What's Going on at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania? | History in the Dark
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- čas přidán 12. 09. 2024
- The museum's website: www.rrmuseumpa...
The Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania is, as the name implies, a railroad museum in Pennsylvania. Located in Strasburg, the museum initially opened in 1975. They have a large collection of historical rolling stock, most of which is safely stored inside. But some pieces are outdoors due to lack of space. This isn't unusual, but the museum raised funds in 2019 to construct a new roundhouse for those outdoor locomotives. To date, no word on this project has been heard and no work has started while the engines are subject to the wear and tear of Mother Nature. Where's the roundhouse?
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I have uploaded an update video with some more information on the status of the restoration plans for the outdoor locomotives: czcams.com/video/ufWiwwg8go8/video.html
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Filmed in "PotatoVision"
My phone's camera absolutely eats. Sorry about that.
@HistoryintheDark thanks mr dark my eyes have settled now
Guess I'm not the only one who figured something was wrong
Yeah, what's up with that? There is barely a difference between 144p and 1080p.
I have a note 20 ultra that needs a screen and lcd. I moved on to the s24 ultra. Not the cheapest to fix, but if you wanna fix it and use it, its all yours. Its even unlocked for any carrier The cameras pretty amazing. Couple hundred bucks and you got a pretty solid phone to shoot with.
The commenters are acting as though there is some big corporation who is leaving all this equipment to rot. As stated in the video this is a state run museum. The state pays for the property and electricity and for the salaries of the director and a handful of employees to manage archives and give tours. As also stated in the video The Friends of the Railroad Museum is a volunteer group that does most of the restoring and maintenance of the collection. Instead of whining about the state of the collection you should join the Friends and come help restore these pieces. Also not long after the designs for the roundhouse were submitted the Governor of the state effectively closed down the entire state for two years putting the entire project on hold. You just snap your fingers and start up all those contracts and projects immediately especially since costs have risen since then.
The staff and management of The Museum are perfectly well aware of the status and state of their display equipment. Don't be an aff, volunteer.
when i visted they told me it would take about 5 years to restore each of the locomotives, and the struggle of making money to restore these locomotives is not just present in this museum but also Steamtown, And The Danbury Railroad Museum and plenty of others too.
I visted all 3 places and i'm gonna start donating every visit i go to any railroad museum.
People if you’re near one of these museums and you have spare time on the weekends etc. Please volunteer. Your labor can help cut cost . These savings can help them use those funds to improve the sights
They're focusing on cosmetically restoring all the locomotives they want to put in the roundhouse before they build the roundhouse. There's also a youtube channel documenting the process of the restorations of these engines
the yellow building is a sand blasting tent
Oooooooh, that makes more sense.
@@HistoryintheDark lemme grab the channel link for you, all your questions might be answered
youtube.com/@mikesmetalfab?si=1WgS0uB6dO00ktz1
I went there for the first time last October and it was amazing to see all the rolling stock and locomotives preserved. I know, its sad that a few of them havent really had the chance to be restored but hopefully in the future they can be brought back to their former glory
I was just here for vacation last week it was such a cool experience with my grandfather, especially the strasburg RR ride
Ngl, those PRR steam locomotives outside, would definitely restore.
ok time to raise taxes.
I love being a volunteer at this museum. Come visit!
I was there in January 2023 when I visited Strasburg. The exhibits indoors are lovingly preserved, but unfortunately the outdoor stuff was rotting. Every museum has the problem of a lack of labor and funds, but there has to be a better solution than letting equipment rot. I'd rather see locos tarped over than rotting.
more taxes?
@@GiordanDiodato Or just use the tax money people are already paying
yeah but fewer people want to look at locomotives hidden by tarps so that partially hampers traffic which only exacerbates the problem of funding.
@@nak_0519 true
Was over there a few months before 611 left the museum. Very awesome museum and would highly recommend it!
The National Museum of Transportation in St Louis had this problem for a long time, too. They eventually went from a private museum to being owned by the county and a beautiful shed was built to house most of the equipment. Some is still outdoors but it’s maintained so it’s not falling apart.
