Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum facts for kids
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Budd RDC #6126 at the Adams station in 2022
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| Established | 1984 |
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| Location | 4 Hoosac Street, Adams, Massachusetts |
| Type | Railway museum |
The Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum is a fun place in Lenox, Massachusetts where you can learn about trains. It's a railroad museum that shows historical exhibits. The museum started in 1984 as a group that doesn't make money for itself. It uses any money it earns to keep the museum running.
For many years, the museum offered special train rides for visitors. These rides took place between Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts. They used tracks that belonged to the Housatonic Railroad. In 2016, the museum started offering train rides in a new area, North Adams, Massachusetts.
Contents
History of the Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum
The Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum began its journey in 1984. It started offering passenger train trips between Lee, Massachusetts and Great Barrington, Massachusetts. These trips happened on tracks owned by the Housatonic Railroad.
Early Train Rides and Challenges
After a few years, the train rides had to stop. This was because the train tracks were getting old and bumpy. They were not safe enough for passengers anymore.
The museum brought back the train trips in 2003. This time, the trains left from the restored station in Lenox. They had regular trips to Lee and Stockbridge. However, at the end of 2011, the Housatonic Railroad decided not to let the museum use their tracks anymore. This meant the train rides from Lenox had to stop again.
Moving to the Hoosac Valley
In 2014, the museum received a special grant of $200,000 from the state. This money helped them move their train operations to a new area called the Hoosac Valley. The plan was to run trains between Adams, Massachusetts and North Adams.
The town of Adams also helped a lot. They spent $500,000 to change an old car wash building into a new train station. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation, or MassDOT, bought part of the train track from another company. They fixed the first 4 miles of track south from North Adams.
New Beginnings in North Adams and Adams
In November 2015, the city of North Adams agreed to let the museum use some land. This land was used to build a temporary platform for passengers. Train service officially started in May 2016, with trains leaving from North Adams.
Another big grant of $2.6 million from MassDOT helped even more. This money was used to build a permanent train platform in downtown Adams. It also paid for fixing the last 1 mile of track. The track work was finished in late 2017. Excursion train service from Adams began in 2018, offering new adventures for visitors.
