East Ely Railroad Depot Museum and Nevada Northern Railway Museum - Ely, Nevada - Railroad Museums on Waymarking.com

The establishment of the Nevada Northern Railroad provided the basis for White Pine County's economic development. It allowed ore mined at Ruth, seven miles west of Ely, to be transported to McGill, thirteen miles north of Ely for smelting. It was then shipped via the Nevada Northern to the main Southern Pacific line, where it was transported to refineries and markets in the East. The copper industry was responsible for White Pine County’s prosperity for much of the twentieth century, and it determined the character of the communities of Ely, Ruth, and McGill.

With the closure of the copper mines in Ruth, Kennecott Copper Corporation in the late 1980’s donated a portion of the railroad as well as the railroad's yard and shop facilities to the White Pine Historical Railroad Foundation. The foundation deeded the East Ely Depot to the State for the preservation of the building and its contents which included the complete records of the Nevada Northern from its start.

The Nevada Northern rail yards were established in 1905 to support the area’s booming copper mining industry. The diesel era of the railroad industry during the second half of the 20th century led to alterations and destruction of rail yards and shops nationwide, but the East Ely yard escaped modernization because of its geographical remoteness and the decline of the mining industry. The Nevada Northern Railway Museum today preserves the best-reserved, least altered, and most complete rail yard complex remaining from the steam railroad era. The East Ely Depot was placed on the National Register in 1984. The Nevada Northern Railway East Ely Yards and Shops Historic District was placed on the National Register in 1993 and became a National Historic Landmark on September 20, 2006. The 40-acre Nevada Northern Railway East Ely Yards and Shops Historic District includes 46 buildings and 6 structures, of which 44 buildings and 5 structures contribute to the District’s significance. In addition to the buildings and structure the various shops still contain all the equipment and tools needed maintain early 20th Century steam locomotives and rail cars. Rail equipment includes 3 steam locomotives, 11 diesel locomotives, 5 cabooses and a large variety of railcars.

The East Ely Railroad Depot Museum focuses the important role of the Nevada Northern Railroad during the mining and transportation boom in eastern Nevada at the beginning of the 20th Century. The main exhibits are on the second floor of the Depot where the Nevada Northern offices are preserved as they were when Kennecott closed them in 1981. Researchers find the museum’s document collection a great help, with thousands of documents including the original right-of-way maps and pay roll records from the entire history of the Nevada Northern Railway.

The White Pine Historical Railroad Foundation centers it’s public operations for the Nevada Northern Railway Museum out of the ground floor of the Depot with ticket sales and a gift shop. Primary activities include regular excursion trains, special themed trains, and tours of the engine shops and rail yards. Tickets for all regular excursion trains includes entry to the East Ely Railroad Depot Museum and a tour guided tour of the engine shops and rail yards. Or a ticket for just the East Ely Railroad Depot Museum and a self guided tour of the yards is available.

Museum Website: [Web Link] Train ride provided?: yes Actual railroad cars or locomotives on display?: yes Admission fee?: Starts at $8 for adult for self guided tour Street Address: 1100 Avenue A, East Ely, Nevada 89315 Gift shop?: yes Café/restaurant?: no Theater?: no Other features?:

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