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Monticello Railway Museum

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A museum tourist train, being led by Wabash Railroad F7A #1189, rests in front of the Nelson's Crossing depot.
LocaleMonticello, Piatt County, Central Illinois
Preserved operations
Reporting markMRMZ[1][nb 1] (Temporary equipment transfers/loans)
Length15 mi (24 km)
Preserved gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Commercial history
Opened1966 (1966)
Preservation history
HeadquartersMonticello, Illinois
Website
www.mrym.org

The Monticello Railway Museum (initialized MRYM, reporting mark MRMZ[1][nb 1]) is a non-profit railroad museum located in Monticello, Illinois, about 18 miles west of Champaign, Illinois. It is home to over 100 pieces of railroad equipment, including several restored diesel locomotives and cars.

Overview

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The museum offers a tourist railroad which operates excursion trains over a former railroad line that was owned by Illinois Terminal and Illinois Central Gulf. For a donation, guests can operate one of the locomotives during the "Throttle Time" program. Trains run from May through October and on holidays.

The Camp Creek yard was originally built by the museum's volunteers. The Terminal Division is a rebuilt Illinois Terminal right-of-way running from Camp Creek up to Blacker's towards White Heath. The Central Division was purchased by the museum from the Illinois Central. The Central Division purchase allowed the museum to enter downtown Monticello to the historic Wabash Railroad depot, which is the mainline of the museum's heritage railroad. The Central Division is currently being restored up to White Heath to allow occasional operation into that town. Only a short section of the Terminal Division is currently in use from the central switch down past Nelson's Crossing depot into Camp Creek Yard but has been restored to within a few miles of White Heath.

Location

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The Monticello Railway Museum is located off Interstate 72 at Market St. Exit 166. Turn at the stoplight onto Iron Horse Place at the Best Western Gateway Inn, and follow the frontage road to the end. Driving time is about 25 minutes from Champaign and Decatur; 50 minutes from Bloomington.

History

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The Monticello Railway Museum, a not-for-profit educational organization, was founded in 1966 as "SPUR, Inc" (Society for the Perpetuation of Unretired Railfans, Inc). Its original goal was to encourage the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad to continue operating its steam-powered railfan excursions.[2] When that effort failed, the organization decided to operate its own steam-powered excursions and began a search for equipment and a suitable location. SPUR contacted the Illinois Central Railroad about operating on the West end of ICRR's lightly used Rantoul District between LeRoy and Sabina, Illinois. For such an operation, ICRR would require SPUR's equipment to be in "ICC condition" and use the railroad's union train crews. SPUR concluded this would be prohibitively expensive for the organization and continued its search. In 1966, SPUR was invited to Monticello, Illinois by a member of the Illinois Pioneer Heritage Center and moved its first piece of equipment, locomotive #1, a 1925 Alco 0-4-0T, to a vacant lot near the Heritage Center in Monticello.[3] The organization's name was changed in 1970 to the Monticello & Sangamon Valley Railway Historical Society, Inc., and then shortened in 1982 to the present day Monticello Railway Museum.

The first land purchased was about five miles (8 km) of former Illinois Terminal interurban right of way between Monticello and White Heath. This right of way had been abandoned a few years before and the grade had only ballast in place. A former popcorn field was purchased for a railroad yard and maintenance area. The volunteers prepared the yard area for the arrival of locomotive #1 and moved it from the Heritage Center's lot in Monticello. Through the years track was laid on the former Illinois Terminal interurban grade toward White Heath until approximately 2+1⁄2 miles was completed. A run-around was constructed at (Blacker's), about 2 miles from White Heath. No further construction took place on the former interurban grade and Blacker's became the North end of the line. In 1988, after the purchase of some of the adjacent Illinois Central Gulf's Decatur District, the portion of the museum's trackage built on the former Illinois Terminal interurban grade was designated the "Terminal Division.

In 1975, an old-time piano contest by the name of the World Championship Old-Time Piano Playing Contest and Festival was started on the land of the new railway museum as a fundraiser. The contest remained at the museum using a piano on the back of a caboose and the audience in lawn chairs around it for about ten years, until it was moved to the football field of Monticello High School.

