The Königsberg-Cranzer Eisenbahngesellschaft (KCE) was founded in 1884 for the construction of a railroad between Königsberg and Cranz. Only a year later, in 1885, the first train ran along the 28-km-long line from Königsberg to Cranz where a railroad station was constructed on the site of the old Kranta-Krug inn. On July 8, 1895, the company opened the 2-km-long line from Cranz to Cranzbek on the coast of the Curonian Lagoon so that vacationers could travel to the wharf and board the ferry to Memel. On December 20, 1900, the line was extended westward along the coast to Pobethen and Rantau, and by May 25, 1901, it reached Neukuren (nowadays Pionersky) where passengers could transfer to the Samland Railroad and travel to Warnicken (nowadays the village of Lesnoye, Svetlogorsk District).

By 1913–1914, the company carried around 900,000 passengers a year. It had 12 steam locomotives. On September 19, 1929, together with its subsidiary, Samlandbahn AG, the company opened the North Station in Königsberg (nowadays Kaliningrad) which replaced the Cranz and Samland Stations. The North Station was under joint management with the East German Railroad Company. From that moment on, trains to Cranz departed from that station. On August 1, 1934, the Königsberg-Cranz Railroad Company began operating three bus routes from Königsberg to Cranz via Mollenen (nowadays the village of Kashtanovka, Zelenogradsk District). In 1938, the company already carried 1.3 million passengers. In 1939, the Königsberg-Cranz Railroad Company was temporarily closed.

Although short, this railroad was important for the resort and was the only private railroad company in East Prussia. Like any private company, the Königsberg-Cranzer Eisenbahngesellschaft attracted investment to finance its operations, including by issuing shares. The first shares were issued in May 1885.

The museum houses an original issue stock certificate dated May 20, 1885. The certificate features a three-digit number and has a face value of 200 Reichsmarks.