Illinois Railway Museum

Illinois Railway Museum
Aerial overview of the museum
LocaleUnion, Illinois
Coordinates42°13′40″N 88°31′43″W / 42.22778380°N 88.52859170°W / 42.22778380; -88.52859170
ConnectionsUnion Pacific Railroad
Commercial operations
Built byElgin and Belvidere Electric Company
Original gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Preserved operations
Reporting markIRMX
StationsMainline: 2
Streetcar loop: 5
Length4.6 mi (7.4 km)
Preserved gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Preservation history
1953Opened as Illinois Electric Railway Museum
1956Elgin and Belvidere Electric Company right-of-way acquired
1961Named Illinois Railway Museum
1964Museum relocated
1966Illinois Terminal Railroad interurban car 415 first operated
1968First steam locomotive operated
1972First storage barn erected
1981Streetcar loop constructed
Late 1980s/early 1990sRailroad line built
HeadquartersUnion, Illinois
Website
irm.org
Route map
enlarge…
Elgin and Belvidere Electric
west to Belvidere and Rockford
Union Pacific Railroad
Schmidt Siding
50th Ave.
Central Ave.
East Union
Barn 9 North
Depot St.
Springfield Ave.
Electric Park
Boot Creek
Johnson Siding
Seeman Road
4 Mile Siding
Elgin and Belvidere Electric
east to Elgin

The Illinois Railway Museum (IRM, reporting mark IRMX) is the largest railroad museum in the United States.[1][2] It is located in the Chicago metropolitan area at 7000 Olson Road in Union, Illinois, 55 miles (89 km) northwest of downtown Chicago.

Overview

History

The museum was founded in 1953 by ten people who joined to purchase Indiana Railroad interurban car 65. Originally called the Illinois Electric Railway Museum, the museum was located on the grounds of the Chicago Hardware Foundry in North Chicago. In 1961, it was renamed to the Illinois Railway Museum to reflect its expanding scope. In 1964, the museum moved to Union, Illinois along the former right-of-way of the Elgin and Belvidere Electric Company. In 1968 the first steam locomotive was operated at the museum. The first storage barn was erected in 1972. In 1981, a one-mile (1.6 km) streetcar loop was constructed.[3][4] The right-of-way the museum was constructed next to still had back taxes into the 1980s. To gain full use of the track, the museum paid the back taxes, and gained the 4.6 miles (7.4 km) of railroad track to add to their property portfolio.[5] In 2016, the IRM purchased a 130-foot turntable from Union Pacific's former Denver & Rio Grande Western Burnham Shops complex in Denver for $10,000. The turntable is large enough for any locomotive in their collection, and will be used to store their steam locomotives, along with a planned roundhouse.[6] There are over 500 pieces of equipment, and over 100 acres of land owned by the museum.[4]

Operations

The museum's operations are primarily concentrated around its main campus just east of Union. Train rides are offered on the main line as well as the streetcar loop. Electric trains are operated from April through October and diesel and steam trains from the beginning of May through the end of September. Trolleybus operation occurs on the Saturdays of the Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day weekends, as well as on "Bus Day"; the last Saturday in September or the first Saturday in October. IRM is one of only two railway museums in the country that operates both electric and diesel trains, and the only one to offer trolleybus rides on a regular basis.

Equipment and structures

Museum site and structures

The Illinois Railway Museum property covers more than 80 acres (32 ha),[7] the most extensive physical plant of any rail museum in North America. In 2009, the museum bought another 89 acres (36 ha) of adjacent land as a buffer against development.[8] The main campus is located at 42°13′40.0″N 88°31′38.08″W / 42.227778°N 88.5272444°W / 42.227778; -88.5272444. In addition to the museum's revenue trackage, the main campus in Union includes:

  • 11 equipment storage barns with a total of 3.25 miles (5.23 km) of track under cover
  • Two additional garages housing trolleybuses and motor buses
  • A dedicated steam restoration shop
  • A former Chicago and North Western railway depot from Marengo, Illinois, built in 1851
  • A complete Chicago Rapid Transit Company ground-level station (50th Avenue station, closed by CTA in 1978)
  • Five streetcar stations of varying design
  • Several restored and functional neon signs and concrete entablatures on display
  • An indoor dining facility built in 2003 (open seasonally)
  • The Multi-purpose Building completed in 2021 housing the Model Railroad Display, the Revolving Exhibit Gallery, the Pullman Archive, and the Milwaukee Road Historic Association.
  • A 130-foot (40 m) turntable from the Union Pacific Railroad's Burnham Shops[9]
  • Seven railroad crossings, with five wigwags. Two of the five wigwags are upper-quadrant wigwags from the Magnetic Signal Company, one from the Union Switch & Signal, and the other two are lower quadrant wigwag from the Western Railroad Supply Company. The other two crossings are from the Griswold Signal Company.

