The City of Santa Fe Springs received its name in the 1800's, when the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway came to town. The railway's big black engines, billowing black smoke and miles of track came to symbolize progress in this budding community. A cross-section of local railroad history is on display at Heritage Park. The No. 870 locomotive has been restored to its original 1920 condition along with a refrigerated boxcar, caboose, depot and section house. This exhibit demonstrates through equipment, buildings and signage the importance of the railroad to the Southern California region.

Nearly 150,000 people climb into the cab of the No. 870 each year.

A mural, depicting the role of the railroad industry in agriculture, is on the side of the refrigerator boxcar. The colorful picture is reminiscent of the beautiful designs found on the side of vintage orange crates.