Since very early on, railroads have played a major role in the development of Truckee. America's first transcontinental railroad, which was finished May 10th, 1869, established an important train yard in downtown Truckee. Logging railroads connected this vital artery with the nearby mills and forests to provide much needed lumber to a growing country. As tourism grew, a tourist railroad linked Truckee to the shore of Lake Tahoe, connecting the country to one of its most beautiful resources.

The mission of the Truckee Donner Railroad Society is to perpetuate the study and advancement of knowledge of working railroads in the Truckee Donner area with the goal of building a railroad museum to preserve and share what we have learned.

Truckee Railroad Museum

Truckee Donner RR Society just received a donation from Dobbas of the 160 ton steam-powered  Bucyrus Erie crane which has been sitting in the Truckee yard for 15-20 years.  It has a long history handling railroad wrecks in the Truckee area.   It will be the largest anchor in our growing cast of static displays, outweighing considerably the Rotary snowplow.  The donation was the result of efforts by Jim Hood, Don Davis, Bob Bell and Nelson Van Gundy.

Live locally? Like Trains? - Fun Opportunity!

The Truckee RR Museum has had over 12,000 visitors in the 21 months we've been open, and we need your help.   We try to be open weekends and major holidays or about 16 three-hour shifts a month. At present the bulk of the shifts are being worked by just a few docents, each working several shifts a month.

Being a docent is fun, very simple, and does not require a deep knowledge of trains or history.  It just involves being friendly, welcoming the visitor, and sharing what you do know.  Quite often we learn interesting new things from the visitors.  An experienced docent will work alongside beginners until they feel comfortable.

There are also several fun projects in need of someone with writing or graphics skills that are waiting for someone to come along and pick them up. If you have any questions, think you might be able to help, or would like to learn more, please contact Don Davis 530-582-4271 or by E-mail at ddavis@ltol.com

We need unrestricted donations to build our fundraising efforts. All contributions are appreciated:

Winter Madness 2012 See our huge inventory
over 800 books now on sale $15 ea plus shipping

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