Dhr Kurseong Museum

A heritage museum located at the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway station at Kurseong, the DHR Kurseong Museum displays an assortment of artifacts, exhibits, pictures, and antiques that depicts the story of the famous toy train and its history. Witness the marvelous engineering of the historic toy train that provided a link between the mountains and offered a public transport.

About the Museum

One of the three museums of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railways, the DHR Kurseong Museum displays a fascinating collection of artifacts and exhibits that showcases the rich history and development of the popular steam engine hauled toy train. Designed by the Britishers during the colonial days, the Toy Train was commissioned in 1880s that provided a significant link between the hills as a public transport that could overcome the steep slopes using impressive engineering marvels.

Located at the Kurseong Railway Station, the DHR Kurseong Museum is accessible from the platform itself. It is possible that you find the museum close when you arrive because there is not enough staff to maintain it, but you can always buy the ticket and request for a visit to enjoy the museum exclusively. The museum room is full of artifacts all properly labeled and well-kept. You will see antiques such as rail parts that were used on the original DHR railway tracks back in the 1880s and the paraphernalia used to lay and link the rails. The walls of the museum are adorned with many large framed black and white photographs and sketches that show the toy train hauling through the tough terrains in the hills such as the Agony loop, Chunbatti loop, and many others. The collection also includes pictures of the original engines, how they looked and their coaches as well.

In the center part of the room there are glass roofed cabinets on stands that portray the tale of the toy train. Various newspaper clips and articles are also laid there which describes the train and its expedition along with the history and other specifics. Other articles are also mentioned here which describe the history of Darjeeling, why is its named so and many other facts. Other highlight of the museum is the Hand Operated Printing Machine that was manufactured in 1890. It was designed by D. J. Higgins of London and was installed by the Darjeeling Himalayan Railways during the 19th century. After being used in the railways for decades, the machine is now kept as a Heritage Machine in the museum. spell-bound.