Minnesota Friends
of Garden Railroad
and G Scale

Minnesota Transportation Museum
Jackson Street Roundhouse

About Jackson Street Roundhouse

The Jackson Street Roundhouse was built in 1907 as a steam engine maintenance facility for The Great Northern Railroad. It was one of the last roundhouses built by James J. Hill and was part of a large shop complex built in the 1880's.

Located near downtown, the roundhouse was sold by Great Northern in 1960. It was remodeled into industrial and warehouse space. Minnesota Transportation Museum (MTM) took possession of the roundhouse in 1986 and began the process of restoring it to being a functional roundhouse once again. The turntable was reinstalled in 2001 and connection with current BNSF track and five side tracks was restored. 

Visit MTM's web site for more information.

About the Museum

The restoration of the roundhouse kept much of the area as a functional shop where steam locomotives, vintage passenger cars, and other items of historical significance are in the process of being restored. An elevated floor was installed in a portion of the roundhouse that serves as the museum and administrative offices. The elevated floor gives visitors a unique opportunity to walk right up to the cab level of steam locomotives on display, as well as the opportunity to walk right onto passenger cars on display. The Museum at Jackson Street Roundhouse opened in 1999. The administrative offices are also home to the Great Northern and Northern Pacific Historical Societies. The Jackson Street Roundhouse is recognized on the National Register of Historic Places and is home to a rich array of historical collections.

About the G Scale Layout

A G Scale model railroad layout was built in 2016 representing the history of railroad in Minnesota. The layout measures approximately 63' x 16'. On one end, southern Minnesota with emphasis on agriculture is represented. On the opposite end, northern Minnesota with emphasis on mining and timber is represented. The layout includes an iron ore mine with an operating ore train descending into the mine. The middle of the layout represents the metropolitan area, including a replica of the stone arch bridge in Minneapolis.

The first steam locomotive to come to Minnesota, the William Crooks 4-4-0, came to La Crosse by rail, was loaded onto a barge, and pushed by steam ship up the Mississippi to St. Paul on Sept. 9, 1861. The Wm F Davidson paddleboat depicted by the model layout may well have been that steam ship. Less than a year later, Minnesota had its first 10 mile route from St. Paul to St. Anthony (now Minneapolis).

The model layout is named Jacksonville, a nod to Jackson County and Henry Jackson who was the first merchant to settle in St. Paul.
The layout is maintained by a group of volunteers who are active in G Scale and garden railroad as a hobby. They always welcome new volunteers to join their effort. A bonus of volunteering is that you may bring in your own G Scale trains and run them on the museum layout. 

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