President of Pocatello Model Railroad and Historical Society shares history that ‘built this town’ and why it matters
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Editor’s note: This is the sixth in a series highlighting the stories behind local museum artifacts.
POCATELLO – On the west side of the railroad tracks off Harrison Avenue in downtown Pocatello is an old building that was once the home of a greyhound bus garage.
For the last quarter century, the Pocatello Model Railroad and Historical Society has called it home. It’s a museum and its main attraction is a room full of tracks with model train cars and miniature buildings surrounding it. Take a look in the video above.
It also includes a miniature replica of the old roundhouse (which no longer exists) where Union Pacific rail cars were repaired many years ago.
Dozens of artifacts on display date back to the railroad’s heyday when Pocatello was a major stopping point for passengers on their way to Blackfoot, Idaho Falls or northwestern Montana.
Though it ceased operating as a mode of transportation more than 50 years ago to become a freight-hauling operation, Larry Gilbreath, president of the model railroad and historical society, tells EastIdahoNews.com it’s still a place where people like to visit and learn about a bygone era.
“There’s a lot of history here,” Gilbreath says. “I don’t know if there’s anything in Blackfoot or Idaho Falls that has as much history about the railroad through here than we have.”
The railroad comes to eastern Idaho
America’s first steam locomotive made its debut in 1830, according to a report from the History channel’s website. Two decades later, about 9,000 miles of track connected many east coast cities and made travel much more efficient.
In the years following the 1849 gold rush, the Western U.S. was marketed as a place of opportunity and financial prosperity, due in part to the gold and silver mines in the area. The desire for a new life brought many people westward, leading Congress to pass the Pacific Railroad Act in 1862. This provided federal subsidies in land and loans for the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad.
Construction got underway in 1863. Two railroad companies were formed: Central Pacific and Union Pacific. Central Pacific started laying track in Sacramento and continued east through the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Union Pacific started at the Missouri River near the Iowa-Nebraska border and continued west.
They met in the middle about six years later.
“On May 10, 1869, they had the driving of the golden spike down by Brigham City, Utah (to celebrate its completion). The Oregon Short Line started off of there after the Transcontinental Railroad was built,” Gilbreath explains.
The Oregon Short Line Railway was an arm of the Union Pacific Railroad that extended through Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Montana and Oregon. It was intended to be the shortest route from Montana to Oregon.
The first rail line built in Idaho was the Utah and Northern Railway. It came out of Corinne, Utah about seven miles west of Brigham City. By 1878, it extended into Pocatello, Fort Hall, Blackfoot, Idaho Falls and onward to Garrison, Montana.
A painting on display in the museum shows Shoshone-Bannock tribal members on horseback looking at the first train depot in the area.
“The railroad went to Chief Pocatello to get permission to lay their tracks through here. The Chief asked (what was in it for them) if they donated land. The railroad said, ‘Anytime you or your braves want to ride the train, we’ll let you ride it for free.’ That’s what it took to get the tracks through here,” says Gilbreath.
Gilbreath says it’s the railroad that’s responsible for establishing Pocatello as the “Gateway to the Northwest,” and many of those early settlers initially came here searching for gold, silver or copper before settling down.
The Utah and Northern Railway later merged with the Oregon Short Line in 1889, which served thousands of passengers for the next 82 years.
On May 1, 1971, Union Pacific’s passenger service transferred to Amtrak, and stopped serving passengers in southern Idaho.
May 1, 1971: Union Pacific's passenger service transferred to #Amtrak. Find out more: https://t.co/iuoqBRzWbY #TBT pic.twitter.com/HJdvcSczR8
— Union Pacific (@UnionPacific) May 20, 2016
A recent push by the Biden Administration to bring back passenger rail service hit a few snags in Idaho.
RELATED | ‘A little mistake’: Idaho didn’t apply to study Boise-Salt Lake City rail service
But even though passenger service is not currently an option, Gilbreath says the railroad remains an important part of the local and national economy. Many of the goods and commodities people buy — cars, fuel, produce, grain, lumber and even Idaho potatoes — are hauled by rail and shipped to stores.
“To get it from one point to another, the (most affordable) way is through the railroad,” he says.
Gilbreath, 77, is one of three people who is an original member of the model railroad club who’s still living. He’s enjoyed collecting model trains for many years and is grateful for a place to permanently display them.
He hopes the museum remains a place of enjoyment for many years to come. It’s open the third Saturday of every month from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
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