Shanghai Railway Museum

Shanghai Railway Museum

The Shanghai Railway Museum is a science education base.

In August 2004, on the occasion of the 55th anniversary of the establishment of the Shanghai Railway Bureau, the Shanghai Railway Museum was opened to the public and became a science education base in Shanghai. The museum building has four floors: the ground floor is the exhibition area, covering approximately 1,000 square meters; the second floor houses a sandbox room reflecting the development of railways under the jurisdiction of the Shanghai Railway Bureau, a flexible exhibition area, a science and technology information reading room, and more; the third floor contains a multi-functional lecture hall. The total floor area of the building is over 3,000 square meters, with an outdoor exhibition area of about 1,300 square meters. Guided by the concept of scientific development and using historical materials and physical objects as the main carriers, the Shanghai Railway Museum showcases the journey of Shanghai and East China railways over the past hundred years since railways entered China in the 1860s and 1870s, highlighting the changes and development of railway productivity. The museum is divided into six sections, featuring over 50 exhibits and nearly 1,000 items on display.

As soon as you enter the gate of the railway museum, you will see a spacious square. On the left side of the square, next to the platform, stands an imposing locomotive and vintage carriages that seem ready to depart at any moment. The left locomotive, weighing over 100 tons, is a KD7 Type 641 steam locomotive, of which only a few remain in existence today. It was manufactured by an American locomotive factory in the 1940s and donated to China by the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration in 1947. The dark green carriage behind the steam locomotive is a high-end official vehicle used by government officials during the Republic of China period and is said to have been the private car of Soong Mei-ling. At the end of the platform is a small SN Type 26 narrow-gauge steam locomotive, whose track gauge is less than half that of a standard train. Despite its small size, it can reach a top speed of 45 km/h and pull over 200 tons of cargo at a time. Its compact size also allows for very flexible turning, and it once performed remarkably well in the rugged mountainous regions of Yunnan. Next to the locomotive stands an iron structure resembling a standing crane, called a water crane, which was used to supply water to steam locomotives.

Upon entering the museum lobby, there are two exhibition areas on the left: one dedicated to railway construction and the other to railway transportation. Entering the railway construction section, the first thing that catches your eye is one of the museum’s most distinctive exhibits: a full-scale replica model of the "Pioneer" locomotive. It was the first locomotive used on China’s first commercial railway—the Woosung Railway—which opened in 1876. On display in the showcase to the right of the locomotive is a section of rail removed from the Songhu Railway, with a "working life" of over 100 years. Visitors to the exhibition hall can also see late Qing Dynasty train timetables, nearly century-old railway boundary markers, Sun Yat-sen’s "Industrial Plan" map, as well as historical photos of the Qiantang River Bridge—the first large-scale dual-use road-rail double-deck bridge in China. Another set of exhibits reflects the achievements of railway construction after the founding of New China. Among them is a brass helmet used by workers who dived into the Yangtze River to construct the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge. Adjacent to this set of exhibits is a ferry operation multimedia demonstration console where visitors can manually control the screen to simulate transporting trains across the river by ferry.

In the railway transportation section, there is a large model of a locomotive driving wheel that reveals the secret behind the high speed of steam locomotives. In addition to the driving wheel model, the section also displays components and maintenance tools related to steam locomotives. Be sure to pay attention to the two bronze bells in the center of the hall—they resemble temple bells and were hung on steam locomotives. When the train moved within the station, ringing the bell warned pedestrians to step aside. Various railway maintenance tools, signaling and communication equipment can also be seen in the exhibition hall, along with exhibits related to the Shanghai Railway Bureau’s flagship train, the “Dongfang” (East Wind) train, which operated between Shanghai and Beijing. The name of the train was personally inscribed by - in 2002. At the end of the exhibition hall is a control room from a 1950s-era small train station. The wooden desk, telephone, thermos bottle, and specialized railway operation equipment are all original artifacts from that time. The old-fashioned thermometer on the wall still accurately displays the temperature today.

In the Railway World section, you can see railway uniforms from different eras. But the most interesting attraction is probably the locomotive driving simulator marked with the word "Kuayue" (Crossing). Its control panel setup is almost identical to that of a real locomotive. The simulator includes a driver’s seat, a co-driver’s seat, a control lever, a brake handle, instruments, and more. Boarding the simulator lets you experience the thrill of a speeding train firsthand. Across from the locomotive simulator is a sandbox model of the Shanghai South Station, which officially opened on July 1, 2006. This station represents the most advanced level of railway construction in China. Looking at the miniature version of South Station and then back at the old platform on the square outside the building, the tremendous changes over time are truly awe-inspiring.

Related Information

Ticket Prices: Individual ticket 10 RMB/person; primary and secondary school students, railway employees, and retirees 5 RMB/person; group ticket 8 RMB/person; primary and secondary school groups 4 RMB/person; free admission for retired cadres, active-duty military personnel, people with disabilities, and seniors aged 70 and above with valid identification.

Opening Hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 9:00–11:30 AM; 2:30–4:30 PM. (For reference only; please follow local attraction announcements.)

Transportation Routes

Address: No. 200 Tianmu East Road, Zhabei District, Shanghai (near North Zhejiang Road)

Transportation Guide: Accessible via bus routes 18, 63, 302, 308, 318, 319, 329, 502, 537, 922, 948, 952.