I check to see if the museum is still open, and when their least busy days are — their least busy times. Discovering today is the day and now is the time, I run a comb through my hair, grab my shoes, look at Michael and say, “Let’s go to the Galveston Railroad Museum.” Of course, he is ready.  He is always ready.

Galveston Railroad Museum

While Michael noses our car into a two hour parking space, I look at the building beside us through my side window; I can’t see the top from where I sit. This building is tall! I don’t remember that, and I don’t see the multiple wide steps I thought we walked up decades ago — maybe that was another place. Another town. Even though we have been here before, I barely remember it at all. But I do remember the ghosts. I wonder if they are still here.

The old Santa Fe Railroad station where the museum is housed is huge! Impressive. I would kill for the beautiful antique light fixtures in the lobby that hang from a towering ceiling. But instead, I hurriedly follow Michael through the double glass doors and step back in time. Radio music from the 40s floats above us, adding to the illusion of slipping into another century.

The Terminal Waiting Area

Being here doesn’t feel like a museum; it feels like being a passenger waiting to board a train 80-years ago. The art deco space where you pass the time until your Santa Fe locomotive pulls into the station is elegant in its simplicity, full of marble and burnished wood.

The ghosts are still here, and I like that they are. Sitting. Standing. Talking. Reading. Dreaming. Working — caught in the act of living their lives. Everyone is going somewhere — waiting, to go somewhere. Vintage railroad posters line the walls. A bank of telephone booths stands adjacent to the information area; larger than a walk-up window, it is a place to sit and chat.

A kinder, gentler, slower, era permeates the air. It is hard to believe that this building opened in the early 1930s in the middle of the great depression. It is grand!

The Adjacent Room

After we say hello to all the ghosts, we explore the adjacent small museum with a miniature railroad; a vignette full of life and action.  I told Michael when I was a kid, I always wanted one of those. He tells me I can have my very own miniature train set now — build my own village.

I continue investigating the small museum room. On one wall is a series of posters showing how trains were used as vehicles for political campaigns. Ben Barns barnstormed all across Texas in 1972 during his campaign for governor. He lost. His train campaign didn’t help overcome the political Sharpstown scandal. It seems every place we visit or revisit spurs me to have dates with Google. Galveston does seem to be one long history lesson.

The Trains

Before long, it is time to step outside into the morning sun, and continue my fantasy, boarding “our” train. But first I become mesmerized with the art of rust.

When I finally do enter one of the passenger cars and walk down the long narrow aisle that spans the length of the sleeping rooms, I feel like I am in any of a number of old movies where a train, a hallway, and closed doors always spells doom for someone. I just need the appropriate sound effects to make the illusion real.

Walking in and out, around and through these old railway cars is more than a dream of days gone by — it is being there. When I discover that I can rent a railroad car for the night — that sleeps ten — I begin to dream. Again.

Galveston Railroad Museum Information

2602 Santa Fe Pl, Galveston, TX 77550

Housed in the former Santa Fe Railroad station, at 25th and Strand , the Galveston Railroad Museum has one of the largest restored railroad collections in the southwest, and one of the five largest in the country. There is also a plethora of railroad memorabilia, and exhibits. The museum owns a mile of track, and if the weather permits, caboose rides are available on weekends between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm.  Check their website for current information. https://galvestonrrmuseum.org/visit/

• Hours:
  • Open Daily 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
  • Hours are subject to change, due to weather and holidays.

• Admission:
  • Adults (13-64): $12, Seniors (65+): $9, Children (3-12): $6, Children 2 and under: Free
  • Train Rides: $6.00, “Weather Permitting” Saturdays between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm and Sundays between 1:00 pm and 3:00 pm Call 409-765-5700 for more information.
  • Self-guided tour. At least 1 hour recommended for touring the museum. Last admission sold 30 minutes prior to closing.

• Contact Info:
  • (409) 765-5700
  • info@galvestonRRmuseum.org

To learn more about spending the night in a 1949 vintage rail car, the ‘Bonnie Brook, click on one of the following links

https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/texas/galveston-railroad-museum-airbnb-tx/

https://www.vrbo.com/2329692?adultsCount=3&arrival=2022-02-09&departure=2022-02-15

History of the Galveston Railroad Museum

The Galveston Railroad Museum opened to the public in 1983, but the Museum traces its roots back to the 1896 depot and headquarters built by the Gulf, Colorado, and Santa Fe railroad. The depot and facility grew with the railroad, and by 1932 the company built the current art deco depot. Santa Fe left Galveston in 1972, and the building sat vacant for several years. With community support, Mary Moody Northern sponsored the refurbishment of the building and the establishment of the railroad museum.

The museum grew rapidly, collecting dining car china, a model railroad layout, and acting as the terminal for the Texas Limited excursion train. After the Texas Limited ceased operations in 1996, the museum acquired its passenger cars and two locomotives.

In 2008, Hurricane Ike flooded the museum with 10 feet of salt water. Much of the museum’s collection was destroyed or severely damaged. The museum closed to rebuild and restore its collection, acquiring two F-7A diesel locomotives in Santa Fe colors to replace the Texas Limited locomotives. After three years of cleanup, the museum reopened in 2011.

The Museum is owned and operated by the Center for Transportation and Commerce, a non-profit organization.

• The above information was taken from the following source:
  • History of the Museum – Galveston Railroad Museum.
  • https://galvestonrrmuseum.org/history-of-the-museum/