North Carolina Transportation Museum facts for kids
Antique automobiles.
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| Established | 1982 |
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| Location | Spencer Shops |
| Type | Transport museum |
| Collection size | Railroad artifacts and equipment, road vehicles, airplanes. |
The North Carolina Transportation Museum is a fun museum located in Spencer, North Carolina. It's a special place where you can see all sorts of old automobiles, aircraft, and trains. The museum is built on the grounds of the old Southern Railway's Spencer Shops, which opened way back in 1896. Because of this, a lot of the museum is about North Carolina's amazing railroad history.
This museum has the biggest collection of old train items in both North and South Carolina! One of its most famous buildings is the Back Shop. It's super huge, nearly three stories tall and as long as two football fields!
Contents
History of the Museum
The museum started in 1977. That's when the Southern Railway gave 4 acres (about 16,000 square meters) of land to North Carolina to create a transportation museum. Just two years later, they added another 53 acres (about 214,000 square meters)! This huge gift included all of the railway's biggest old steam locomotive repair shops.
The museum's first exhibit, called "People, Places and Time," opened in 1983. The museum kept growing over the years. A big moment was in 1996 when two new parts opened. One was Barber Junction, an old railroad station that was moved from about 30 miles away. Barber Junction is now the museum's Visitor's Center. It's also where you start your on-site train ride!
The other big opening in 1996 was the newly fixed-up Bob Julian Roundhouse. This building is now home to most of the museum's train exhibits. But it also has cool airplane displays and tells the story of the Spencer Shops site.
Exploring the Roundhouse and Shops
The roundhouse was built in 1924. Several sections of it are now used to show off locomotives and rail cars. These vehicles have been carefully restored by volunteers. From 1924 to 1953, this was the place where steam locomotives were repaired.
In the first 16 stalls, you can walk right among the giant locomotives and rail cars. It's an open-air area, so you can really get a good look! Then, you move into the enclosed Elmer Lam gallery. Here, in stalls 17 through 20, you'll find amazing aviation exhibits. These include a full-size copy of the Wright Flyer and displays about Piedmont Airlines.
In stalls 21 through 32, you can see the restoration shop. Here, you might even watch volunteers working on different train parts. They even make new parts! The last five stalls have more enclosed exhibits for you to explore.
The museum is the largest place for train history in North and South Carolina. About 80,000 people visit every year! In the early 1900s, around three thousand people worked at the Spencer Shops. They were busy repairing trains.
The Flue Shop, where parts for steam engines were made, is now the "Bumper To Bumper" exhibit. This area shows off vintage and antique cars. You can see several Model Ts, a Model A, and even a Ford Model R from 1907. Other cool cars include a 1935 Highway Patrol car, a Divco Milk Truck, and a Lincoln Continental.
The Massive Back Shop
In 2005, the museum's Back Shop got a huge makeover. This included fixing the roof and strengthening the floor. This building is where big steam locomotives used to be completely taken apart and rebuilt. It's famous for its size, being two football fields long and nearly three stories tall.
What's even more interesting are the words "Be Careful" painted inside. They are about three feet tall and can be seen from almost anywhere on the north side of the building! In 2009, the museum opened the Back Shop to the public for the first time. In 2017, it was fully opened, allowing for even more exhibits.
Heritage Railroad Rides
The museum has its own heritage railroad. This means they operate passenger excursion trains on certain days. These trains usually run on a seasonal schedule.
The trains are often pulled by diesel locomotives like the Norfolk and Western GP9 No. 620 or Southern GP30 No. 2601. Sometimes, other cool diesel locomotives are used, such as the Southern FP7 No. 6133, Southern E8A No. 6900, and Atlantic Coast Line E3 No. 501.
The museum doesn't have its own steam locomotives that run. But sometimes, visiting steam locomotives come to the museum! For example, the Lehigh Valley Coal 0-6-0T No. 126 and Flag Coal Company 0-4-0T No. 75 have visited.
In 2012 and 2013, the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum's Southern 2-8-0 No. 630 steam engine visited. It offered rides to the public. From 2014 to 2015, the famous Norfolk and Western 611 steam locomotive was fixed up at the museum. It then ran public trips from Spencer to places like Asheville and Charlotte in 2016 and 2017. The No. 611 has also been used for special "At The Throttle" and "Be The Fireman" sessions at the museum.
In 2015, the "Leviathan" locomotive, an American 4-4-0 type, visited for a special event. You can also buy tickets to ride the roundhouse turntable!
Exciting Events
The museum hosts many annual events. They also have special one-time train events that bring train fans from all over the country!
In 2012, the Bob Julian Roundhouse was the stage for all 20 of Norfolk Southern's special Heritage locomotives. This was a two-day event for photographers. In 2014, the museum hosted "Streamliners at Spencer." This event brought together famous locomotives from the 1930s to 1950s around the Bob Julian Roundhouse turntable. The No. 611 steam locomotive was also there!
Some of the fun annual events include:
- Day Out With Thomas (featuring Thomas the Tank Engine!)
- The Polar Express (a magical train ride)
- Fire Truck Show
- Automobile shows
- A Tractor Show
- The Harvest Festival
- The Easter Bunny Express
- Valentine Wine and Dine trains
- The new Brew and Choo Beer Train
The museum also hosts the Boy Scout Rail Camp. Boy Scouts and their leaders can camp out at the historic site and earn their railroading merit badge. It's the biggest railroad-related scouting event in the whole country!
Museum Collection
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The museum has a fantastic collection of both steam and diesel locomotives.
Steam Locomotives
- Graham County Railroad Company 3-truck shay #1925
- Atlantic Coast Line Railroad 4-6-0 #1031
- Southern 2-8-0 #542
- Seaboard Air Line Railroad 2-10-0 #544
- Carolina Power & Light Company 0-4-0F #3
- Duke Power Company 0-4-0ST #111
- W.R. Bonsal Company 0-6-0T #7
Diesel Locomotives
- Southern E8A-Unit #6900
- Norfolk & Western GP9 #620
- Atlantic Coast Line E3A-Unit #501
- Southern GP30 #2601
- Southern FP7-Unit #6133
- US Navy 44 ton switcher # 65-00556
- Buck Steam Station GE 25 Ton switcher #5159
- USA/Beaufort & Morehead H12-44 #1860
- Norfolk Southern Railway (former) Baldwin AS 416 #1616
- Amtrak F40PHR #307
- NC Port Authority GE 45 ton switcher #L3
- Southern FTB #960604
Electric Locomotives
- Piedmont & Northern GE 63 ton Boxcab-#5103
Special Exhibits
- "The Doris" is a fancy private rail car. It was owned by James B. Duke, who was famous for the American Tobacco Company. He named the car after his daughter, Doris.
- "The Loretto" is another private rail car. It was built in 1902 for Charles Schwab, a steel businessman. This car has beautiful stained glass windows and amazing carvings decorated with gold!
- "Southern Railway Car No. 1211" was built in 1917. It was later changed in 1939 and 1953. The museum plans to restore it to how it looked in the 1940s and 1950s.
See also
- List of heritage railroads in the United States