IRM also owns one off-site library; the Strahorn Research Library in downtown Marengo. The Pullman Archive, formerly located in downtown Union, IL moved on campus to the Multi-purpose Building in 2021.

Equipment

Locomotives

Locomotive details[10][11][12][13][14]
Number Image Type Class Builder Built Status Previous owner
1630
Steam 2-10-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1918 Undergoing 1,472-day inspection and overhaul Eagle-Picher Mining and Smelting Company
7 Steam 0-4-0 Vulcan Iron Works 1917 Display American Creosote Works
231
Diesel F40PHR Electro-Motive Division 1977 Operational Dynamic Rail Preservation
6976
Diesel SDF40-2 Electro-Motive Division 1974 Operational Dynamic Rail Preservation
92
Diesel FP45 Electro-Motive Division 1967 Operational Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
2903
Steam 4-8-4 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1943 Display Museum of Science and Industry (Chicago)
1
Diesel F9A Electro-Motive Division 1954 Operational Burlington Northern
2 Diesel F9B Electro-Motive Division 1954 Operational Burlington Northern
3
Diesel E9A Electro-Motive Division 1956 Operational Burlington Northern
5383
Diesel U30C GE Transportation 1974 Operational Burlington Northern
9400 Diesel SD70MAC Electro-Motive Division 1993 Inoperable, awaiting restoration BNSF Railway, Burlington Northern
314 Diesel FA2 American Locomotive Company 1956 Display Feather River Rail Society
2707
Steam 2-8-4 American Locomotive Company 1943 Display City of Cincinnati, Ohio
3001 Diesel-Electric Box Cab 60-ton switcher ALCO/GE/Ingersoll-Rand 1926 Display Ingersoll-Rand
103 Diesel VO-660 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1945 Display Wyandotte Terminal
B71 Diesel Diesel-Electric Visibility cab Baldwin-Westinghouse 1930 Undergoing cosmetic restoration American Rolling Mill Company
E110
Diesel LS-1200 Lima-Hamilton 1951 Display Unknown
1366
Diesel H-12-44TS Fairbanks-Morse 1947 Display Southwestern Portland Cement Company
543
Diesel H-12-44TS Fairbanks-Morse 1956 Display California State Railroad Museum
DuPont Diesel-TC-Mech JDT25 Plymouth 1959 Operational DuPont
14 Diesel SC Electro-Motive Corporation 1937 Display Unknown
96B Diesel-Electric F7B Electro Motive Division 1951 Display Milwaukee Road
2
Diesel-TC-Mech 12DM38 Whitcomb Company 1951 Display Unknown
1792
Gas-Electric Unknown Davenport 1928 Display Unknown
504
Diesel SD24 Electro-Motive Division 1959 Operational Burlington Northern
1951 Diesel RS1 American Locomotive Company 1957 Display Unknown
33C Diesel E9A Electro-Motive Division 1956 Display Milwaukee Road
637
Steam 4-6-0 Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works 1892 Display City of Aurora, Illinois
3007
Steam 4-6-4 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1930 Display, awaiting restoration City of Griggsville, Illinois
4963
Steam 2-8-2 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1923 Display Chicago scrapyard
1603 Diesel HH600 American Locomotive Company 1939 Display Milwaukee Road
9255
Diesel SW7 Electro-Motive Division 1950 Operational Burlington Northern
9911A (Silver Pilot)
Diesel E5 Electro-Motive Division 1940 Operational Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
9976
Diesel E9A Electro-Motive Division 1953 Operational Burlington Northern
411
Diesel F7A Electro-Motive Division 1949 Operational Metra
515
Diesel E8A Electro-Motive Division 1953 Operational Iowa Pacific Holdings
1518
Diesel GP7 Electro-Motive Division 1949 Operational Chicago and North Western Railway
1689
Diesel RSD-5 American Locomotive Company 1954 Operational Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad
6847
Diesel SD40-2 Electro-Motive Division 1976 Operational Union Pacific Railroad
7009
Diesel SD50 Electro-Motive Division 1985 Operational National Railway Equipment
5
Steam 0-6-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1922 Display Chicago scrapyard
15
Diesel SW1 Electro-Motive Division 1950 Operational Midwest Generation LLC
9
Steam 2-6-2 H.K. Porter, Inc. 1925 Display Private owner
16
Steam 4-4-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1915 Display The Henry Ford Museum
