Steam Railroading Institute
The Steam Railroading Institute, dedicated to educating the public about steam-era railroad technology, is the product of the Michigan State Trust for Railway Preservation Inc. For many years, the MSTRP centered on a single steam locomotive, former Pere Marquette Railway No. 1225. After 1225's retirement, the locomotive was donated to Michigan State University in 1957, and through the efforts of MSU and Chesapeake & Ohio Railway Board Member Forest Akers. Displayed as an icon of the steam-era, it sat at MSU until 1969, when a group of students took an interest in the locomotive.
The Michigan State University Railroad Club was formed at that time with the ambitious goal of restoring 1225 and using it to power excursion trains that would bring passengers to football games at the university. After toiling away at the locomotive for many years, the Michigan State University Railroad Club evolved as the Michigan State Trust for Railway Preservation and started its corporate run in July of 1979.
Recognizing the daunting task that was ahead of them, the early MSU students saw the necessity to form a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation and in 1981, Michigan State University donated 1225 to the newly formed MSTRP. The locomotive was moved to Owosso to former Ann Arbor Railway Backshop in 1982, and restoration of the locomotive continued until 1985, when it moved under its own power for the first in 34 years. Since 1988, #1225 has been maintained in operable condition, and serves a the largest piece of operating steam equipment in the MSTRP/ SRI collection.
In the past forty years the Michigan State Trust for Railway Preservation and its Steam Railroading Institute have grown tremendously, now housing two steam locomotives, two diesel locomotives, and a fleet of passenger cars, plus numerous pieces of rolling stock. Situated on the site of the old Ann Arbor Railroad's steam shops and roundhouse, the Steam Railroading Institute offers visitors a firsthand look at the intricacies of working steam locomotives and the equipment that operated with them.
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