Who manages the railway?

The Riverside and Great Northern Preservation Society operates the line, grounds, and workshop facilities.

What kind of trains run along the route?

The railway operates miniature steam locomotives pulling custom passenger stock.

What historical operations occurred at this location?

The site originally housed the Sandley Light Railway Equipment Works, which manufactured miniature trains for park systems and zoological gardens.

Where does the railway line travel?

The track follows an abandoned railroad right-of-way through the terrain near Wisconsin Dells.

Are food spaces available on the grounds?

The facility includes a designated picnic area next to the shop and depot.

Wisconsin Dells · United States

Riverside & Great Northern Railway: what's nearby, how to get there and when to go · 2026

Long-term volunteers spend their mornings replacing track ties and milling timber in the joinery shop before firing up steam engines for demonstration runs.

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Now in the cityRiverside & Great Northern Railway+17°CCloudyupdated 10:47 PM Around here13

Exchange rate$1.00per 1 $USD — the local currencyas of Nov 2, 2026

Within two hours

International Crane Foundation≈ 30 min Mirror Lake≈ 30 min Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park≈ 40 min

About the place

A volunteer society operates live steam locomotives over an abandoned mainline railroad corridor.

The heritage railroad occupies an abandoned mainline corridor originally laid out for the La Crosse and Milwaukee Railroad. Elmer and Norman Sandley relocated their miniature manufacturing operations here to build miniature trains, a scaled replica depot, and demonstration tracks. The facility produced custom locomotives and rolling stock for major American zoological parks, including the Brookfield Zoo and the Milwaukee Zoo.

Read on

Following the collapse of commercial manufacturing, volunteer preservationists acquired the property to restore the trackbed and repair the buildings. The society traded a member-built diesel engine to the Milwaukee County Zoo to recover an original steam locomotive built in the local shops. Today the site operates a dedicated joinery building where workers restore vintage wooden passenger cars alongside active steam runs.

Associations

Steam Locomotive WorksHistoric workshops that built miniature trains for major zoos across the country.
Woodworking JoineryDedicated on-site facility where volunteers restore historic wooden passenger coaches.
Volunteer Maintenance DemandsTrack preservation and steam upkeep require ongoing manual tie replacement.
Zoo Train HeritageLocomotives operating here share direct lineage with classic zoo railway systems.

Facts

The railway runs along an abandoned right-of-way originally built for the La Crosse and Milwaukee Railroad.
Elmer and Norman Sandley manufactured complete miniature trains and track systems for zoological parks.
The preservation society obtained steam locomotives previously operated at the Milwaukee County Zoo.
An active joinery facility on the property maintains and rebuilds wooden railroad coaches.

Updated September 10, 2026Source: Wikipedia

Riverside & Great Northern Railway: what's nearby, how to get there and when to go · 2026

What is around13

A volunteer society operates live steam locomotives over an abandoned mainline railroad corridor.

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