Northwest Railway Museum to reopen Train Shed Exhibit Hall
The Northwest Railway Museum in Snoqualmie, Wash., will reopen its Train Shed Exhibit Hall on Sept. 11, which had been closed because of COVID-19 pandemic measures. The museum says the 24,000-square-foot hall includes many of its most significant artifacts. The museum is open Wednesdays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., and Fridays through Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 pm. Advance tickets are required, and admissions are limited to 10 people every 15 minutes in keeping with local health management requires. In keeping with state requirements, masks are required for visitors over age 5 and requested for visitors 2 and older. Visit the museum website for more information.
Northern Ontario museum receives $16,000 government grant
The Northern Ontario Railroad Museum and Heritage Centre in Capreol, Ont., has received $16,000 in funding to purchase and customize a smartphone app to facilitate self-guided tours of the facility. Sudbury.com reports the funds come from the FedNor program, the Canadian government’s economic development program for Northern Ontario. More information on the museum is available at its website.
Anacortes council to consider competing offers to revive 18-inch gauge train
The Anacortes, Wash., City Council will be asked to decide between two competing proposals to revive an 18-inch gauge steam train that operated in the city from 1979 to 1999. Goskagit.com reports the Tommy Thompson train, named for the Shell Oil mechanical engineer who bought and restored the ore-hauling locomotive from South Dakota built in 1909, was stored after Thompson’s death in 1999, then donated to the city for static display in 2012. But Thompson’s widow and a son now want the city to sell the train to Lincoln, Calif., resident Bret Iwan, who would restore it and operate it on land he owns in Lincoln. Meanwhile, the nonprofit Anacortes Railway Group wants to restore and operate the train in Anacortes, and says it has the resources to do so. The city council will consider the two offers on Sept. 8.
