All Aboard! New Museum Combines Model Trains with Historic Artifacts for Immersive Rail Experience
Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad’s daily run from Bloomington, Illinois, to Kansas City pauses at Louisiana, Missouri, on June 10, 1959. A railroad worker stands in front of the locomotive no. 2506 while two women speak with a conductor on the right side of the image. Photograph by J. Parker Lamb; provided through the courtesy of The Center for Railroad Photography & Art.
By Brad Pace
America’s 19th century expansion west of the Mississippi was led by wagon trains inching along at walking speed via well-worn trails. Independence, the Queen City of the Trails, became the jumping off point for three such legendary routes, the California, Oregon and Santa Fe.
As the century progressed, the Iron Horse arrived to revolutionize transportation. The rest is “history” as they say, with steam-powered trains replacing the horse-drawn variety as the favored means for settlement of the vast American West.
Trails to Rails
This trails to rails transition is celebrated at the Missouri Model Railroad Museum (MMRM), which will hold an open house 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, May 11-12, 2024, coinciding with the celebration of National Train Day. The brand new MMRM, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, at 312 W. Pacific Avenue, Independence, Missouri.
Workers moving a National Frontier Trails exhibit for its journey to the Truman Memorial Building.
The museum is located on the site of the historic Waggoner-Gates Flour Mill. The mill complex was mostly destroyed by fire after being struck by lightning in 1967. That part of the mill which survived was renovated in 1989-90 to become the National Frontier Trails Museum.
As part of its master plan, in the summer of 2023 the Trails Museum moved to the Truman Memorial Building at 416 W. Maple Ave., Independence. However, the 3,000-volume Merrill J. Mattes Research Library, focused on the overland trails and settlement of the West, will remain in the old mill building and share space with the MMRM. This renowned research facility will be accessible by appointment.
A separate free-standing brick structure on the former mill property serves as the national headquarters for the Oregon-California Trails Association (“OCTA”), and will continue in that capacity. The mission of the OCTA is to protect the legacy of the historic emigrant trails “by promoting research, education, preservation, public awareness and collaboration.”
Origins and Vision
Locomotive travelling through the yards of the Kansas City Nut and Bolt Co., later known as Sheffield Steal and Armco. PHL 17318. Photo courtesy of JCHS.
William Siegel, MMRM board member and vice president of strategic development, has a long history with railroading. He began his career as a locomotive engineer for the Saint Louis-San Francisco Railroad, commonly known as the “FRISCO.” After the FRISCO was merged with the Burlington Northern in 1980, now a part of the BNSF System, Will left the company and became a successful entrepreneur.
Although he is no longer “working on the railroad,” Will’s interest in trains has remained. For 15 years he was heavily involved in a model railroad club in Odessa, MO. But when the club’s landlord needed the building for other uses, the club lost its home.
Letters were mailed to about a half-dozen area mayors inquiring about available space. The only reply came from Independence Mayor Eileen Weir. Siegel says that without that initiative from Mayor Weir, “the MMRM might never have become a reality.”
When scouting potential locations in Independence, the empty 1913 Missouri Pacific station at 600 S. Grand (now known as the Truman Depot), was an intriguing possibility. Although the idea of a train museum inside an actual train depot was nearly irresistible, it was considered just too small.
Meanwhile, the city knew that the National Frontier Trails Museum would be moving, so had been looking for a new tenant at the former mill. Dale Shipman, the MMRM’s first president, said that when the mill building was offered to the museum he was surprised and delighted. The size and layout of the building are perfect, said Shipman. So with support from the city, and the Parks, Recreation and Tourism Department, the location at the former Waggoner-Gates Mill in Independence was selected. Shipman says that the MMRM was at the right place at the right time to get such a great facility.
The MMRM board feels that Jackson County is a very appropriate location for the museum since it is the second largest railroad hub in America. Kansas City and St Louis are ranked as the second and third largest hubs, respectively. In fact, trains in Missouri carry the fourth largest amount of freight tonnage in the nation.
The MMRM’s mission is centered on three core values: educate, preserve, and sustain.
Southern Railways locomotive 'The Mountaineer'. Photo 2015.047.657. Photo courtesy of JCHS.
It will feature historically-oriented displays and artifacts celebrating the contributions of railroading. Guided tours will be offered to the public, schools, and groups like the Boy Scouts.
Will Siegel says that the success of other similarly-themed model railroad museums in San Diego, CA and Greeley, CO shows the public’s strong enthusiasm for railroading. He believes that railroads and the American people have produced an intertwined culture that can provide the storyline for the MMRM.
