Florida Railroad Museum (1984-Present)

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

Located in Parrish, Florida, The Florida Railroad Museum has been working towards showing visitors the sights and sounds of the 1940s and 1950s for many generations. After opening as the Florida Gulf Coast Museum in 1984, they began collecting and restoring fleets as well as operating a six-mile track between the cities of Parrish and Willow. The museum itself is open Wednesday through Sunday from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM and offers train rides two days a week. They are currently focusing on constructing additional storage tracks and plan to open the restoration facilities for the public to enjoy.

Images

Thomas the Train Exhibit

The Train Car Where you Purchase Tickets for the Museum.

The Departure Location for All Train Rides.

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

The Florida Railroad Museum, Inc. was originally founded as the Florida Gulf Coast Railroad Museum in 1984 to preserve Florida’s railroad history. The museum has been acquiring and restoring rolling stock and equipment to operate for the public’s enjoyment for many generations. A lot of the museum’s inventory are pieces manufactured after WWI. They wish to show visitors the sights and sounds of the Florida railroad that existed in the 1940s and 1950s.

To accomplish this, the museum operates on a six-mile track connecting Parrish and Willow, Florida, in Manatee County. Every weekend, they have diesel locomotives that pull equipment such as open window coaches, a covered gondola, and an air-conditioned coach. These trains are operated entirely by Museum members who volunteer to make this experience memorable to visitors.

The museum is open Wednesdays through Sundays from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM and offers year-round train rides, rain or shine, every Saturday and Sunday at 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM, excluding their two week Christmas break that extends through New Years. They depart from the station on 83rd Street East in Parrish just behind the old Post Office. Aside from these regularly scheduled rides, they also offer special weekend events that exceed these operating schedules.

The museum is expanding its facilities in Willow while also repairing and restoring the museum and rolling stock. They have constructed additional storage tracks to ensure a more extensive collection of moving stock and restoration work. Further into the future, they plan to include static exhibits in Willow and eventually open the restoration facilities to the public.

Sources

"The Florida Rail Road Museum." The Florida Rail Road Museum | Parrish Florida. Accessed August 4, 2020. https://www.frrm.org/about.html.

"Florida Railroad Museum (Parrish) - 2020 All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos) - Tripadvisor." Tripadvisor. Accessed August 4, 2020. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g34545-d1568700-Reviews-Florida_Railroad_Museum-Parrish_Florida.html.

"Florida Railroad Museum." American-Rails.com. Accessed August 4, 2020. https://www.american-rails.com/frrm.html.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Additional Information

Pay a Visit to the Florida Railroad Museum!