6323
Steam 4-8-4 American Locomotive Company 1942 Display Private owner in Detroit, Michigan
8380
Steam 0-8-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1929 Display Northwestern Steel and Wire Company
26
Steam 2-6-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1926 Display Private owner
2407
Diesel RSD-15 American Locomotive Company 1960 Operational Green Bay and Western Railroad
201
Steam 2-4-4T Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works 1880 Display Private owner
3719
Steam 2-6-0 American Locomotive Company 1900 Display Steamtown, U.S.A.
1605
Diesel GP7 Electro-Motive Division 1953 Operational Norfolk and Western Railroad
5
Steam Shay Lima Locomotive Works 1929 Operational J. Neils Lumber Co.
35
Steam 2-8-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1916 Display Marquette and Huron Mountain Railroad
207 Steam 0-6-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1936 Display Private owner in Detroit, Michigan
99
Steam 2-8-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1919 Display South Shore Railroad
902
Diesel GP9 Electro-Motive Division 1957 Display MBTA
606
Diesel AS-416 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1950 Display Unknown
308
Diesel F7A Electro-Motive Division 1949 Operational Metra
614
Diesel F40C Electro-Motive Division 1974 Awaiting restoration; Operable as control car Metra
30
Inspection car Sedan Dodge 1947 Display Mid-Continent Railway Museum
118C
Diesel F7A Electro-Motive Division 1951 Operational Milwaukee Road
265
Steam 4-8-4 American Locomotive Company 1944 Display City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin
760
Diesel H-10-44 Fairbanks-Morse 1944 Operational Milwaukee Road
21
Diesel DT-6-6-2000 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1948 Operational Minneapolis, Northfield and Southern Railway
200
Diesel RS-3 American Locomotive Company 1951 Operational Minnesota Transfer Railway
14
Diesel S-1 American Locomotive Company 1947 Operational Nekoosa Paper, Inc.
2050
Steam 2-8-8-2 American Locomotive Company 1923 Display AK Steel Holding
7
Steam 0-6-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1926 Display Central Illinois Public Service Company
938
Steam 4-6-2 American Locomotive Company 1910 Display Fort Worth and Western Railroad
4506
Diesel GP9R Electro-Motive Division 1955 Operational Rock Island
975
Steam 2-10-2 American Locomotive Company 1918 Display City of Beaumont, Texas
1518
Diesel SD7 Electro-Motive Division 1951 Operational Southern Pacific
400
Diesel RS-11 American Locomotive Company 1958 Display
800 Diesel C424 American Locomotive Company 1964 Operational Morristown and Erie Railway
101 Steam 2-6-2 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1924 Awaiting restoration T. R. Miller
4
Fireless 0-4-0 H.K. Porter, Inc. 1946 Display Transport Museum Association
18
Gas turbine GTEL GE Transportation 1960 Display Union Pacific
428
Steam 2-8-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1900 Under restoration Union Pacific Railroad
1848
Diesel Dash 8-40B GE Transportation 1988 Operational Union Pacific Railroad
6930
Diesel DDA40X Electro-Motive Division 1970 Display Union Pacific Railroad
260
Diesel U28B General Electric 1967 Operational Transkentucky Transportation Railroad
5056 Diesel U25B General Electric 1965 Display Miller Compressing
501 Diesel 44-ton switcher General Electric 1943 Display Unknown
Lone Star Cement Diesel 25-ton switcher General Electric 1942 Operational Unknown
8537
Diesel 45-ton switcher GE Transportation 1944 Operational United States Army Transportation Corps
967B Diesel E9B Electro-Motive Division 1955 Operational Wisconsin and Southern Railroad
7525
Diesel SD45 Electro-Motive Division 1971 Operational Wisconsin Central
30
Diesel RS1325 Electro-Motive Division 1960 Operational Atlantic and Western Railway
104C Diesel-Electric FP7A Electro-Motive Division 1952 Display Milwaukee Road
967B Diesel-Electric E9B Electro-Motive Division 1955 Operational Union Pacific
BN-2 Diesel-Electric F9B Electro-Motive Division 1955 Operational Burlington Northern

