The Virginia and Truckee Railroad was created for transportation for the communities that contained silver mining. It ran south to Carson City, Nevada from Reno. There were two branches of the mainline in Carson City. One of them traveled South to Minden and the other went east towards Virginia City. The first one train was made to travel from Virginia City to Carson City transporting lumber, ore and supplied for the Comstock Mines. The Virginia and Truckee Railroad is now in operation as a heritage railroad. It is headquartered in Virginia City and there are hopes by the Northern Nevada Railway Foundation that the mainline will be rebuilt to Carson City by 2010.
The railroad also has a nickname, “Queen of the Short Lines”. The 1914 2-8-2 locomotive was the first piece of equipment acquired for the railroad. You will find that the train runs full time during the months between Memorial and to the end of October. If you would like to see the original locomotives and cars from the Virginia and Truckee Railroad, you will find them on display at the Nevada State Railroad Museum located in Carson City. If you watched a lot of the old western movies, you will find that the Virginia and Truckee locomotives were used a lot in the films. A lot of the pieces to the railroad were restored and can be found on display in museums all over the United States.
If old railroad systems interest you, you can find more information about the V & T Railroad system online or at your local museums holding locomotive artifacts. Look up more information about it and you should be able to find everything you’d like to know. You can also get a hands on experience with the Virginia and Truckee Railroad by visiting the actual site in Virginia City.