This video reminded me that here in Finland some steam locomotives have been scrapped in preservation AT THE 21TH CENTUARY, after been left outside to the element's and not enough care had been given to them.😔
If it helps to know, those locomotives outside are planned to be restored cosmetically. It's just a very slow and painful process as funding is an issue there. I talk with the guys over there frequently so I trust that they'll get the job done one day. And the Round house is still being planned as of now at least it seems. So only time will tell
Heyoo, as a museum volunteer i can confirm we have little money and not enough volunteers. The b6 TENDER which is currently going through the sanding and painting process took a couple YEARS. Its an easy process to sign up to be a volunteer and free. Did i mention free?
I went to this place a lot as a kid (as I was big into trains) and it always broke my heart to see those steam engines sitting outside
When I get rich I’m preserving all of the Pennsy steam locomotives to operation, buying 100 square miles of land, Building trackage, a roundhouse, and a bunch of heavyweight pullmans, and I’m gonna have the best layout the worlds ever seen
My girlfriend surprised me and took me to Strasburg for a birthday trip earlier this year! A stay at the Red Caboose Motel, this museum, and lots more!
Btw this museum is very military friendly! They let me in for practically free!
Great video Darkness. I'm glad museums are around to preserve these amazing machines.
I'm beyond happy NKP 757 was brought home to Bellevue, OH. She sat outside over there for far too long.
Visited both Strasburg and the PA RR museum before the biological weapon was used on us. Saw the NKP loco there and wondered why it was there. I guess it must have been stored for safe keeping.
Very much wish I could fund this...
10:38 _"plenty of potholes"_ I bicycled through northwestern PA. In one day I got 3 (!) flat tires. PA roads are absolutely horrific. You'd think that with no shoulders on the roads there'd be less to maintain but no, they won't even fund basic maintenance of what little they have.
in this case it's because we keep funding other stuff like retirement.
@@GiordanDiodato One could raise taxes and do both. (Based on the yard signs I saw that is an anathema to most folks.)
It’s a major problem. As a trucker, it ticks me off since PA fuel taxes are among the top 3 in the nation. But each year, the tax pays a huge amount to fund the turnpike system (In addition to the crazy high toll rates. 🤷♂️ Go figure.)
they are actively working on cosmetic restoration of some outdoor locomotives
The rendition of the sad henry theme was amazing. 😢❤
Sadly this is not the only museum which have locomotives in high need of restoration sitting in the open.
At least most of these have boiler cladding and insulation removed as that can be the real killer for the boiler as it traps moisture.
Better still is a cover, even when it is a cheap metal roof or one of these large gazeboes. It leaves the exhibit visible but protects it from rain.
_"boiler cladding and insulation removed"_ Likely it was asbestos.
I most recently visited the RR Museum of PA a couple years ago, and I, too, am frustrated with the lack of progress with the roundhouse project, which I'm pretty sure predates 2013 (I heard that that was going to be their next project after the extension of the rolling stock hall was completed in 1995). I will say however that both the K4s and M1b both look like they're in worse condition than they likely are; both have had their boiler and cylinder lagging and outer casings removed in order to remove asbestos. This is a common and expensive project faced by railroad museums as it was a common insulator during the golden age of steam and has to be remediated before restoration can occur (Steamtown NHS in Scranton recently completed a similar project with its collection).
They’ve got a great collection.
Pennsy was pretty good about preservation. Though they only saved one or two of each of the major steam locomotive classes. The major miss was the J1 2-10-4. That's what the PRR needed to save. And a few of them as far as I'm concerned.
Two really good museums to go to close to me are the Warther Museum in Dover Ohio, this guys whole family, like 5-6 generations are skilled wood carvers and knife makers. Most of the carvings are dedicated to steam locomotives.
