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The Old Depot Railroad Museum

The Old Depot Railroad Museum, located in Dassel, Minnesota is housed in the Burlington Northern’s former single-story depot at Cokato, Minnesota. The museum does not focus on any railroad or region in particular but rather the nation’s railroading history in general. Over the past twenty years, owner Howard Page has turned the little depot into a treasure-trove of railroading artifacts and historic pieces, from steam whistles to hand tools and about everything in between!

Railroad history in the United States is nearly as old as the country itself, dating back to the mid-1820s. As we know this great nation of ours would not have grown and prospered as it did without the railroads, which brought together the young United States and allowed for unprecedented growth and prosperity.

The "Golden Age" of railroading lasted from roughly the 1880s to the 1920s before other modes of transportation (such as automobiles and airplanes) began to displace the industry as the leading means of moving people and goods. Railroading faced its toughest adversity during the 1960s and 1970s when it lost so much market share that many companies were either purchased by stronger ones or simply went bankrupt. After the industry was deregulated in 1980 it began to make a comeback and today is seeing a renaissance.

Railroad history would likely be very different if it wasn't for the Staggers Rail Act of 1980, proposed by Harley Staggers of West Virginia that the railroad industry was able to regain its footing. The bill allowed railroads to be much deregulated and allowed them to more freely set their own freight rates and abandon unprofitable rail lines. Before this time railroads had been mostly left for dead as an outdated mode of transportation that should go the way of the stagecoach.

The beginnings of this museum date back to 1985 when owner BN decided it no longer had any need for the building and wanted to raze it. It was then that the depot was purchased by Mr. Page and moved to Dassel. Originally the building wasn't even used as a museum but found several other uses for community events, craft sales and even a haunted house. Soon after this Mr. Page began to find himself increasingly interested in railroading history and thus began to fill the building with railroad memorabilia.

Now known as the Old Depot Railroad Museum the building features more than 1,000 historic pieces of not just railroading but artifacts from around the world. Whether you have an interest in railroading or just history in general you certainly should find the museum worth visiting.

The museum also offers group tours for those interested in learning more about the history of the depot and the collection it houses.

Also, for more information and reading about excursion trains and railroad museums you might want to consider picking up Tourist Trains Guidebook from the editors of Kalmbach Publishing's Trains magazine. The book lists and reviews over 400 excursions and museums found throughout the country and is an excellent resource, which has received superb reviews by readers, if you're looking for one to visit. In any event, if you're interested in perhaps purchasing this book please visit the link below which will take you to ordering information through Amazon.com, the trusted online shopping network.

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