North Dakota Railroad Museums (2026): A Complete Guide

Published: October 14, 2026

North Dakota’s railroad museums keep the Northern Pacific, the Great Northern, and the Soo Line in buildings you can walk through. Mandan holds the official state railroad museum, in the Northern Pacific yard office Burlington Northern gave the group in 1985, with an 1890 depot from Steele on the grounds. The Railroad Museum of Minot, founded in 1986, tells the story of a Great Northern division point and keeps cabooses outside. Bonanzaville in West Fargo displays Northern Pacific 4-4-0 No. 684, built at Rome, New York, in 1883.

Northern Pacific 4-4-0 #684 preserved at Bonanzaville USA in West Fargo. The engine was built in 1883 by the New York Locomotive Works in Rome, New York, listed by the railroad as Class C-1. Museum photo.

Amtrak’s Empire Builder is the state’s daily passenger train. The Fort Lincoln Trolley at Mandan has no 2026 public schedule. Both notes are on the North Dakota scenic-train guide. American-Rails does not sell tickets. Confirm the doors before you drive.

On this page: At a glance · North Dakota railroads · Mandan · Minot · Bonanzaville · Related reading

At a glance

Place	Town	What it is known for	Site
North Dakota State Railroad Museum	Mandan	Official state railroad museum, designated 1989. Northern Pacific yard office, moved in 1985. 1890 Steele depot and an SW diesel switcher	Facebook · 3102 37th Street NW
Railroad Museum of Minot	Minot	Founded 1986. Great Northern division point of 1886. Gavin Yard hump panel, four cabooses, and a wedge plow	railroadmuseumofminot.org · 19 1st Street NE
Bonanzaville	West Fargo	Cass County Historical Society, organized 1954. Museum building 1972. Northern Pacific 4-4-0 No. 684, Rome, New York, 1883, and Northern Pacific depots	bonanzaville.org · 1351 Main Avenue West

North Dakota railroads

The Northern Pacific reached Fargo on June 6, 1872. Construction had started on February 15, 1870, and the gold spike at Gold Creek, Montana, was driven on September 8, 1883. North Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The Great Northern was in being by 1889 and reached Seattle in 1893. The Milwaukee Road finished its Pacific Extension in 1909. In this state its main line touched the southwest corner, and the rest of its track was branch lines. The Soo Line crossed the state as well. Mileage peaked at 5,311 in 1920. The 2017 figure is 3,287. BNSF and Canadian Pacific, on the former Soo Line and the remaining Milwaukee trackage, are the freight railroads, and short lines still move grain. The state account is the North Dakota railroads page.

The Empire Builder is the passenger train, daily, on the old Great Northern through Fargo, Grand Forks, Devils Lake, Rugby, Minot, Stanley, and Williston. Soo Line 4-6-2 No. 735 stands in Roosevelt Park in Minot. The Northern Lights Railroad Museum is in East Grand Forks, Minnesota, across the river from Grand Forks. Neighbors with their own museum pages are Minnesota and Montana.

Mandan

The North Dakota State Railroad Museum is at 3102 37th Street NW, north of Mandan. A railroad committee formed inside the Morton County Historical Society in 1974. In 1985 Kenneth and Darlene Porsborg gave land for the museum, and Burlington Northern gave the Mandan yard office, which was moved to the site. The Railroad Museum Historical Society was established from that committee in 1986. The legislature designated this the official state railroad museum in 1989.

The building is the old Northern Pacific yard office. On the grounds are the 1890 depot from Steele and an SW diesel switcher, with other rolling stock on about five acres. The state tourism listing also names summer train rides at Father’s Day, Watermelon Days, and Railroad Days. Hours follow the museum’s Facebook page.

Minot

Minot was founded in 1886 as a division point on the Great Northern. The Railroad Museum of Minot, at 19 1st Street NE, dates from 1986 and the city’s centennial. It opened first in the Town and Country Center and later moved into a former lumberyard building downtown, beside the former Soo Line tracks. The museum marked forty years on September 26 and 27, 2026.