The other is the Pennsylvania Trolley museum in Brownsville, (also check out the National Pike Steam Association show there with a bunch of old construction equipment) but the trolley museum has just had a new building put up for the reading portion of the museum, which is now located in front of the building where they keep most of the trolleys. Not to mention you get to go on a 4 mile little trip on a trolley. The absolute best time to go if you just want to ride a trolley is during the Washington county fair where they run up to 8 different trolleys at one time hauling people too and from the museum and other parking places to the fair, so stinking cool. Highly recommended by me.
_"Warther Museum"_ CCRX 6700 did a video on that. Bloody amazing work! His workshop is preserved as well.
Not to mention the Age of Steam Roundhouse museum right outside of Sugarcreek, Ohio
Did anyone else hear the voice of Indiana Jones going "It belongs in a Museum!" During the outside portion of the video!!
That said I have been there a few times with my family and will continue to go. It is a lovely place and even has some fun interactive displays for the little train lovers and the big ones!
Also want to give a quick shout out to the B&O RR Museum in Baltimore... the place where my father took me and I originally caught train fever. Unfortunately the neighborhood surrounding isn't the best but still a lovely Museum as well.
I remember visiting Strasburg back in the 80’s. I’ve been a railroad fanatic my whole life and I was thrilled to be able to visit both the Strasburg Railroad and the museum across the street. Both were impressive, and I especially loved the museum, but I was likewise filled with a sense of deep sorrow over the conditions of the items that were stored outside.
Looking back on it, a lot of my memories seem a bit hazy, and because I’ve dreamed about the place a number of times since the visit, my actual memories are a bit intermixed with the dream memories. However, ever since that visit, I’ve been wondering why they didn’t make some effort to repair those historic items. 😢
If I was Elon Musk, or better yet, if I had Elon Musk’s money myself, I would at least try to get SOMETHING done there. Maybe not complete restorations, but the roundhouse you mentioned would certainly be a start. 🙁
By the way, I’m sure you already know this, but an independent not-for-profit organization in (I guess) Pennsylvania is supposedly building a brand new Pennsy T-1 (4-4-4-4) locomotive from the ground up. Progress has been pretty slow because they are completely dependent on donations, but for a while, they were making pretty good headway on the project. I haven’t received any updates in a long time, but the last thing I heard was that the frame had been built, at least a couple of the driving wheels had been cast and the boiler was almost complete.
They also had received a donated tender that was not specifically from a T-1 locomotive, but I think it was the same type. It also needed restoration, though, and they were planning to completely rebuild it.
Considering that project and Union Pacific’s recent Big Boy restoration, I guess at least SOME people care about these things as much as you and I.
I live in Philly and we went here last fall...super fun!! Also they got a LIVE feed thats on yt
I've been there a few times as a kid and more recent in April 2024, just because of foaming or from my childhood, I was heavily into T&F
It is a good museum. I am glad the NKP 757 made it out of that collection. Now at home with the Mad River & NKP Museum she is getting a beautiful on going cosmetic restoration.
Nashville Tennessee doesn't have any classic theaters anymore because of your saying, "they'll save one!". They don't have one.
Wait what? There's donated funds for coverings that are unaccounted for is suspect. Honestly, I would expect more from a museum associated with the state of Pennsylvania. After all trains are an integral part of transportation history of the United States.
I took my son there last summer. Pretty interesting! Most definitely it was depressing to see alot of the equipment outdoors rot away.
All of the outdoor locos are getting cosmetically restored over the next few years, so be patient.
A toaster in the museum! I keep forgetting how old I am, and how old the AEM-7 also is.
Has NJT retired all of theirs?
@@alexhajnal107 NJTs were all ALP-44s. They are stored in poor condition at Port Morris awaiting scrapping. SEPTA's and MARC's AEM-7s have all been retired.
Me and the model railroad club members were literally talking about this last week during their model railroad days. I told them the story how the roundhouse was actually approved but construction never begun. The got the same story from the staff. I have been waiting years for this roundhouse to be built. I told the club members more than likely I will probably be dead and never get to see it built. I keep hearing different stories how the project is going to move forward but it never does. They were supposed to break ground years ago. They egg you on saying yeah we are going to break ground soon.....When???2080??? The B&O isn't much different. State owned which is why the American Freedom Train #1 is in such bad shape. A simple cosmetic restoration was needed for years.
