Latvian Railway History Museum

Latvian Railway History Museum

Latvijas dzelzceļa vēstures muzejs
Railway Museum building in Riga
Established	30 August 1994 (1994-08-30)
Location	Pārdaugava, Riga, Latvia
Coordinates	56°56′27.24″N 24°5′40.2″E / 56.9409000°N 24.094500°E / 56.9409000; 24.094500
Type	Transport museum
Key holdings	ER2 electric trainset, TEM2, TE, ТГМ3
Owner	Latvijas dzelzceļš
Website	www.railwaymuseum.lv/en

Latvian Railway History Museum (Latvian: Latvijas dzelzceļa vēstures muzejs) is a railway museum with expositions in Riga and in Jelgava, dedicated to the history of railway and its development in Latvia. The museum is a structural unit of the national railroad company, "Latvijas dzelzceļš". The museum has the largest collection of wide-gauge vehicles in the Baltics.^[1]

The main branch of the museum is located in Riga and is housed in a locomotive repair shop, and also hosts events and concerts in an 1880s locomotive depot, both located in the Pārdaugava district of the city,^[2][3] near the main building of the National Library of Latvia known as Castle of Light.^[4] It was established on August 30, 1994, and contains more than a thousand railway-related items.^[5] Samples of uniforms, tickets, train schedules and other things related to the Latvian Railway can be seen in the exhibits. Outside the museum premises, railway rolling stock can be seen - locomotives, wagons and other railway equipment operating in Latvia.^[5] The museum has a resident cat, named Pearl.^[6]

The Jelgava branch of the museum was opened on 24 December 1982, when the Jelgava Railway Department's Open Achievement Museum was opened in the Jelgava Railway Club.^[7] In 1991, the Railway Museum moved to the railwaymen's residential house, which was built in 1903 and is located near Jelgava railway station.^[8] The exposition includes semaphores, couplings, trolleys, locomotive wheelsets, hydrant, level crossing equipment and other things related to Latvian Railways.^[7]