Electric locomotives

Electric locomotive details[15][16][17][18]
Number Image Type Builder Built Status Previous Owner(s)
945
AEM-7 Electro-Motive Division 1982 Display Amtrak
803
Little Joe GE Transportation 1949 Operational Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad
4601
E33 GE Transportation 1956 Display Railroad Museum of New England
4927
GG1 GE Transportation 1942 Display Amtrak
431
Interurban Coach Cincinnati Car Company 1927 Operational Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad
409
Interurban Coach Pullman Car Company 1923 Operational Trolleyville USA, Chicago Aurora & Elgin
460
Interurban Coach St. Louis Car Company 1945 Operational Trolleyville USA, Chicago Aurora & Elgin
451
Interurban Coach St. Louis Car Company 1945 Under restoration Trolleyville USA, Chicago Aurora & Elgin
453
Interurban Coach St. Louis Car Company 1945 Under restoration Trolleyville USA, Electric City Trolley Museum, Chicago Aurora & Elgin
36
Interurban Coach Stephenson Car Company 1902 Operational Trolleyville USA, Chicago Aurora & Elgin
308
Interurban Coach Niles Car Company 1906 Operational Indiana Museum of Transportation and Communication, Chicago Aurora & Elgin
309
Interurban Coach Hicks Car Works 1907 Operational Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad
319
Interurban Coach Jewett Car Company 1914 Operational Trolleyville USA, Chicago Aurora & Elgin
321
Interurban Car Jewett Car Company 1914 Display Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad
306 Interurban Coach St. Louis Car Company 1924 Under restoration Shaker Heights Rapid Transit,Trolleyville USA, Aurora Elgin & Fox River Electric
160
Interurban Coach Brill Car Company 1915 Operational Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
205 Streetcar G. C. Kuhlman Car Company 1927 Display Yakima Electric Railway Museum
1467 Streetcar Chicago Union Traction 1899 Display Electric Railway Historical Society
2843 Streetcar Chicago Surface Lines 1903 Display Electric Railway Historical Society
141
framless
framless
Streetcar McGuire-Cummings Mfg. Company 1924 Operational Electric Railway Historical Society
460 Streetcar Pullman Company 1908 Operational Chicago Transit Authority
144
Streetcar Pullman Company 1908 Operational Chicago Transit Authority
4 Streetcar Pullman Company 1895 Display Chicago Transit Authority
4001
Streetcar Pullman-Standard 1934 Display Electric Railway Historical Society
4223 Streetcar Pullman-Standard 1946 Under restoration Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority
2846 Streetcar South Chicago City Railway 1907 Display Electric Railway Historical Society
1374
Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1905 Operational Electric Railway Historical Society
966 Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1927 Display Milwaukee & Suburban Transport
972
Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1927 Display Milwaukee & Suburban Transport
354 Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1928 Operational Chicago Hardware Foundry
3865 Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1930 Display Henry Ford Museum
4021
Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1936 Display Chicago Transit Authority
755
Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1946 Display Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority
4 Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1946 Display City of Bayonne, NJ
8 Streetcar John Stephenson Car Company 1859 Display Unknown
116 Streetcar McGuire-Cummings Mfg. Company 1917 Display Private owner
18 Rapid Transit Car G.C. Kuhlman Car Company 1914 Operational Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority
172
Interurban Coach Cincinnati Car Company 1920 Display Indiana Railway Museum, Anderson Railroad Club, Indiana Museum of Transportation and Communication, Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee
251
Interurban Combine Jewett Car Company 1917 Operational Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee
170 Streetcar American Car Company 1921 Display Illinois Terminal
483 Streetcar American Car Company 1913 Display Unknown
253
Interurban Combine Jewett Car Company 1917 Display Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
714
Interurban Coach Cincinnati Car Company 1926 Operational Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
749
Interurban Coach Pullman Car Company 1928 Operational Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
757
Interurban Coach Standard Steel Car Company 1930 Operational Wisconsin Electric Railway Historical Society, Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
763
Interurban Coach Standard Steel Car Company 1930 Display Wisconsin Electric Railway Historical Society, Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
504 Interurban Coach American Car and Foundry Company 1910 Display Private owner
101 Interurban Coach American Car Company 1917 Operational Illinois Terminal
504
Interurban Coach Cincinnati Car Company 1906 Display Private owner
68 Interurban Coach Cincinnati Car Company 1918 Operational Ozark Mountain Railroad
172 Interurban Coach Cincinnati Car Company 1920 Display Indiana Museum of Transportation
251 Interurban Coach Jewett Car Company 1917 Operational Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
321 Interurban Coach Jewett Car Company 1914 Display Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad
50 Interurban Coach Laconia Car Company 1904 Display Private owner
58 Interurban Coach Laconia Car Company 1904 Display Private owner
150 Interurban Coach Niles Car and Manufacturing Company 1906 Display Station Square, Pittsburgh, PA
8 Interurban Coach Pullman-Standard 1926 Display Chicago South Shore and South Bend
65
Interurban Coach Pullman-Standard 1931 Operational Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway
