STRASBURG, Pa. — The Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania has held the groundbreaking for a new roundhouse meant to provide protection for a half-dozen locomotives, most of which are currently displayed outdoors.
The ceremony held Tuesday (July 29, 2025) marked the start of work on a 16,000-square-foot structure projected for completion in late 2026 or early 2027. A contractor for construction the brick, steel, and glass structure was announced earlier this month [see “Contractor and groundbreaking confirmed …,” Trains News Wire, July 9, 2025]. The classic fan-shaped building, designed by Erdy McHenry Architecture of Philadelphia, will also feature a clerestory-style roof for natural lighting.
Planning for the project dates to 2002. Patrick Morrison, the museum’s executive director, told WFMZ-TV the $15 million project had faced challenges from “tight property lines, difficult site geology, not to mention the sheer steel weight and size of these steam locomotives.” But he also said the effort had been helped by the donation of a 1928 Reading Co. turntable. “It’s a historic day for us here at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania,” he said.
The completed structure will house six Pennsylvania Railroad steam locomotives: PRR class M1b No. 6755, a 4-8-2 built at PRR’s Juniata Shops in 1930; K4s Pacific No. 3750, a 4-6-2 built at Juniata Shops in 1920; L1s No. 520, a Baldwin 2-8-2 built in 1916; E6s No. 460, a 4-4-2 built at Juniata Shops in 1914; H10s No. 7688, a Lima 2-8-0 built in 1915; and B6sb No. 1670, an 0-6-0 switcher built by PRR in 1916. All but No. 450 are currently displayed outdoors. The group Friends of the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania has raised more than $300,000 as part of a “Ready for the Roundhouse” fundraising campaign for restoration work for those locomotives.
More detailed information on the locomotives is available at the museum website.
“This roundhouse project is a monumental step forward for the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania and for preserving our state’s rich industrial heritage,” Andrea Lowery, executive director of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, said in a press release. “This project is about more than bricks and mortar, it’s about preserving the stories and engineering marvels that helped to shape and build our Commonwealth.”
As part of the project, the Reading turntable will be refurbished, with tracks surrounding the turntable rebuilt and safety fencing added around the turntable pit.
Are there any plans to place GG1 4800 in a space that will provide shelter from the elements? The last time I saw it, it was in terrible condition.