In 1987, the museum purchased 7+1⁄2 miles of Illinois Central Gulf Decatur District trackage between Monticello and White Heath which parallels the Illinois Terminal right-of-way. The Nelson Crossing display track lead was extended to a new connecting turnout in the former ICG trackage, joining the museum's track with the newly purchased line. The connection was built by Museum volunteers in just two weekends. After a short "Golden Spike" ceremony, the museum's first run into Monticello was made. The former Illinois Central Gulf trackage to Monticello and White Heath was designated the museum's "Central Division."

Today the train ride primarily traverses the Central Division, using the Terminal Division only when pulling into the depot at Nelson's Crossing. The station names used on both the Central and Terminal Divisions were used by the original railroads.

Equipment

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Locomotives

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Locomotive details[4][5][6]
Number Type Image Wheel arrangement Built Builder Status
401 Steam 2-8-0 1907 Baldwin Locomotive Works Operational
1189 F7A (B-B) 1953 General Motors Diesel Operational
6789 FPA4 (B-B) 1959 Montreal Locomotive Works Operational
1649 NW2 (B-B) 1947 Electro-Motive Division Display
8733 GP11 (B-B) 1958 Electro-Motive Division Operational
6071 SD40 (C-C) 1964 Electro-Motive Division Display
1407 EMD SW14 (B-B) 1950 Electro-Motive Division Stored, awaiting restoration
1559 RS-3 (B-B) 1955 American Locomotive Works Stored, awaiting repairs
44 GE 44-ton switcher (B-B) 1940 Davenport Locomotive Works Display
5764 E8A (B-B) 1952 Electro-Motive Division Under restoration
1 Steam 0-4-0 1929 American Locomotive Works Display
191 Steam 0-6-0 1916 American Locomotive Works Display
333 Steam 4-6-0 1916 Baldwin Locomotive Works Stored, awaiting restoration
6862 FPB4 (B-B) 1958 Montreal Locomotive Works Operational
31 EMD RS1325 (B-B) 1960 Electro-Motive Division Operational
784 EMD SW1200 (B-B) 1955 Electro-Motive Division Stored, awaiting restoration
9940 EMD E9A (B-B) 1950 Electro-Motive Division Display

Rolling stock

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Rolling stock details[7][8][9]
Number / Name Type Image Built Builder Status
892 Combine car 1918 Pullman Company Operational
2541 Passenger car 1925 Pullman Company Operational
2855 Passenger coach 1918 Pullman Company Stored, awaiting restoration
7 Observation car 1917 Pullman Company Operational
3531 Passenger car 1950 Pullman Company Display
Nautilus Aquarium car 1949 Pullman Company Display
405 Baggage car 1957 American Car and Foundry Display
Pleasant Valley Sleeper car 1942 Pullman Company Display
3312 Sleeper car 1942 Unknown Operational
2612 Passenger car 1947 Pullman Company Operational
2920 Passenger car 1925 Pullman Company Operational
1238 Passenger car 1927 American Car and Foundry Under restoration
6 Office car 1911 American Car and Foundry Display
903 Railway Post Office car 1903 American Car and Foundry Stored, awaiting restoration
4112 Dining car 1946 Pullman Company Operational
4110 Dining car 1946 Pullman Company Operational
1907 Open Air Flatcar 1929 Nickel Plate Road Operational
827 Baggage car 1892 Pullman Company Stored, awaiting restoration
758 Railway Post Office car 1882 Chicago and Alton Railroad Stored, awaiting restoration
Timothy B. Blackstone Sleeper car 1950 American Car and Foundry Stored, awaiting restoration
9012 Sleeper car 1950 American Car and Foundry Company Stored
City of Decatur Parlor car 1927 Pullman Company Stored, awaiting restoration
1827 Passenger car 1947 Pullman Company Operational
Gulfport Observation car 1942 Pullman Company Stored, awaiting restoration
105 Tanker car 1928 General American Transportation Co. Operational
7297 Tanker car 1925 General American Transportation Co. Operational
80129 Hopper car 1953 American Car and Foundry Company Operational
47947 Boxcar 1927 Unknown Under restoration
82697 Boxcar 1941 Wabash Railroad Out of service, awaiting repairs
41390 Boxcar 1937 General American Transportation Co. Operational
567595 Boxcar Unknown Unknown Display
65018 Hopper car 1955 Illinois Central Railroad Operational
7990 Hopper car 1961 Magor Car Company Operational
1145 Tanker car 1972 Union Tank Car Company Stored
509 Tanker car 1965 General American Transportation Co. Operational
3161 Tanker car Unknown Unknown Stored, awaiting restoration
127 Boxcar 1964 Unknown Stored
26012 Boxcar 1950s General American Transportation Co. Under restoration
3516 Boxcar 1906 Chicago & Alton Railroad Stored, awaiting restoration
70528 Flatcar 1951 General American Transportation Co. Operational
70557 Flatcar 1951 General American Transportation Co. Operational
5571 Boxcar 1966 Chicago Freight Car Company Stored
9831 Side Door Cupola Caboose 1941 Illinois Central Railroad Operational
9926 Side Door Cupola Caboose 1950 Illinois Central Railroad Operational
806 Transfer Caboose 1924 Illinois Terminal Railroad Operational
2824 Cupola Caboose 1949 Wabash Railroad Display
2834 Cupola Caboose 1949 Wabash Railroad Stored
C1735 Bobber Caboose 1910 Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Display
500836 Cupola Caboose 1943 Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway Display
555047 Cupola Caboose 1976 International Car Company Operational
557530 Bay Window Caboose 1960 Nickel Plate Road Stored
1879 Cupola Caboose 1909 Uninown Operational
14042 Cupola Caboose 1891 Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Under restoration
477692 Cupola Caboose 1909 Unknown Stored
9365 Wide Vision Cupola Caboose 1972 Illinois Central Railroad Display
9570 Wide Vision Cupola Caboose Cupola Caboose 1969 Illinois Central Railroad Display
2954 Wide Vision Cupola Caboose 1968 International Car Company Display
99100 Cupola Caboose 1910 American Car & Foundry Company Stored
2834 Cupola Caboose 1949 Wabash Railroad Out of service
C2210 Cupola Caboose 1929 Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Stored