Inside are the control panel from the Great Northern’s Gavin Yard hump, east of town, a portrait of Henry Davis Minot, and a velocipede and a track speeder. The Gassman Coulee exhibit remembers the original Great Northern bridge west of Minot, destroyed by a tornado in 1896. Outside are four cabooses and a wedge plow. An N-scale layout in the basement has more than 1,000 feet of main line. It runs when a member of the model-railroad club is present. Hours follow the museum.

Two other Minot railroad places sit outside this museum. Soo Line 4-6-2 No. 735 is the static engine in Roosevelt Park. The Soo Line passenger depot on North Main Street was built in 1912, designed by William M. Kenyon, and listed on the National Register on January 20, 1978, reference 78001996. Passenger trains on that line ended on December 9, 1963. The building later housed the Old Soo Depot Transportation Museum. A 2019 restoration reopened it for events. Confirm whether a museum room is open before you plan the stop around exhibits.

Bonanzaville

Bonanzaville is the Cass County Historical Society’s village at 1351 Main Avenue West in West Fargo. The society was organized in 1954. The museum building went up in 1972. Northern Pacific depots on the grounds include the Embden depot and the Kathryn depot. The Kathryn station, built about 1900, houses the Spud Valley model railroad.

Northern Pacific 4-4-0 No. 684 is in the train shed. The New York Locomotive Works built it at Rome, New York, in 1883, for the Northern Pacific. It is a display engine. The village season is posted on the society’s site.

Sources

North Dakota State Railroad Museum, 3102 37th Street NW, Mandan. Railroad committee inside the Morton County Historical Society, 1974. Kenneth and Darlene Porsborg gave the land in 1985, and Burlington Northern gave the Mandan yard office, which was moved to the site. Railroad Museum Historical Society, 1986. Official state railroad museum, 1989. North Dakota Tourism, February 2026: 1890 Steele depot, an SW diesel switcher, about five acres. Summer rides named on that listing are Father’s Day, Watermelon Days, and Railroad Days. Hours follow the museum Facebook page. The Fort Lincoln Trolley has no 2026 schedule, per the scenic guide.
Railroad Museum of Minot, railroadmuseumofminot.org, 19 1st Street NE. Great Northern division point, 1886. Museum founded 1986, first at the Town and Country Center. Fortieth anniversary, September 26–27, 2026, reported by the Minot Daily News on August 29, 2026. Exhibits: Gavin Yard hump panel, Henry Davis Minot, velocipede and speeder, Gassman Coulee bridge (original Great Northern bridge destroyed by a tornado in 1896), four cabooses, and a wedge plow. N-scale layout, more than 1,000 feet of main line, open when a club member is present. Hours follow the museum.
Soo Line passenger depot, North Main Street, Minot. Built 1912, William M. Kenyon. National Register January 20, 1978, reference 78001996. Passenger trains ended December 9, 1963. Later the Old Soo Depot Transportation Museum. A 2019 restoration reopened the building for events. Confirm a museum room before you go. Soo Line 4-6-2 No. 735 is static in Roosevelt Park, per the scenic guide.
Bonanzaville, bonanzaville.org, 1351 Main Avenue West, West Fargo. Cass County Historical Society organized 1954. Museum building 1972. Northern Pacific 4-4-0 No. 684, New York Locomotive Works, Rome, 1883. Embden depot and Kathryn depot on the grounds. Kathryn depot, about 1900, houses the Spud Valley model railroad. Hours follow the society.
Northern Pacific at Fargo, June 6, 1872. Construction start February 15, 1870. Gold Creek September 8, 1883. Statehood November 2, 1889. Great Northern in being by 1889, Seattle 1893. Milwaukee Road Pacific Extension, 1909. Peak mileage 5,311 in 1920. The 2017 figure is 3,287. Those mileage figures are the chart on the North Dakota railroads page. BNSF and Canadian Pacific. Empire Builder stops follow the scenic guide. The Northern Lights Railroad Museum is in East Grand Forks, Minnesota.

Confirm hours and which locomotive is on the property before you travel.

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