One thing noticeable here is the PRR was really big on Belpaire fireboxes, which were rare everywhere else on this side of the pond.
It is most definitely the state government that is holding the money. Should probably start sending letters asking for information about the money.
At least once or twice a year i go to this museum. I think part of the problem is politics but lack of staff and funding is a factor. The B6 shunter is being cosmetically restored. I saw that myself covered in primer. But yeah the round house can't come soon enough.
I was there two days ago!
the little shelter outside is for restoration and protection work happening to the equipment, it's so men can work and paint can dry without getting rained on, not to protect the equipment on even an interim basis, it's essentially just an extension of the shop, this guy has up to date information on what's happening on account of he works there www.youtube.com/@mikesmetalfab
Great Video and great museum. They have their limitations but overall its great and they do amazing work. The connect to the Strasburg RR makes for possibliy the greatest railfan experiences east of the Appalachian mountains
Watch Mikes Metal Fab.
☝️This channel is worth seeing. Mike is doing amazing things at the museum and alludes to the fact that a roundhouse is still planned.
That man is actually doing God's work for the museum. Those locomotives might be in sad shape but with people like him....they will never be abandoned they will see a good future.
Alot of railroad museums have this issue.....the outdoor yard.
In montreal we have Expo Rail or the Canadian National Railroad museum in Delson Quebec (like 30 mins drive from downtown montreal) and they are an EXCELLENT museum. They have two huge sheads with tons of space plus the main exhibition hall that has many pieces of locomotion and rolling stock. But even with the many volunteers and funds they receive....they still have locomotive and rolling stock sitting outside. Its unfortunelty a reality. And they say with out shame "we'll get to them eventually" and they do.
I know for the PRR museum they have "Mikes fabs shop" youtube channel bringing us the reality and progress going on. They are actually doing quite a bit of work like actually rebuilding pieces and stuff.
I 100% get your point of view darkness and with you. History is important.
Steam town....they have a alot of explaning to do.
Not sure why people still mispronounce Strasburg.
It's not "strouseborg" it's Stras-burg.
Naw I thought it was a car museum in Vermont but a railroad museum in Pennsylvania
That’s crazy
I live not far from here. There is another small line and museum between Middletown (three mile island fame) and Elizabethtown (etown to us locals) worth a visit if you have the time when visiting Strasbourg.
was there once great trip. Need to go back. The strausburg rr train ride. The museum. Even stayed at a caboose hotel
Can you do a video about the Jackson Street Roundhouse or Minnesota Transportation Museum? They have a few restoration projects going on, including the restoration of Northern Pacific 2156 (a class Q-3 4-6-2 Pacific steam locomotive, and one of FOUR members of that class to survive into preservation) to operation. However the restoration of that locomotive has pretty much been suspended indefinitely, and that project has been going on since the 1980s!
Great video, you should do one on the Illinois Railway Museum!!!!
Great video , caught a slight glimpse of my Lionel JLC series GG1 with the aluminum Congressional passenger cars on The Lower Susquehanna Valley Modular Railroaders layout .
Oh, that was yours? Beautiful model!
@@HistoryintheDark , yes , thank you . Are you going to do a video on the model displays that were there ?
Probably not. My phone's camera quality was a lot poorer than expected as you saw and my footage of the layouts suffered as a result. I'd be doing them a disservice, especially the smaller gauges where you can't make out any of the amazing details.
You gonna donate to the museum or try and volunteer instead of making a 10 min video on a museum?
First of all I'm sure as hell Darkness knows and he definitely will do both if he can, Second of all if he doesn't make the video then some or even plenty of other people who are railfans or non railfans out there won't be able know what and how to help.
And also,no offense on you but if you're not a long time viewer of this channel then you don't know what's up, Darkness isn't broke or anything,our boy is willing to help restore these historical equipments to any degree possible but in order to do that you need alot of money,some people can donate any amount in their financial capabilities and im sure Darkness is doing just that.
