About

The Yakima Valley Rail and Steam Museum Association was formed in 1989 by a group of local railroad enthusiasts with the goal of establishing a railroad museum in Toppenish. The idea came at a time when the community was looking for new opportunities to attract visitors and tourism following the closure of the U&I Sugar plant in 1979.

The first meeting was held in June 1989 at Providence Hospital in Toppenish, where approximately 25 to 30 people gathered to hear about the possibility of bringing an operating steam locomotive to the community. Through a friendship between one of the founding members and the owner of Great Western Railway locomotive No. 51, the locomotive came to Toppenish in November 1989. The owner was looking for a drier climate in which to store the locomotive. No. 51 participated in Steamfest 1990 and operated on local excursions before leaving Toppenish around 1992 for the Fillmore & Western Railway in California. The locomotive later appeared in several films, including Chaplin (1992).

Following the experience with No. 51, museum members began looking for another steam locomotive. This search led to Northern Pacific No. 1364, a 1902 Baldwin S-4 4-6-0 located in Mineral, Washington. The locomotive was in poor condition, but members saw an opportunity to preserve it and began working toward its acquisition and restoration. No. 1364 came to Toppenish in 1994.

Meanwhile, the Association was working to establish the museum in the historic Northern Pacific depot. Built in 1911, the depot had served as the transportation center of Toppenish for approximately 50 years before passenger service ended in 1961. The building was no longer used by the railroad by 1981 and was boarded up. With the assistance of the City of Toppenish, the Association leased the depot from Burlington Northern in 1990. Fort Simcoe Job Corps helped repair the damaged plaster ceilings, while volunteers worked on the electrical systems, oak interior trim, and museum exhibits. The depot and adjoining freight house were purchased from Burlington Northern in 1993, and the museum held its grand opening on July 4, 1992.

Through the 1990s and 2000s, the museum continued to develop its collection and restore its buildings and equipment. Volunteers converted the former freight house into an engine house for No. 1364, and several pieces of railroad equipment were restored for display, including a 1923 Shell Oil tank car and a 1940 drop-bottom gondola.

In 2000, the museum division was renamed the Northern Pacific Railway Museum. In 2006, the museum acquired Northern Pacific Q-3 No. 2152, a 1909 Baldwin 4-6-2 Pacific, from the City of Auburn, Washington. The locomotive had been donated to Auburn in 1958 and preserved in a city park before being acquired by the museum.

During the 2010s, restoration continued with projects including Northern Pacific No. 1238, a 1908 wooden caboose, and a 1941 Ford REA delivery truck. Throughout this period, the museum’s collection continued to grow with the addition of locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, cabooses, and other historic equipment.

Today, the Northern Pacific Railway Museum continues the work begun by those early volunteers, preserving the 1911 depot and a growing collection of historic railroad equipment while sharing the history of the Northern Pacific Railway and railroading in the Yakima Valley.