YORK NATIONAL RAILWAY MUSEUM
Steam Locomotives at Largest Rail Museum
It
is the grandest railway museum in England and the largest railroad exhibit
of its kind in the world. Taking up three large halls of a
former station and locomotive factory next to York’s main rail station
on the main rail line from London to Edinburgh, the rail museum at York
houses a display of over 100 locomotives and hundreds of rolling stock
cars and other railway history artifacts. Covering 20 acres mostly indoors
in the halls, the magnificent steam engines of Great Britain’s
rail legacy allow gawking and hands on interaction. 
The
museum's main hall is like stepping back into a Victorian era rail
station with the
glistening engines waiting to depart to the far reaches of empire.
The collection of England’s National Rail Museum is actually
divided between York, London and the Locomotion facility in Shildon
near Durham
(see Locomotion
Rail Museum Shildon). At York is a replica of George
Stephenson’s famous early engine “The Rocket”, which
established the first passenger service between Manchester and Liverpool.
The original is at the Science Museum at London while another operating
replica gives rides at Manchester (see Manchester
Museum Science and Industry). One of the great engines
on display is the Mallard, the sleek blue giant A4 engine, one of only
4 surviving in the world, 
which
set the steam world speed record at an amazing 126 miles an hour. Other
engines
on display run the gamut from the giant Chinese Locomotive built in
England for use on the Chinese Railways to the high tech Shinkansen
Japanese
Bullet Train engine, the only example outside Japan, the "Battle
of Britain Class" WWII era armored locomotive the "Winston
Churchill", to the ornately beautiful Queen Victoria’s Carriage,
used by the queen in the late 1800s, an example of the royal Victorian
era style which is part of the “Palace on Wheels” collection
of noble carriages. Also on display is the “Old Coppernob” the
first engine to run on the still partially operating Furness railway
(see Lakeside & Haverthwaite
Cumbria Lake District).
Several
of the engine cabs are open during the day at Station Hall for a chance
to climb into the engineer's cab of a powerful historic
steam
engine. A recorded sound guide on offer gives an aural tour and provides
living sounds to go with the sights. Observe the maintenance and reconstruction
progress of the engines, cars, and wagons of the collection from the
Workshop Gallery balcony of the Engine Works located off the Great
Hall and Warehouse. In the Works display area, visitors can have a
go at building
their own locomotive, controlling a train and watching a live video
link to York’s Main Line signal box. For kids the York NRM has a railroad
themed playground located in the Museum’s South Yard, accessed
via the Station Hall and a short miniature railway for rides. The National
Railway Museum’s brand new Library and Archive Center the “Search
Engine” allows a study, research and browsing the collection
of the printed archives of photos and documents, not formerly available.
Visiting
York National Railway Museum
Admission
to the National Railway Museum at York is free and a short walk from
the main station. From the old city center of York the station and
museum can be reached by a nice stroll across the Lendal Bridge,
following the signs
to the York Rail Station, or just keeping an eye on the big wheel
over the trees. A tourist road train runs every half hour to the
museum’s
door from Duncombe Place next to the Minster (see York
Minster Cathedral). And if you’re
a model railroad enthusiast, there is The York Model Railway museum
just outside the main York Rail Station. The model
railroad here has over 14 miniature trains running on over 300 yards
of track along with a store to buy model rail items. © Bargain
Travel Europe
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York NRM
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See Also:
NORTH YORKSHIRE MOORS RAILROAD
YORK CASTLE MUSEUM - VICTORIAN STREET
JORVIK VIKING CENTRE AND FESTIVAL
