Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Slovenia mushroom foraging
Slovenia • 6 days, 5 nights
Forest to Table in Alpine Slovenia
from
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Aluviharaya Rock Cave Temple
“Yo Soy el Buen Pastor Ego Sum Pastor Bonus” by Bernardo Ramonfaur.
Museo Arquidiocesano de Arte Sacro (Archdiocese Sacred Art Museum)
Burke Building.
Burke Building
‘La Grande Assiette Brisée’ (‘The Large Broken Plate’)
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
View of the full general store from the second floor.
MoonPie General Store
A slice of cake is the perfect coda to a meal at Piatto Romano.
Piatto Romano
Crunchy and supremely satisfying, suppli might be the ultimate street food snack.
Supplizio
The pedigreed pistachios here are from Bronte.
Gelateria dei Gracchi
This tiny hole-in-the-wall serves one of the world’s most magnificent sandwiches.
Er Buchetto
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
You don’t need to go to Turkey to see hundreds of hot air balloons rising.
Dear Atlas: Where Can I Find the Most Unusual Festivals in the U.S.?
5 minutes ago
Located in Indianola, Mississippi, Club Ebony hosted performances by blues legends like B.B. King.
How Club Ebony Helped Keep the Blues Alive in the Jim Crow South
12 minutes ago
Our journey begins in Texas—more specifically in Big Bend National Park.
The Atlas Obscura (Audio) Guide to the National Parks
about 23 hours ago
A 16,000-square foot greenhouse in downtown Toronto has rooms dedicated to a range of climates stocked with ecosystem-appropriate plants, flowers, and animals.
10 Unexpected Places Where Creativity Shines in Toronto
about 23 hours ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Illinois Chicago Great Train Story Diorama

Great Train Story Diorama

This $3 million model train takes you through Chicago, Seattle, and the thousands of miles in between.

Chicago, Illinois

Added By
Elliot Carter
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Aerial view of the Rockies, Plaines and Chicago   Elliot Carter
Aerial view of the Rockies, Plaines and Chicago   Elliot Carter
Chicago River   Elliot Carter
The Chicago Loop   Elliot Carter
Chicago in “nighttime mode”  
Midwest grain silos   Elliot Carter
Agriculture   Elliot Carter
Mining facilities   Elliot Carter
A cascading waterfall   Elliot Carter
A lumbermill   Elliot Carter
Seattle   Elliot Carter
  EmilySMort / Atlas Obscura User
The model railroad at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois (United States).   Michael Barera / Atlas Obscura User
Model container ship at the Seattle end of the tracks   evilgreentriangle / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Stretched across a 3,500 square foot “S” shaped table “The Great Train Story” takes visitors from Chicago across the plain states and over the Rockies all the way to the Port of Seattle. This huge model train set cost $3.5 million dollars and opened to the public in 2002 at the Museum of Science and Industry.

The exhibit focuses on the intersection of transportation infrastructure and economic activity—the intercity elevated train, suburban commuter rail, and cross country freight lines, all buzzing with a vibrant post-WWII industrial economy of decades past.

The trip begins in Chicago, which is the most recognizable area to a contemporary visitor. Iconic buildings like the Sears Tower and downtown neighborhoods like the Loop are shown in a spellbinding level of detail, replete with miniature cars, pedestrians and vegetation. Tiny electric trains scoot around through the skyscraper valleys and every half hour the museum lights dim as the exhibit enters “nighttime mode.”

Outside of Chicago The Great Train Story enters a fictionalized abstraction of the prairie and plain states. Train tracks shoot across the flat checkerboard corn fields, past grain silos and small towns that recall nostalgic Bruce Springsteen verses.

As the exhibit moves westward five foot tall Rocky Mountain peaks rise into the air. The tracks cut through mountain tunnels and lumber towns before finally catching sight of the Pacific Ocean and the Port of Seattle. A hulking container ship is docked on the coast, ready to receive the raw materials and manufactured products collected along the 2,000 mile route from Chicago.

Related Tags

Models Trains Dioramas Industrial Small Worlds And Model Towns

Know Before You Go

The Museum of Science and Industry is open 9:30 am to 4:00 pm. The exhibit is free to view, but the museum requires admission tickets. http://www.msichicago.org

Community Contributors

Added By

Elliot Carter

Edited By

Trekkie Gal, leiter, Michael Barera, evilgreentriangle...

  • Trekkie Gal
  • leiter
  • Michael Barera
  • evilgreentriangle
  • EmilySMort

Published

January 3, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.msichicago.org/explore/whats-here/exhibits/great-train-story/
Great Train Story Diorama
5700 S Lake Shore Drive
Chicago, Illinois
United States
41.790958, -87.582945
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

U-505

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

David Wallach Memorial Fountain

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Obama Kissing Rock

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Chicago

Chicago

Illinois

Places 160
Stories 54

Nearby Places

U-505

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

David Wallach Memorial Fountain

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Obama Kissing Rock

Chicago, Illinois

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Chicago

Chicago

Illinois

Places 160
Stories 54

Related Stories and Lists

11 Places to See Tiny Trains

List

By Jonathan Carey

Related Places

  • Hot Springs, Arkansas

    Tiny Town

    Everything in this miniature world was handmade from matches, paperclips, wires, tin cans, and other everyday objects.

  • Civil unrest on a small scale.

    Hamburg, Germany

    Miniatur Wunderland

    Model Trains and Much More in Hamburg.

  • Jaca, Spain

    The Jaca Citadel Military Miniatures Museum

    32,000 tiny soldiers are posed in 23 historical settings.

  • Flemington, New Jersey

    Northlandz

    One of the world's largest model railroads is a mind-boggling achievement.

  • Jim Metcalf at Martini Junction

    Needham, Massachusetts

    Martini Junction

    An elaborate, hidden model train in the Needham Town Forest.

  • Red Square scaled down

    Moscow, Russia

    Miniature Moscow

    Back in the tiny USSR.

  • Richmond, California

    Golden State Model Railroad Museum

    A 10,000-square-foot museum of operating model trains.

  • Luna Park

    Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

    Miniature Railroad & Village

    Pittsburgh’s largest and most detailed model train display began as one WWI veteran’s hobby.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.