19 Interurban Coach Pullman-Standard 1926 Display National Park Service
233 Interurban Coach St. Louis Car Company 1906 Display Illini Railroad Club
28 Interurban Coach St. Louis Car Company 1913 Under restoration Private owner
277 Interurban Coach St. Louis Car Company 1913 Operational Illinois Terminal
91 Interurban Coach St. Louis Car Company 1924 Display Private owner
1129 Interurban Coach The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company 1924 Display London and Port Stanley Railway
1136 Interurban Coach The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company 1924 Display London and Port Stanley Railway
801-802 (Electroliner)
Interurban Four-Section Articulated Streamliner St. Louis Car Company 1941 Under restoration Philadelphia Suburban Transportation, Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
19 Interurban Coach Pullman Car Company 1928 Display National Park Service, Chicago South Shore & South Bend
28 Interurban Coach Standard Steel Car Company 1929 Display Wisconsin Electric Railway Historical Society, Chicago South Shore & South Bend
34
Interurban Coach Standard Steel Car Company 1929 Operational Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad
40 Interurban Coach Standard Steel Car Company 1929 Operational National Park Service, Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad
8 Interurban Coach Pullman Car Company 1926 Display Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad
101
Interurban Center-Entrance Coach American Car Company 1917 Operational Illinois Terminal
9020 Streetcar J.G. Brill Car Company 1921 Display Electric Railway Historical Society
233 Interurban Office Car St. Louis Car Company 1906 Display Illini Railroad Club, Illinois Terminal
234
Interurban Observation Car Danville Car Company 1910 Operational Illini Railroad Club, Illinois Terminal
1565 Boxcab Illinois Traction System 1910 Operational Illinois Power Company
1889 Streetcar Cia de Transporte Colectivos 1912 Display Electric City Trolley Museum
277
Interurban Combine St. Louis Car Company 1913 Operational Illinois Terminal
209 Streetcar Chicago Surface Lines 1914 Display Chicago Transit Authority
415
Interurban Coach/Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1924 Operational Illinois Terminal
3142
Interurban Coach/Streetcar J. G. Brill Company 1923 Operational Electric Railway Historical Society
4391
Interurban Coach/Streetcar St. Louis Car Company 1948 Operational Electric Railway Historical Society
504
Interurban Sleeper American Car and Foundry Company 1910 Display Illinois Terminal
518 Interurban Trailer St. Louis Car Company 1911 Operational Illini Railroad Club, Illinois Terminal
65
Light Interurban Coach Pullman Car Company 1931 Operational Indiana Railroad, Cedar Rapids & Iowa City
170 Streetcar American Car Company 1921 Display Illinois Terminal
19
Streetcar J.G. Brill Car Company 1914 Operational Lake Shore Electric Railway
209 Streetcar Chicago Surface Lines 1930 Display Chicago Transit Authority
22
Rapid Transit Car St. Louis Car Company 1959 Operational Historic ‘L’ Car Society
2153, 2154 Rapid Transit Car Pullman-Standard 1964 Operational Chicago Transit Authority
1198, 1380 Railroad-Roof Steel Commuter Coach Pullman-Standard 1926 Operational Illinois Central Railroad
6100-6600 series Rapid Transit Car St. Louis Car Company 1951, 1954, 1957 Display Chicago Transit Authority
4146 Rapid Transit Car Cincinnati Car Company 1915 Operational Chicago Transit Authority
4290
Rapid Transit Car Cincinnati Car Company 1922 Operational Chicago Transit Authority
4312 Rapid Transit Car Cincinnati Car Company 1922 Display Chicago Transit Authority
4410
Rapid Transit Car Cincinnati Car Company 1924 Operational Chicago Transit Authority
4412 Rapid Transit Car Cincinnati Car Company 1924 Operational Chicago Transit Authority
2872, 2888 Rapid Transit Car Pullman-Standard 1906 Display Chicago Transit Authority
24 Railroad-Roof Wood Gate Car Pullman 1898 Operational Chicago Transit Authority
55 Railroad-Roof Steel Subway J. G. Brill Company 1927 Operational Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority
7926, 7927 Rapid Transit Car American Car and Foundry Company 1961 Display New York City Transit Authority
2433, 2434 Rapid Transit Car Boeing-Vertol 1977 Operational New York City Transit Authority
1268, 1797, 1808 Rapid Transit Car American Car and Foundry Company 1907 Operational Chicago Hardware Foundry
1754 Rapid Transit Car Jewett Car Company 1906 Operational Chicago Elevated Railway, Chicago Transit Authority
4034 Rapid Transit Car Hawker-Siddely Canada Ltd 1979 Operational Toronto Transit Commission
1268 Rapid Transit Trailer American Car and Foundry Company 1907 Operational Chicago Rapid Transit Company, Chicago Transit Authority
1500-1600 series Bi level Highliner EMU St Louis 1971-1972 Operational Metra Electric
4715 S-Motor Alco/GE 1906 Display Conrail
4 Steeplecab Alco/GE 1911 Operational Commonwealth Edison
S105 Steeplecab Baldwin Westinghouse 1920 Display East Troy Electric Railroad
14 B1 Baldwin Westinghouse 1929 Display Cornwall Transit
1 Steeplecab General Electric 1923 Display East Troy Electric Railroad
4601 E-33 General Electric 1956 Display Railroad Museum of New England
1565 Boxcab Illinois Traction System 1910 Operational Illinois Power Company
300 Steeplecab McGuire-Cummings Manufacturing Company 1915 Operational Iowa Traction Railway
L3 Steeplecab The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company 1920 Display Private owner
L4
Steeplecab The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company 1920 Display Private owner
L7 Steeplecab The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company 1931 Display The Wisconsin Electric Railway Historical Society
L10 Steeplecab The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company 1944 Display Wisconsin Electric Power Company

