About
The Steam Department at the Illinois Railway Museum is one of the best equipped with all the tools and machinery needed to maintain and restore steam locomotives. Included in the department’s machinery are a shaper, lathes, a drill press, welding equipment, a drop table and a 90-inch wheel lathe. The drop table became functional in 2007 and is used to drop locomotive wheels/axles from a locomotive. The wheel lathe is under restoration but will accommodate a locomotive’s wheel up to 84 inches in diameter.
The department is structured with a department head, an engineer qualifier, a fireman qualifier, and a crew caller. This is an all volunteer department working within the museum headed by a salesman with no professional railroad experience, but with more than 20 years of experience in maintaining and restoring steam locomotives at the IRM.
This blog is a work in progress as time allows, and has been created to help keep the public informed about current projects and happenings within the Steam Department at the Illinois Railway Museum. We appreciate your interest and your patronage.