Strahorn Library

One of our important elements in providing services to our members and in fulfilling our educational mission is the operation of the Strahorn Memorial Library, off campus, in nearby Marengo, IL.  There you will find a dedicated group of volunteers and an AMAZING collection of railroad related items.  Here is a short photo tour courtesy of images from Gwyn Stupar.

Main Entrance

Here is the main entrance.  The building was constructed as the local public library and later the Museum was able to purchase the building.

Magazines

Some of the magazines reside on shelves that we salvaged from the Mount Prospect High School library.  They have been refinished, restored, and assembled to provide additional space for the collection.

Official Guides

The Strahorn has a comprehensive collection of Official Guides, as well as many Official Railway Equipment Registers.

Art

You will find some rare examples of paintings and railway art, some museum quality models, thousands of archived photos and negatives, and well over 15,000 railway and technical books.

This is not a lending library, but has regular hours two days per week for walk-in visitors and other times by appointment.  It is wise to call ahead as they depend on volunteer staffing, and at least during the winter, really bad weather can cause the open hours to be changed.  If you have not been to this IRM operation, you owe it to yourself to visit, help out, or both of the above.