$15 to download
The Illinois Railway Museum is the largest railroad museum in the United States, with over 500 pieces of historic railway and transit equipment and more than 100 acres of developed property. It boasts nearly five miles of main line railroad on the former Elgin & Belvidere right-of-way, with almost four miles of track under cover for protected storage. The museum is a non-profit organization run entirely by volunteers, showcasing a vast collection that spans over a century and a half of rail history, including steam locomotives, diesel engines, electric streetcars, and even a horse-drawn trolley car from 1859. It is one of only two railway museums in the country that operates both electric and diesel trains, and the only one to regularly offer trolleybus rides.
The IRM was founded in 1953 by a group of individuals who each contributed $100 (approximately $1100 today) to purchase Indiana Railroad interurban car 65, which had been slated for scrapping.
The museum began on the grounds of the Chicago Hardware Foundry in North Chicago, using surplus railway sidings, with a primary focus of saving streetcars and interurban cars that were quickly becoming obsolete. In 1961, its name was changed to the Illinois Railway Museum to reflect a broader mission of preserving all types of railway equipment, including steam and diesel locomotives and freight cars.
By 1964, the museum had outgrown its initial location at the Foundry, and relocated to Union, acquiring a mile and a half of the long-abandoned Elgin & Belvidere Electric Railway right-of-way and a 26-acre plot of land. The collection of 40 pieces of equipment was transported to Union that year.
Over the next 50 years, the museum would expand to hold over eight miles of right of way, and hundreds of additional acreage along the tracks, creating a considerable buffer to protect the museum from suburban expansion should it ever reach that far in rural McHenry County.
This route by DigitalRailsis a representation as the museum appeared around 2015.
Route details
- 4 miles of mainline operations, and a half-mile trolley loop
- Several yards for unlimited switching possibilities
- Custom built catenary and wires
- Photo realistic terrain
- Dozens of paths
This route does not contain any activities or consists, as it is intended to be a showcase for your own collection.
System and Software requirements
- OpenRails (any version) -or- Microsoft Train Simulator
- Any Windows 8 or higher certified PC
- Scalerail (available at Trainsim.com)
To Purchase
- Pay with Stripe (credit cards, Google Pay, Apple Pay)
- The product key will be displayed in "My Keys" on the Store menu bar your payment is processed
To Download
- Download Link: Illinois Railway Museum Route
To Install
- Unzip the download to a temporary folder
- Copy folder "IRM" to your ROUTES folder
- Route also requires Scalerail to be installed prior to loading the route in OpenRails or MSTS