A SN-26 type steam locomotive specially made for running on narrow gauge railroads. It retired in the 1990s after around 60 years of service in the mountainous areas of Yunnan Province.

Leave the traditional guided walks behind and strike out at your own pace with a tour guide to 10 science museums in Shanghai. You are about to embark on an exciting journey of Shanghai Railway Museum. This guide is presented by Shanghai Daily and supervised by the Shanghai Science and Technology Committee.

While you zoom around the city quickly and easily by subway, can you imagine what China’s oldest steam trains were like? Why not enjoy your leisure time by visiting Shanghai Railway Museum? You’ll travel back in time as you stroll from chugging iron horses to modern high-speed trains- and see for yourself the evolution of China’s railway network.

The first thing you’ll notice upon entering the gate is an old platform in the courtyard in front of the museum. Three trains are about to depart from it: a jumbo-sized locomotive, an elegant private carriage, and a choo-choo specially-designed for narrow-gauge railroads.

Weighing more than 100 tons, the giant KD7-641 type steam locomotive was manufactured in the 1940’s in the USA and donated to China by the United Nations as part of relief efforts in 1947.

The green carriage behind the locomotive was made in the 1930s for senior officials of the Kuomintang government. It is said that Madame Soong Mei-ling, the wife of Kuomintang leader Chiang Kai-shek, was once a passenger. Its luxurious and elegant interior has been refurbished and is a highlight of the museum.

The third one on display is a SN-26 type steam locomotive specially-made for running on narrow gauge railroads. Measuring less than half the width of ordinary ones, the mini-locomotive retired in the 1990s after around 60 years of service in the mountainous areas of Yunnan Province.

Before entering the museum opposite the platform, take a good look at the classical British style red building housing the museum. Re-erected in its original position, it is an 80-percent scale replica of Shanghai’s Old North Railway Station, and also an impressive reminder of the vicissitudes of Shanghai’s modern history. From 1909 until it was abandoned in 1987, countless trains arrived at or departed from this station.

Now, let’s walk into the museum.

Only the museum’s ground floor, where almost all the exhibits are shown, is open to the public. The collections are divided into four zones with different themes and displayed in two rooms.

Enter the room on your left side, and you will get a glimpse of China’s railway history. Here you will see an exact copy of a Pioneer locomotive, the first engine to run on the Wusong Railway, China’s first railroad built specifically for commercial use (completed in 1876). Next to the locomotive is a century-old piece of railway track from the Songhu Railway. You will also see a railway timetable from the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and a draft map of the country’s railway network as proposed by Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925), founder of the Kuomintang party.

Our next highlight are the old photos of Qiantang River Bridge, which bring to mind the historic moment of the opening of China’s first bridge for both railways and cars. Not far away a TV screen is showing a documentary film about the terrible damage caused by the Japanese bombardment of Shanghai’s railway stations in the 1930s.

The completion of the Yangtze River Bridge in Nanjing in 1968 was a momentous event as it connected the railways on both sides of the Yangtze River. Look at the brass diving helmet in the glass case some way to the right of the screen. Technicians working underwater to build the bridge wore these helmets.

You can simulate the operation of a train ferry on a multimedia computer near the glass case. Your task is to ferry trains across the river by ship. Go ahead and have a try!

Take a break before we continue the journey into the second zone that has the theme of railway transportation.

Besides scale models of locomotives, there is a set of steam locomotive wheels that demonstrate how the wheels rotate.

Also on display are engine parts of steam locomotives, hand tools used for railway maintenance and repair, and two bronze bells that once hung on the front of the trains to warn of the arrival of trains. Displayed in the center of the exhibit hall, the bells are quite a long distance from the other collections in the zone.

Walking through a narrow corridor decorated like a railway carriage, we finally finish the tour of this hall. Let’s head towards the hall at the opposite end of the building.

The first thing you will see is a showcase displaying the signalling and telecommunication equipment for rail traffic. Go forward and you will see collections of photos depicting railway maintenance and train stations, as well as objects used in the trains. Turn left and there is a cabin decorated just like the offices of railway workers in the mid-twentieth century. It features original furnishings like the wooden desks, telephone and thermos flask. Of course, the two workers within the cabin are merely life-size wax figures. But they look so real that without standing closer you are probably unable to tell.

Have a rest. Then we’ll visit the third and fourth zones.

In the third zone, we can see all kinds of railway workers’uniforms and badges. The crown jewel of the collections in this section is a locomotive-shaped laboratory where you can learn to drive a train. Originally used to teach future drivers, the lab will provide you with a wonderful experience similar to playing a console racing game.

Jumping off the train, we come to the fourth section and also our last stop: a scale model depicting the layout of Shanghai South Railway Station. Scheduled to open on July 1, 2006, the station embodies the innovative spirit apparent in China’s railway industry. Comparing the modern railway station and the primitive platform just outside the museum, one can marvel at the dramatic changes in the railway industry and contemplate the march of progress.

We hope you enjoyed your visit to Shanghai Railway Museum.

The opening times are as follows:

Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday: 9am–11.30am, 1.45pm-4.30pm

Saturday: 9 am–4 pm.

The ticket price is 10 yuan (US$1.2) and the address is 200 East Tianmu Road, Zhabei District.

To get there, you can either take Metro Line No.3 or No.4 (get off at Baoshan Road station), or take bus No. 6, No.13, No.15, or No.41.

For details, call the museum on 5122-1987 or 5122-1575.