laws railroad museum

934sherylh

This is a wonderful way to experience history. Kids will feel welcome and will see things they did not know about before. I have been to many museums, but this one is one of the better ones.

263adriens

Very interesting museum with a lot of history.Very well displayed and shows how people lived a century ago. The mining part is very well explained too and shows the process from stone to "flour".We met super nice people from the museum that took the time to explain us how every thing worked.They even started some amazing engines like this big single piston 12 liter engine.We could have stayed the whole day listen to these guys that give a lot of their time to this very beautiful museum but we had to go to try to stay on our schedule.Just go you will be impressed and pleased.We'll come back for sure with more time on our hands.

sandyh802

It's almost a railroad from nowhere to nowhere and now that it's gone, quite an interesting bit of railroad history. One can walk the grounds, look into the Slim Princess coal fired narrow guage locomotive, check out the rolling stock and the several buildings that have been nicely restored. The museum is located right on the original right-of-way with some of the marshalling area still in place. The main building is staffed with knowledgeable volunteers who can tell some tales - many of them true. There is a good stock of books and reference material. Admission is free.

Taitertots

The museum was packed with all sorts of local history and antiques from the area . It's much more than just trains .

9lisas

sounds a bit corney, but the museum is full of interesting things. the area of the eastern sierras is full of history, and laws gives you a glimpse of how the area grew up. i hightly recommend it, if you have an hour or so to poke around the town.

712jamesl

Plan on a few hours here and try to go on "Good Old Days" look it up. Anytime is great, though, there's a lot of stuff to see, it's a RR museum but it's also a general museum with lots of old stuff inside several buildings. Many old buildings were moved their and they specialize in things like post office, medical, etc. Also try to go when the research room is open, it's neat!

tomatohead

You can pack a lunch and come out to spend the afternoon here. We have a membership and it's nice to go when friends are in town with their kids. Folks get a glimpse ,of life in an old western town - complete with school house, dentist office, general store, mining works etc. The Siamese lambs are a curiosity as are the wee things for sale in the little thrift and gift shops. There's also a chance to do a bit of geocacheing here.

MeyerJ123

This place is awesome! Love the staff and made all my kids "homeschool" trip a blast. The kids thought it'd be a boring museum, but it was super cool and fun

Violala

nice place to stop for 1 hour. Shows not only railroads and trains, but also small houses of old town of Bodie.gives a nice feeling of back-in-old-times.too bad the nice cars are kept indoors, so they make less nice photographs. But a lot of love of volunteers was put into restauration of these cars and trains!doable in 1 hour5 dollar per person donation

Rovers09

Having done quite a bit of driving we wanted to do something local to Bishop one day. We headed up to the Museum - in my case with limited expectations - and I was surprised at just how much there was to see. My wife and I spent at least 3 hours there and we could easily have spent at least 2 more. We were made to feel most welcome by Lori on arrival and special mention should also go to Jay who spent quite some time explaining about the different mining operations which had taken place in the area over the years. I would say that young children wouldn't probably want to stay as long but there's a lot to see and I'm sure they'd enjoy climbing onto the footplate of the old locomotive. If you're looking for an interesting morning/afternoon then I'd strongly recommend it.

323Julie

When I saw the signs, I thought this would be a quick 30 minute stop along our way. What a delightful surprise! We spent over 4 hours there seeing the old trains, the depot, and all the buildings that were stuffed with very interesting displays of yesteryear. Fascinating history. The 100+ year old school house and the train depot were my favorite part. There is a small picnic area you can also eat at, so be sure and pack some sandwiches so you can relax by the old depot for lunch or snacks. Food is not sold there, but be sure to bring something, becaue if you find this as interesting as we did, you will spend a long time. Also, bring plenty of film. Kids would also love this place.

GeoffM

Entry by suggested donation of $5 per adult which is perfectly reasonable to me. Lots of old artifacts and buildings too. Very peaceful to just look around with no pressure, few other visitors, and just enjoy. Picnic tables provided but apart from some drinks there's no food to be had here - bring your own.No live steam here as far as I know, but bear in mind this museum's tracks are not connected to anything else - not forgetting that this is narrow gauge too!If you're travelling up the 395 and need a place to stop, I thorough recommend spending a few hours here. The kids can burn off excess energy while getting some fresh air.

gardog

Run by the Bishop Historical Society, this hometown museum has something for everyone. Yes, there is the original train depot and the Slim Princess narrow gauge engine and train, and some train exhibits. There is also a history museum with old photos of Bishop, a general store, doctor's office, pharmacy, beauty parlor, textiles exhibit, old carriages, mining exhibit, fantastic bottle collection, Indian artifacts, ranch house, gem exhibit, blacksmith shop, print shop, gas station, the list goes on. Just five miles outside of town, plenty of parking, donations accepted. No place to eat but bring your picnic baskets. Something to please everyone.

654chuckb

The volunteers here do a great job of adding or updating displays, so there's usually something new everytime we come. The staff in the gift shop are always pleasant and a great source of local history.I'd recommend Laws for any family travelling through the area.

766donalds

There were four of us in our group and one is a railroad nut. So this was just the place for him. Just off the highway it's a nice place to get out and stretch the legs and have a fun and educational side visit. It's worth the trip!