Showcasing Railroading’s Contribution to Missouri
The centerpiece of the MMRM will be a 5,000-square-foot exhibit hall for the display of dioramic models of different railroads that operated across Missouri. As visitors stroll through the exhibit hall, they will see HO scale model trains passing through cities, crossing the Missouri River, and racing across rural farm country. The layout will be the largest in the Midwest and will likely take two to three years to complete. A large electronic railroad dispatchers board is planned to control all the track switches just like the BNSF Railroad uses today at its main dispatch center in Fort Worth, Texas. Dispatchers there use state-of-the-art technology to communicate with train crews, similar to the way air traffic controllers talk with flight crews.
Classic steam locomotives won’t be the only model trains featured. The museum will also celebrate the modern contributions of railroading. While the 20th century brought competition in the form of automobiles and air travel, railroads today remain essential to Missouri’s economy, transporting the equivalent of over 21 million truckloads per year.
Restored depot benches.
Complimenting the model trains on display will be railroad artifacts like lanterns, tickets, and timetables. Rail-themed artwork will be visible throughout the museum.
A special highlight of the MMRM will be a theater where railroad related movies and features will be shown. The room can also double as a large meeting space or lecture hall.
Since taking possession of the building, board members and other volunteers have been working hard to install furnishings, artifacts, and, of course, the model train displays. Entering the MMRM visitors will see three refinished antique wooden benches once used in passenger waiting rooms—two from the Truman Depot.
Synergy With Historic Sites
The MMRM is envisioned to operate in concert with other nearby historic attractions, each benefitting from its close proximity to the others. Will Siegel says that one day visitors may be able to buy one ticket to enter several sites.
1879 Chicago & Alton Depot.
Just a few hundred feet from the museum sits the Chicago & Alton Railroad Depot. This two-story wood frame building was constructed in 1879. Its second floor was originally occupied by the station agent and his family. Passengers and freight traffic continued to use the depot until 1960, and telegraph operators up to 1972. Thereafter it sat empty, deteriorating from disuse and vandalism. In an effort to save the building, it was in 1996 physically moved several miles from its original location on W. South Ave., in Independence, to its current home at 318 West Pacific.
Over the next ten years a dedicated group of preservationists meticulously restored the station to its 19th century prime. Its period-correct interior is open for guided tours and is filled with Chicago and Alton artifacts. Visitors to the depot can complete their experience by making the short walk to the MMRM, and vice versa.
Recent photo of the 1913 Missouri Pacific Depot, now known as the Truman Depot, at 600 S. Grand, Independence.
Less than a mile down the road is another piece of railroad history, the 1913 Missouri Pacific Depot. This brick building was often used by President Truman during his years in public office, and is now commonly referred to as the Truman Depot. Its finest hour may have been in January 1953, when a crowd of at least 8,500 braved the cold night to welcome Truman home after Dwight Eisenhower was inaugurated as his replacement.
Although the station is now owned by the city and closed to the public, it continues to serve rail passengers as an AMTRAK stop. Work is currently underway to make badly needed repairs to the building. Having two classic train depots so close to the MMRM is a unique distinction.
Waggoner-Gates mansion, south of the MMRM.
Visitors to the MMRM can walk just across the street to the south to tour the Bingham-Waggoner estate. This 22-room mansion was built in 1855. It was home to artist George Caleb Bingham from 1864 to 1870.
In 1879 the Waggoner family (of the Waggoner-Gates Mill) purchased the estate, and extensively remodeled it. The property became a museum after the last family member moved out in 1976.
Volunteers Needed
The historic Waggoner-Gates Mill, now home to the Missouri Model Railroad Museum.
Dale Shipman says the MMRM open house “See the Dream” should be considered a “soft launch,” since fully developing a world-class model train museum will take a few years. Others versed in Missouri railroad history are being sought to write placards explaining the exhibits, and to offer educational programming and lectures.
The museum is currently seeking donations of memorabilia and artifacts. In December it received a major donation from the Train Collectors Association, Heart of America Chapter. The group held its annual meeting at the MMRM theater and conference room. Those interested in making a financial donation or volunteering can notify the museum through its website, showmerails.org.
Missouri Model Railroad Museum
“See the Dream”
10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday
May 11 - 12, 2024
Brad Pace is a current board member and past president of the JCHS.
He is a frequent writer on historical subjects.