PORTLAND — The Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Company & Museum, 58 Fore St., Portland, announces it has received a $1,500 Heritage Grant from the Amherst Railway Society for a restoration project to restore the Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes Parlor Car, “Rangeley.”

Built in 1901 by Jackson and Sharpe in Wilmington, Del., it is the only two-foot gauge parlor car ever built in the United States. The grant was awarded in January of this year at the annual Amherst Railway Society Railroad Hobby Show in Massachusetts. The Heritage Grant will pay for a treatment proposal to assess the condition and proper restoration of the ornate painted ceiling of the interior of the car, which is believed to be original to its construction. The Parlor Car is currently on display inside the museum and is one of the most popular attractions in the museum’s collection.

Founded in 1992, the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Company & Museum is a non-profit museum with a mission to educate the public and preserve historic equipment related to Maine’s two-foot gauge railways. Five two-foot gauge railroads operated in the state from the 1870s through the 1940s, serving as an important part of the economic development of the interior of Maine. The museum is open May through October and seasonally for events. The railroad is located on the waterfront, just a short walk from the Old Port. Directions and more information about the museum can be found on the museum’s website at: www.mainenarrowgauge.org or by calling 207-828-0814.