"Washington State History Museum Model Railroad - Tacoma, WA" Waymark

Long Description:
This railroad was built by the Puget Sound Model Railroad Engineers group and displays railroading in the Tacoma area in the 1950's. It can be found on the third floor of the Washington State History Museum in the museum district of Tacoma.

Their Website can describe it better than me so here is what Washingtonhistory.org says about it:

The Puget Sound Model Railroad Engineers are constructing the largest model railroad installation in the state of Washington. An HO-scale (1:87) model representing local railroading in the 1950's, the 25' by 95' exhibit area provides a compressed view of local historical landmarks from Tacoma's Asarco Tunnel to Stampede Pass, with trackage and equipment from the Great Northern, Northern Pacific, Union Pacific and Milwaukee Road railroads.

The exhibit is located in the History Lab Learning Center, on the 5th floor of the museum, and can be viewed during most normal operating hours. When no PSMRE operators are in attendance, four trains run automatically at the push of a button.

Regularly-scheduled operating sessions occur the first Saturday of every month, running from noon to about 4:00pm. During these sessions, club members operate the model using "real railroad methods", running passenger trains and freight trains according to correct procedures. On duty is a dispatcher, who communicates with the train "crews" via radio. It can geta little hectic at times, bring the family and come on down to watch the dedicated volunteers from PSMRE bring the history of railroading in Washington back to life.

Check out this link to see a "http://www.washingtonhistory.org/wshm/images/railroad.MOV" target="_blank">360 degree panoramic spin tour of the railroad.

Be sure to check out the gallery photos and their descriptions. When possible I have included URL's to locations that have been waymarked so you can see what the area looks like now.

Scale: HO scale-1:87 What is the herald of the layout? (Is there a featured railroad line(s) for the layout): Great Northern, Northern Pacific, Union Pacific and Milwaukee Road railroads What is the theme of the layout?: Railroading of the Tacoma Area. Features various local landmarks like Sperry dock, Union Depot, Asarco Smelter, Brown and Haley Chocolate Factory, etc. What is the era of the layout? (What time period does the layout depict?): Diesel Is there an admission fee? If so how much..: Thursdays from 5-8pm are free At other times: Adults = $8 Seniors= $7 Students (6-17) = $6 Child (5 and under)= free Military = $6 Family (up to four kids and 2 adults) = $25 Is this location handicap accessible?: Yes What type of location is this layout found in? ( Museum, Club, Hobby Shop, Business, Manufacturer,..: Washington State History Museum Layout Website: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:
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Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   2/29/2008 Hikenutty visited it 7/15/2005 JustMike visited it

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