The Western Forest Industries Museum, which operates the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad (MRSR) out of Elbe, recently announced the nonprofit organization has completed the purchase of a 3.6 acre parcel of land in Mineral south of Elbe featuring a 10,692-square-foot warehouse building and shop built in 1955.
“Located immediately south of MRSR’s existing shop and museum site, the property will be used to relocate the organization’s historic steam locomotive and passenger car restoration activities, along with key business operations,” Western Forest Industries Museum said in a news release. “This transition is a critical step in improving the Mineral campus and advancing plans to reopen the museum to the public.”
The warehouse and shop were originally constructed in 1955 by the St. Regis Paper Company, which partnered with the Milwaukee Railroad to build a rail spur and associated rail line for log loading.
Then in 1978 the Murray Pacific Corporation, founded by Tom Murray Jr., successfully reclaimed logging rights from St. Regis. The legal settlement also included associated land holdings including the property now back with the MRSR.
While Murray Jr. would end up selling the property, which changed hands multiple times between companies like Sierra Pacific Industries and Abston Logging, he also founded the MRSR in 1980 as a way to both educate the public about the local logging industry and preserve the steam engines he loved. And for a time, he once used the warehouse to store and display the MRSR’s steam engine collection.
While Murray Jr. passed away in 2017, the property he once owned in Mineral has “now returned to stewardship aligned with its historical roots.”
“This is a meaningful moment for us,” Western Forest Industries Museum Executive Director Bethan Maher said in the release. “We are gradually bringing back together pieces of the landscape that defined Tom Murray’s logging operations, now with the purpose of preservation, education and public access.”
Purchase of the property is part of a $1.3 million project to improve and reopen the MRSR museum site. Improvements currently planned include working on safety, parking and site flow, expanding Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility, separating industrial spaces from museum space to allow for repair work on steam engines — which will increase restoration and maintenance efficiency.
The goal is to once again have the museum open to share the history of the region with visitors who also come to ride the MRSR.
“Our goal is to present a complete picture of this history,” Maher added. “The railroad didn’t just move timber; it influenced where people lived, how communities grew and how the landscape itself changed. That’s the story we’re working to share.”
For more information or to donate towards warehouse building repairs, visit Western Forest Industries Museum’s website at https://www.wfim.org/.
To learn more about the MRSR and to purchase tickets for train rides, visit its website at https://mtrainierrailroad.com/.
