South Dakota Railroad Museums (2026): A Complete Guide

Published: October 15, 2026

South Dakota’s railroad museum is a building beside the 1880 Train in Hill City, and the organization that runs it has been told to leave. The South Dakota State Railroad Museum incorporated in 1994 and opened on May 1, 2010, in an engine-house-shaped building at 222 Railroad Avenue. In July 2026 the railroad’s new owner declined to renew the lease. The reports name two different last public days. They agree that the group is to be out of the building by February 1, 2027, and that the organization will continue. Prairie Village, at Madison, is the other place that keeps a railroad with its historic buildings. Its own page closed the 2026 season, train included.

The South Dakota State Railroad Museum, which was located in Hill City, and opened to the public from 1994-2026.

The ride between Hill City and Keystone is the Black Hills Central, and its calendar is on the South Dakota scenic-train guide. South Dakota has no Amtrak station. American-Rails does not sell tickets. Call the museum before you plan the stop around the depot.

On this page: At a glance · South Dakota railroads · Hill City · Madison · Related reading

At a glance

Place	Town	What it is known for	Site
South Dakota State Railroad Museum	Hill City	Incorporated 1994. Opened May 1, 2010, beside the 1880 Train. Chicago & North Western caboose of 1947. Lease ended; closed October, 2026.	sdsrm.com · Building A, 222 Railroad Avenue
Prairie Village	Madison	Historic village. About two miles of the Prairie Village, Herman & Milwaukee. The village closed the 2026 season, railroad included	prairievillage.org · 45205 SD Highway 34

South Dakota railroads

The first railroad into what is now South Dakota was the Dakota Southern, built from Sioux City toward Yankton. It reached Vermillion in the summer of 1872 and Yankton in February 1873, and in 1881 it entered the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul. The two Dakotas became states on November 2, 1889. The Milwaukee Road and the Chicago & North Western were the through roads. The Milwaukee’s Pacific Extension went west from Mobridge, and the last spike was driven at Garrison, Montana, on May 19, 1909. The state page gives the network as just 1,800 miles, against a peak of more than 4,200. BNSF and Canadian Pacific are the large freight railroads, and short lines still move grain. The state account is the South Dakota railroads page.

The train you can still ride is a mine spur. The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy laid the Hill City–Keystone track in the late 1880s. William Heckman started the 1880 Train on that grade in 1957. News reports in May 2026 placed the sale of the railroad with World Choice Investments. No. 7, a Baldwin 2-6-2 of 1919 that came from the Prescott & Northwestern, is a static display at the Hill City depot. It is a display engine. The assigned road engine for any one trip is on the scenic guide. Neighbors with their own museum pages are North Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, and Montana.

Hill City

The South Dakota State Railroad Museum is Building A, 222 Railroad Avenue, next to the Hill City depot. A group incorporated the museum in 1994 and spent the next years looking for a home beside the tourist railroad. The doors opened on May 1, 2010. The name is the organization’s. Bills in the 2004 and 2005 legislatures left that name unofficial. On the grounds is a Chicago & North Western caboose built in 1947 and given to the museum in 2016. Tickets for the Hill City–Keystone train are the Black Hills Central’s.

World Choice Investments bought the Black Hills Central in May 2026. In July the museum was told the building lease would not be renewed. Trains, citing a statement the museum posted, reported a last public day of October 12, 2026. KELO and Railfan & Railroad reported October 16. The museum’s own visit page was still inviting people in when this guide was revised. Use the page, or the phone, for the day you mean to go. The accounts agree on the rest. The organization is to be out of the building by February 1, 2027. Board president Lesta Turchen has said the organization will continue. The work she described is an endowment that can help other groups, loans of objects for exhibit elsewhere, and a transfer of the library to the Dakota Rail History Association.

Madison

Prairie Village is at 45205 SD Highway 34, east of Madison. The railroad on the grounds is the Prairie Village, Herman & Milwaukee, about two miles of track. The steam that has been kept there includes Duluth & Northeastern 0-6-0 No. 29 and an 0-4-0T numbered 11. That is a description of the equipment. The village’s own page, checked for the scenic guide at the start of October, said the 2026 season was closed, historic buildings, railroad, and carousel together. The August steam jamboree had already run. Call before you drive out for a train.

Sources

South Dakota State Railroad Museum, sdsrm.com, Building A, 222 Railroad Avenue, Hill City. Incorporated 1994. Opened May 1, 2010. Custer County Chronicle, June 4, 2020, quoting Rick Mills. Chicago & North Western caboose, built 1947, donated 2016. Bills in 2004 and 2005 left the name unofficial. Trains, August 24, 2026. Confirm whether the building is open. The visit page was still inviting visitors when this guide was revised.
Lease. World Choice Investments bought the Black Hills Central in May 2026. Trains, May 12, 2026. The museum was told in July that the lease would not be renewed. Trains reported a public close on October 12, 2026, from a Facebook statement. KELO, August 21, 2026, and Railfan & Railroad, September 3, 2026, reported October 16. Out of the building by February 1, 2027. Lesta Turchen, board president: the organization will continue. Endowment, exhibit loans, and the library to the Dakota Rail History Association.
Prairie Village, prairievillage.org, 45205 SD Highway 34, Madison. The village’s own page closed the 2026 season, including the railroad. About two miles, Prairie Village, Herman & Milwaukee. Duluth & Northeastern 0-6-0 No. 29 and an 0-4-0T numbered 11 have been the steam on the property. The August 27–30, 2026, jamboree has run. Call before you go.
Dakota Southern reached Vermillion in the summer of 1872 and Yankton in February 1873, and entered the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul in 1881. Statehood November 2, 1889. Milwaukee Pacific Extension, last spike at Garrison, Montana, May 19, 1909. Those dates match the scenic guide. Mileage on the state page: just 1,800 now, more than 4,200 at the peak. Freight: BNSF and Canadian Pacific. No Amtrak. Black Hills Central: Chicago, Burlington & Quincy mine spur, late 1880s. William Heckman, 1957. No. 7, Baldwin 1919, ex-Prescott & Northwestern, static at Hill City. Rides stay on the scenic guide.

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

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