Big Day of Giving

The Railway Post Office car, is one of the few museum artifacts that has the interior space to accommodate guests in wheelchairs and who use other mobility devices. Currently the car is only accessible by a set of stairs, but with your help we are purchasing and installing a lift so all guests can access this historic and important museum artifact.

Your generous contributions will be matched 1:1 up to $16,000 through the generosity of Union Pacific Railroad and anonymous donors.

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Big Day of Giving is a 24-hour online giving challenge that brings together the region's nonprofit community to help raise much needed unrestricted funds and shine a spotlight on the work nonprofits do in Sacramento.

Since its inception, thousands of donors have helped over 600 local nonprofits raise $40 million during Big Day of Giving, our region's annual 24-hour giving day. Join the movement on May 6, and help our community flourish!

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The Great Northern Railway Post Office car No. 42 was built in October 1950 by the American Car & Foundry Company of St. Charles Missouri for the Burlington Northern Railway. It carried mail between Chicago and the Pacific Northwest. As the car traveled Postal Clerks sorted mail and picked up and dropped off mail, sometimes on the fly especially at smaller stations where the train did not stop. The car is equipped with letter slots so passengers on the platform could deposit mail.

The car was likely retired in 1967 and was donated to the California State Railroad Museum in 1979 when it was restored to its 1950 appearance. Today the car resides as a permanent exhibit in the California State Railroad Museum where docents interpret the history of the railway post office car and the many roles railroads played in American life and commerce.