The History of Washington Railroading Comes to Life
The Puget Sound Model Railroad
Engineers (PSMRE) are constructing the largest permanent model railroad installation in the state of Washington.
An HO-scale (1:87) model
representing local railroading in the 1950's, the 25' by 95' exhibit area provides a compressed
view of local historical landmarks from Tacoma's Asarco Tunnel to Stampede Pass, with trackage
and equipment from the Great Northern, Northern Pacific, Union Pacific, and Milwaukee Road
railroads.
The exhibit is located in the History Lab Learning Center, on the fifth floor of the museum,
and can be viewed during most normal operating hours. When no PSMRE operators
are in attendance, four trains run automatically at the push of a button.
Regularly-scheduled operating sessions occur the first Saturday of every month, running from noon to about 4 PM. During
these sessions, club members operate the model using "real railroad methods", running passenger trains and
freight trains according to correct procedures. On duty is a dispatcher, who communicates with the train
"crews" via radio. Bring the family and come on down to watch the dedicated volunteers from
PSMRE bring the history of railroading in Washington to life.
Take a Spin Tour of the Model Railroad!
Would you like to get an insider's look at the model railroad? You can view a
360° Panoramic Spin Tour taken from inside the installation in Quicktime VR.
The Apple Quicktime plug-in is required to view the Spin Tour.