Carnegie Science Center

Miniature Railroad & Village

Apr 2011 / RWH

csc_logo Since 1919, the Miniature Railroad has delighted millions with its handcrafted replicas of regional landmarks, like Forbes Field and Fallingwater. The Miniature Railroad’s story began in 1919 with a man named Charles Bowdish of Brookville, PA. Originally a holiday display on the second floor of his house, it moved to the Buhl Planetarium in 1954, and ultimately found its final home at Carnegie Science Center in 1992. The Miniature Railroad & Village® features hundreds of wonderfully realistic animated scenes that illustrate how people lived, worked, and played in our region during an era spanning the 1880s up to 1940.

Carnegie Science Center

csc_state egyptian he Miniature Railroad & Village is a large and detailed O-scale 3-rail model train layout representing Western Pennsylvania during the years 1880 to 1930. The layout is a long-running display in Pittsburgh, currently located in the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It features representations of numerous Pittsburgh area landmarks, including Forbes Field, Fallingwater, Donora’s Cement City, Primanti Bros. Restaurant in the Strip District, Westinghouse Atom Smasher, Crawford Grill, Punxsutawney Phil at Gobbler's Knob, Luna Park, Sharon Steel Mill, Manchester Farms, and the Duquesne Incline. "The MRRV has been a Pittsburgh tradition for over 50 years."

Click to see the Carnegie Science Center plotted on a Google Maps page

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

Apr 2011 / RWH

1990-1991 was the last Railroad Season at the Buhl Science Center(this updated name for The Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science had taken effect in February of 1982, when Buhl became independent of the Buhl Foundation). After a one year hiatus, the Miniature Railroad and Village reopened on a larger platform, in a new gallery on the second floor of The Carnegie Science Center, located one mile southwest of the Buhl Planetarium building on the North Shore of the Ohio River(across Allegheny Avenue from Heinz Field, the Pittsburgh Steelers' football stadium). A special exhibit occupied the entire second floor of The Carnegie Science Center for several months after the new Science Center's opening on 1991 October 5; a year later, part of this second floor became a new gallery for the Miniature Railroad and Village.

History of The Great Miniature Railroad