3:09 ASDF Movie reference
Wow they need to cover those choo choos.
Talk about the New Hope & Ivyland, they are just another example of rusted hunks of junk left to rot outside.
When you touched the loco I got an ad
So MUCH PRR stuff. Yes, I know, the core of the collection is the group of engines saved by PRR. But, I would prioritize taking care of the non-PRR stuff that is outside, LNE, LV, etc.
"Either build the shack or fill the potholes, pick one."
The problem with that, is that would require the government to be proactive and not wasting money on useless pet projects and lining their own pockets.
Hey Mr Darkness, could you please do a episode about NSWGR 6042, last government steam loco rusting at Forbes NSW.
I knew when i went there something was off
I heard that GG1 4859 is there also
The silence is deafing
Damn Darkness- that outside montage was even more sad than watching baby deals getting clubbed....
why does it feel like the video is kinda a hair out of focus the entire time? I mean great video overall, but feels a bit fuzzy.
aaaand I should read the comments about "Potato vision" phone camera....
For what ever reason just about all the Darkness videos are blurred. Easy to pass them by IMHO.
Love Mikes metal fab
YOU MISSED THE CIVIL WAR BRIDGE IN THE PARKING LOT. Also when I went in 2022, the entire outside was closed
Went to see that museum back in 2004.
Where did you get the somber Thomas tank engine music?
That one that is one of one should be completely restored considering how horrible she has been treated outside.
So, I was able to ask someone onsite about it, and from what they said. The money they had was taking time to get the materials from the government; and then in the last 10 years pricing for the materials went up. So the fundraiser wasn’t enough. With what happened over the last 4 years as well, they just haven’t been able to put the money to proper use
Of COURSE the government took their sweet time on it. Color me not shocked at all.
i Go Here A Lot Because i Live Abbout A Short Drive Away From Here
Also the caboose motel nearby too
NGL, some of those engines might have better luck being hull plating for some of the more endangered members of the Museum fleet...USS The Sullivan's comes to mind...
Want to annoy them ask about when #31 will be restored. That's get the steam going.
@3:07 is that a ww2 willys mb jeep i see
*steams up John bull when no one's looking* 😈
What in your opinion is the pennsylvania railroad greatest achievement 🤔 it can be any thing from the pennsylvania railroad
Build the shack!!
AH HELL NAH WHAT THE PENSY MUSEUM DOING?😭😭🙏🙏
4:26: YOU TOTALLY RUINED THE MOOD DARKNESS! Don't worry Darkness, they get more indoor space soon
This video quality is worse than Penn Central.
Yeah, I won't be using my phone camera for this sort of thing in the future. Looked fine during recording, but the output quality is pretty cringe.
@@HistoryintheDark You tried and that's what matters. Thanks for an interesting video!
The F pensy museum? Can you guys at least build a shack or a roof on top of some of those rolling stock?😡
Technically, the museum is located in Ronks, not Strasburg...
NO , Actually, it IS located exactly as stated in Strasburg PA , 300 Gap Rd Strasburg is the physical address . The namesake Strasburg RR across the street is located in Ronks , 301 Gap Rd Ronks PA.
it's pretty screwy, but living here my whole life, some things in Lancaster County don't make logical sense .
@@johnh.toytrainfanatic5300 oh
It's "Straw-sburg", not "Str-ow-sburg". No "ow".
might be due to lack of funds.
Weres the two a4s mr dark i know one is in canada
@@davidderbidge8232 are you talking about the 2 A4s in North America? If so the other one Dwight d isenhower is in the national railway museum in Green Bay wisconsin
@susanlua4792 ok thanks
@susanlua4792 thank you
Bro this film quality is horrendous 😂
You want to see potholes come see me about two hours north. Id love to say hi.
4:33 7:47 11:56 Poor Dan(PRR 6755).
Someone Please Restore Dan(PRR 6755)
Both are getting restored to be cosmetically restored soon
Don’t You Mean He Will Be Restored Soon?
That's what happens when you put stuff in a broke ass town