Structures

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Nelson's Crossing Depot was donated in 1977. This Illinois Central Railroad depot was formerly located in Deland, Illinois. The depot was built in 1919 and rebuilt in 1942. The depot was moved to the museum in 1980 and is the ticket office and gift shop of the museum.

The Wabash Depot was built in 1899 to replace a smaller depot that had burned earlier that year. At the time the Wabash mainline went through Monticello between what is now the grain elevator and McDonald's. The line was moved west onto a fill, straightened, and a new steel bridge was built over what was the Illinois Central Railroad (now Monticello Railway Museum trackage). On April 20, 1904, the depot was moved to higher ground beside the new mainline. The depot was moved to its present location on May 29, 1987, and was restored by the Monticello Depot Association. January 1. 1993, that organization, its members and its assets were absorbed into the Monticello Railway Museum.

Special events

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Railroad Days

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Among the special events at the museum, Railroad Days are held each year on the third weekend of September. One daily ticket allows riders to experience the ultimate railroad experience in the Midwest. A regular passenger train using former Illinois Central coaches and office car #7, a mixed-freight train, along with motor cars going into White Heath.

Fireworks Special

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A fireworks special train, pulled by two locomotives, leaves at 8:00 pm and travels north to the museum grounds to view fireworks. Air-conditioned coaches, an open-air car, and open-window coaches are used.

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b Direct sources from the AAR/NMFTA cannot be publicly accessed/located, although such markings have been second-handedly verified via the FRA, ILDOT, and visual wise; however, these marks may be considered expired, reassigned, or unofficial as of 2009.

References

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  1. ^ a b Association of American Railroads Alpha Codes, Illinois Railroad Information System, Department of Transportation (ILDOT), pp. 158–159
  2. ^ "Central Illinois Railroad Buffs Hope to Run Excursion Train". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. June 23, 1966. p. 95 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  3. ^ Stahly, Jim (November 19, 1966). "SPUR Trucks Engine to Monticello". The Pantagraph. Bloomington, IL. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  4. ^ "Locomotives". Monticello Railway Museum. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  5. ^ Smedley, Steve. "E unit for Monticello". Classic Trains. Vol. 25, no. Spring 2024. Kalmbach Media. p. 8.
  6. ^ "Preservation Points - New arrivals at Monticello museum". Trains. Vol. 60, no. 10. Kalmbach Publishing. October 2000. p. 86. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  7. ^ "Passenger Equipment". Monticello Railway Museum. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  8. ^ "Cabooses". Monticello Railway Museum. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  9. ^ "Freight Equipment". Monticello Railway Museum. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
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