouse complex http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM12HZ_Union_Pacific_Railroad_Complex_Evanston_Wyoming

Also in Cheyenne (along with Car57's project) the Cheyenne Depot Museum http://www.cheyennedepotmuseum.org/.

I'll let someone else take you through the flatlands...

sc 'doc' lewis

The Western Pacific Railroad Museum is about an hour north of Reno. Take Hwy. 395 north, then 70 west to Portola, CA. I don't know if it qualifies as being "little known", but it is well worth the detour. If you have an extra hour you can, for a fee, operate one of the diesel locomotives:

http://wplives.org/ral.html

Chris Allan
WPRM Steam Dept. CMO

Right on I-80 is the new Bailey Yard observation tower on UP.

http://nebraska.hometownlocator.com/map ... center.cfm

I hope you stop at the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer, Grand Island, Nebraska. There was a big effort to revive the 36" gauge railroad in the early 2000s but I have no idea of the status of things there now. Maybe you can contact someone to look at some of the back scenes there. I don't know of the F&CC coach is on display or not. Or in service.
http://www.stuhrmuseum.org/tourrailroad2.htm


For a quick break you might stop at the 30" zoo railroad in Omaha.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omaha_Zoo_Railroad

In Iowa, most of the attractions are an hour or two away from I-80. The steam group with South Shore interurban cars in Boone, the last interurban freight railroad in Mason City, the Midwest Threshers in Mt. Pleasant, and a narrow gauge caboose and incline railway in Dubuque.

In western Illinois you might check out the Hennepin Canal. Not railroad, but an interesting artifact. It was an early example of government pork - a good idea at one time but not so great as the technology of transportation changed quickly. It winds up being a nice nature preserve and bikeway in the end.

Two museums in Council Bluffs. The Western Rails Museum in the old RI station is a very hand-to-mouth county operation ($6 donation - and they really need it), but has the equipment on display outside. I think it may only be open on weekends, since they rely on volunteers. UP FEF-1 #814 is on display next to the street, as is a CB&Q 10-wheeler and a couple of cabooses, an RPO, and a diner/lounge/obs.

Several blocks away, in the former Carnegie Library is the UP corporate museum, technologically first-rate all the way, very professionally done displays. A three-story ad for Uncle Pete. Suggested $3 donation. They got the big bucks, and the county museum got the shaft. Too bad they can't get their acts together and make one really good museum.

Thank you all, I have visited many of the locations mentioned. Currently in Cheyenne eastbound.

The Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum is about a half hour or so, south of I80 (or I94 if you're using that on the last leg up to Michigan). Exit U.S. 421, head straight south down to Indiana State Route 10 and then east about 5 miles into North Judson. You will eventually come to a stop sign (at the giant ice cream cone) where you should do a 45 degree left turn onto Main Street. Follow it to the tracks and turn left again, and you are at the museum. The 765 is no longer visiting (heading for Owosso by now I would guess) but the museum grounds are open. And this week, some of us are working on our GTW transfer cabooose, so the Shop building will be open too.

Les Beckman (HVRM)