Arkansas Railroad Museum — Attraction in Pine Bluff

Trains have always been a very big interest of mine, while in Arkansas I found out that this museum was in existence and had to make it a point to stop by and take a look. Let me tell you right off the bat this is one of the best decisions I have ever made. The pictures that you see online due little justice to show you the scale of this wonderful place.

Upon entering the building I was awestruck at the sheer size of the collection here. Immediately I got really excited to get in there and take look around. I headed towards the back end of the building wanting to see 819 a monstrous old-school steam loco. After hoping aboard and taking a look around my mind started filling with questions and that was when John came up. John is hands down one of the nicest, most knowledgeable gentlemen I have ever had the privilege to talk to. I started hitting him with a flurry of questions and noticed that he had the biggest grin on his face as we are both are "train-heads." He hung out with my Dad and I for over an hour and a half showing us around and sharing his knowledge base and making this a fantastic experience.

John also took us over to the switch operations terminal, the terminal was something amazing to see and feel, the switch terminal controlled the lines from Missouri all the way to Texarkana and was made even better when John told us all about how it worked.

Besides the trains they have an enormous collection of railway memorabilia everything from lights, bells, horns, pins, outfits, vests and so much more. And, if you are nerd for Lionel train sets this place will be right up your alley!

The space is very well maintained and you can feel its history. I have been to lots of museums in my life but, this one hit differently, you can feel the American ingenuity and the importance this place played in the history of this area. I cannot recommend a place more strongly than the Arkansas Railroad Museum. If you can't make it down here I would strongly advise that you toss this museum a donation on there website they deserve every penny as the restoration work they are completing is necessary for our history so future generations can see these wonderful time pieces.

And, to you John- Thank you! Thank you for being hospitable, thank you for spending all that time with my Dad and I, thank you for being into trains as much as I am, and Thank you for being a great person! I hope to see you...

Decided to check this place out on a rainy day with the kids. We were surprised to find no entrance fees. The building used to be a facility for building trains and there is a lot of history. Several engines were on display including the last steam engine built in that facility. The cars they have on display were really neat and the exhibit touched more on the work and railroad in the cotton belt. The kids enjoyed being able to walk into the trains and viewing the model trains. Volunteers were friendly and informative! Definitely worth a stop for all train enthusiasts.

Only downside is this museum is donation funded and due to this some of the very cool cars show their age. Additionally the set up could benefit from improved lighting and updating of informative plaques.

Please note I frequent the Strasburg Railroad Museum in Pennsylvania and use that for comparison in...

Glad to see this is re-opening June 5th following the Covid Crisis. I was first here 20 years ago in 1990 or 91. I had business at the paper mill East of town. One of the paper machine operators invited me to this. He was one of the volunteers here. He also had me come to his house to see several train videos. It was all fascinating, especially climbing aboard the engines. They are big and you can't hurt them. I felt like a kid again, but as an adult chemical engineer I understood the gauges and levers and stuff. Museum is easy to get to. It's just off what used to be the North Loop, now Business US 65, and was how you had to go through town to get to Little Rock before I-530 was completed around the South...