Re: NNG: Saving Equipment in Museums

Besides my interest in narrow gauge; I am a member of the Illinois Railway Museum. They are the biggest railroad museum in the United States which makes sense because Chicago was the biggest railroad center for the country.

First I would look at their roster and see if any of the EL cars you are interested in are there.

Next I would call them and see if they are working on getting a pair of the cars. They are very agressive in the acquissions area.

They will need to raise money to get the cars to Union and also a "Car barn" fund which pays for covered storage for every car on the museum property. You can contribute to one or both of those.

The other place that collects on a national level is the Seashore Trolley Museum in Maine they are the Museum of Mass Transit. They are the only museum that has cars from all four of the 19 Century elevated systems: Boston, New york, Philadelphia and Chicago. They will also need money for a preservation project.

You might want to read Railway Preservation News.com a leading preservation site on the Internet; they have a chat room similar to this room that covers all aspects of rail preservation.

Thanks for checking in with us!

Ted Miles