[2][3] In 1974, the trade union and the management of the Oktyabrskaya Railway decided to establish a museum for the employees of the enterprise.

Later a small group of enthusiastic railway workers proposed to preserve the historical rolling stock pieces.

Their proposal was met by the railway management that provided a site in the southern outskirts of the city to store and repair locomotives and carriages.

[4] In May 2001, Varshavsky railway station in St. Petersburg was closed for the scheduled passenger services and the most valuable part of the museum's collection in Shushary was placed along its platforms.

Once the collection was relocated to the central part of the city, the number of visitors has sixfolded, and the museum became one of the popular places of interest of its kind.

However, as the Varshavsky station building was provided exclusively for the commercial use, the museum had no indoor exhibition.

[7] It consists of indoor and outdoor exhibitions storing around 35000 historical artifacts including 118 items of rolling stock.