Rolling stock

Rolling stock details[11][15]
Number Image Type Builder Built Status Previous Owner(s)
907853 Fuel Tender American Locomotive Company 1937 Display Union Pacific
234 Observation car Danville Car Company 1910 Operational Illini Railroad Club

Formerly owned locomotives

Locomotive details[19][20]
Number Image Type Class Builder Built Status Owner
154
Steam 2-8-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1909 Display The Henry Ford Museum
102
Steam 4-6-0 American Locomotive Company 1923 Display End-O-Line Railroad Park and Museum
34
Steam 2-8-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1916 Stored; under restoration Western Maryland Scenic Railroad
475
Steam 4-8-0 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1906 Operational Strasburg Rail Road
2
Steam 2-8-2 Baldwin Locomotive Works 1912 Operational Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad, Oregon Rail Heritage Center

Organization

The Illinois Railway Museum is an IRS Chapter 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation owned and managed by its membership. Museum management includes a board of directors, elected by the regular membership of about 160 active volunteers. A board president is elected by the directors. The board oversees the general manager, a volunteer who in turn has oversight over an array of department heads. Major departments include Steam, Diesel, Electric Car, Passenger Car, Freight Car, Track & Signal, Buildings & Grounds, Trolley Bus, Motor Bus, and Operations. Other departments oversee the museum's libraries, electrical infrastructure, and display and education functions. Most department heads are volunteers. All workers at the museum fall under the direct authority of one of the department heads. The vast majority of workers are volunteers. Anyone who is interested in trains or other collections/aspects of the museum is actively encouraged to volunteer, with required training done by the museum.

