Model Railroad Museum

The San Diego Model Railroad Museum is one of the liveliest places in Balboa Park, taking you through four massive operating scale modeled layouts that depict the great and historic railroads of the Southwest. Here’s a glimpse of the unique displays in store for you at this railroad-haven:

• Tehachapi pass: Famous among railroad fanatics for its curvy stretch known as “The Loop”, the Tehachapi Pass is a 70- mile railroad line between Bakersfield and Mojave, and SDMRM has replicated it in full, complete with mountains and the whole thing is built to 1/87th its actual size.
• San Diego & Arizona Eastern: This spectacular replica models the prototype railroad connecting San Diego with El Cajon and El Centro, and features an impressive 10-foot high model of the treacherous Carriso Gorge and Goat Canyon trestle.
• Pacific Desert Lines: Based on detailed turn-of-the-century plans to lay a railroad from San Diego to the east coast, this computer-controlled replica features a meticulously detailed Santa Fe Depot and Carlsbad Power Plant, which took hundreds of hours to complete.
• Toy Train Gallery: Everything is tiny in this exhibit, which features a 42 by 44 foot permanent layout including very lifelike scenery, figurines, and trains with horns and real smoke! Also on display are a rare collection of Lionel type models from the 1920s through the 1950s, complimented by select pieces of railroad-inspired artwork by Angela Trotta Thomas.

The San Diego Model Railroad Museum preserves the heritage of railroading through a series of miniature representations, researches and maintains the history of model railroading, and educates the public on many different aspects of railroading. On your visit to SDMRM you will also learn about prominent women in the railroad industry, and how their often-overlooked contributions have made this mode of transport what it is today. This museum isn’t just for train aficionados, and anyone can enjoy the nostalgia and thought-provoking models that will take you back in time and give you a taste of the true might of the American railroad!