Appearances in media

IRM has been used in several films, due to its proximity to Chicago and its extensive collection of historic railroad equipment. In the 1992 film A League of Their Own, starring Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, and Madonna, the museum's depot was used for several small-town depot scenes; other scenes featured with the Nebraska Zephyr and only surviving EMD E5.[21] The 1993 movie Groundhog Day featured the museum's EMD SD24 diesel locomotive.[21] The museum's grounds and some of the passenger cars were used in the movie The Babe, starring John Goodman.[21] In late 2005, the Burlington 9911A and several coaches operated to Chicago for filming in Flags of Our Fathers, a Clint Eastwood film.[22] Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) made IRM the host of several scenes.[23]

Many television shows' railroad sequences have been shot at the IRM. Scenes depicting steam era operations in the late 1920s were shot for the 1993 television series The Untouchables.[24] The show Chicago Fire features the IRM onsite in the season 2 episode "No Regrets".[25]

Special events

See also

References

  1. ^ "Illinois Railway Museum - The Largest!". CNN iReport. September 28, 2014. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  2. ^ Green, Joey (2017). Vacation on Location, Midwest. Chicago, IL: Chicago Review Press Inc. p. n.p. ISBN 978-1-61373-725-5 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ "Illinois Railway Museum: Roster, Steam, Overview". American-Rails.com. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "The Illinois Railway Museum's History and Development". Illinois Railway Museum. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  5. ^ "IRM 50th Anniversary". www.rypn.org. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  6. ^ "Illinois Railway Museum buys Burnham Shops turntable | Trains Magazine". Trains. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  7. ^ Tourist Trains Guide Book (second ed.). Waukesha, WI: Kalmbach Books. 2009 [2007]. p. 83. ISBN 978-0-87116-273-1 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ Kallas, Nick (November 20, 2009). "89 Acre Siegel Farm Purchase". IRM.org. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  9. ^ "Illinois Railway Museum buys Burnham Shops turntable". Trains. March 25, 2016. Retrieved March 28, 2016. (subscription required)
  10. ^ "Steam Engines". Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  11. ^ a b "Internal Combustion Locomotives". Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  12. ^ "Metra donates F40C locomotive to Illinois Railway Museum". Trains. February 21, 2025. Retrieved February 21, 2025.
  13. ^ "Two former Amtrak diesels donated to Illinois Railway Museum". Trains. July 2, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  14. ^ "Pioneering AC Traction Diesel Locomotive Acquired by IRM". www.irm.org. Illinois Railway Museum. July 31, 2025. Retrieved July 31, 2025.
  15. ^ a b "Interurban Cars". Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  16. ^ "Electric Locomotives". Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  17. ^ "Streetcars". Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  18. ^ "Rapid Transit Cars". Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  19. ^ Moedinger, William M. (1993). The Road to Paradise: The Story of the Rebirth of the Strasburg Rail Road (3rd ed.). The Strasburg Rail Road Shop. p. 25.
  20. ^ Burkhart, M.T. (April 22, 2021). "Western Maryland Scenic Has No Immediate Plan to Restore 2-8-0". Railfan & Railroad. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
  21. ^ a b c "Press Page". Illinois Railway Museum. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  22. ^ "Welcome to the Shore Line Interurban Historical Society | "Flags of Our Fathers" Filming". www.shore-line.org. Archived from the original on September 4, 2012. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  23. ^ "Transformers Movie Comes to Union". Marengo-Union Times. October 1, 2013. Archived from the original on March 24, 2018. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
  24. ^ "Introduction to IRM 101" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 29, 2021. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
  25. ^ "Chicago Fire: Season 2 - Episode 7; No Regrets". Retrieved December 29, 2021.
External image
image icon Railroad Picture Archives - Photos taken in Union, IL