Electric Railroads / The Interurban Railway Museum in Texas

How did the electric interurban railways operate nearly one hundred years ago? How was the power generated over miles and miles of overhead lines? What were some of the great long distance electric railroads in America?  History is known to repeat itself and the electric railroads and the urban railroads in Texas of the early 1900's certainly falls into that classification. There were many electric railroads during the early 1900's. They vanished and now they have reappeared. Their history and later popularity is an interesting story.

The Interurban Museum


The people working at the Interurban Railway Museum in Plano Texas, a northern Dallas suburb, have done a terrific job of explaining just how these electric railroads operated before the automobile caused their decline.

The rail museum has an array of exhibits that explain just how these railroads operated. The rail cars, which essentially were streetcars, are only part of the story. The infrastructure to provide direct current electricity to the overhead lines required a lot of manpower and engineering know how.

The passenger station in downtown Plano and its electric transformer remained in use until December 1948. At that date the electric railway stopped operation due to the rise in popularity of automobiles.This same building now houses the Interurban Railway Museum which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The interurban railway museum is located at 901 E. 15th Street in downtown Plano Texas about five blocks east of US Hwy 75. Located just in front of the museum building is a fully restored Texas Electric railway car.

Visiting this well laid out museum is truly a trip into history. The exhibits are very in depth and paint a very interesting picture of what it was like to not only operate the system but also to ride on it. The trains or really long distance streetcars represented the latest thing in early 1900's transportation.

The Texas Electric Railway

Texas Electric Railway streetcar

The Texas Electric Railway operated in north Texas between the years 1916 and 1948.

The railway carried both passengers and freight all the way from Sherman Texas to the north and Waco Texas to the south. The streetcar photo at right is a totally restored street car from the old Texas Electric Railway. This route represented 226 miles of track which made it the longest interurban railroad west of the Mississippi River. The city of Dallas represented the mid point.

This interurban Dallas rail line was first built in 1908 as the Texas Traction Company and later became known as the Texas Electric Railway after a merger took place around 1916. Texas was an ideal state for the creation of the interurban rail companies. It's size alone made the interurban streetcar a popular transportation choice.

Electric Railroads Throughout Texas

The states total track mileage was about 500. Some of the various interurban electric railway companies spread throughout Texas included the Houston North Shore, the Austin Rapid Transit Company, Amarillo Street Railway, the Beaumont Traction Company, the Port Arthur Traction Company, the El Paso Electric Company, the Corpus Christi Improvement Company and others.

Some existing streetcar systems became interurban systems with extensions or acquisitions. Some other interurban lines became what is now called light rail systems running where there are no streets. In effect, these were interurban railroads using electricity rather than steam or diesel or even the earlier mules. Another differentiation is between a suburban system and an interurban system. The former generally serves a specific area or town whereas the interurban is much more like a regular railroad local train service. The difference is power and equipment used.

Operating an Electric Railway

Streetcar wheel assembly

So how exactly was electricity supplied to the railway cars or trams? First of all, it should be noted that while electricity is a very good way to operate railways, it does come with huge costs.

The power to weight ratio for electric trains is much better than diesel and gas power in as much as the electric streetcar requires no fuel to be stored onboard.

 Their weight is much less and therefore their acceleration is much better. The early electric railways employed low voltage DC current. The common voltage used for overhead wire streetcars was 600 to 750  volts of power. Per information at this Texas museum, the Texas Electric Railway line running between Sherman Texas and Dallas ran on 600 volts. The portion of the line which ran southward from Dallas to Waco Texas used 1,200 volts. Some of the newer systems found in Europe and Australia now use systems providing 1,500 volts.

Conductor exhibit

To power the overhead wires with enough direct current electricity, DC converters were spaced along the route. For the 600 volt line the converter stations were placed about eight to ten miles apart.

The 1,200 volt route had stations placed about twice that distance apart. You can easily see from this how much money had to be spent for infrastructure.

While the DC system is rather simple, it does require thick cables and relatively short distances between converter stations because of the high currents required.

The DC converter employed at the relay stations was a large circular rotary converter as shown on the display below right. The diagram of this bipolar converter is shown below left. These converters were in each of the power stations along the railways route. Electric power sources also have the advantage of being environmental friendly expending no exhaust fumes, being relatively quiet and requiring less maintenance than fossil fueled mechanisms. Since any  electrical circuit requires at least two conductors, electrical railway cars use the overhead line as one side of the circuit and the steel rails are the second half.

Scaled down rotary converter

Austria was the site for the first permanent tram service with overhead lines. The year was 1881 and the lines were bipolar employing two U Pipes.

The key component that makes all of this work was the development of the pantograph, or extension for the streetcar, which connects the car to the power source (overhead lines). The pantograph makes contact with the wire and transfers power from the wire to the traction unit. The pantograph typically makes contact with the help of springs.

Since the earlier days there have been great advancements made in electrical technology and today's electric rail systems are much more efficient thanks in part to the development of semiconductors.

Electric Railways Around the U.S.

One of the most well known electric railway systems was the Pacific Electric Railway or sometimes remembered as the Red Car System. The system operated in and around the Los Angeles California area. Similar to the Texas Electric Railway, the Red Car route ran over long distances and connected several communities around a larger metropolis. In the year 1925, the Pacific Electric Railway was considered the world's largest. Cities were connected throughout four different counties including Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside. Passenger service was also combined with frequent freight hauling. These interurban streetcars were powered by 1,200 volt lines. Los Angeles also had "Yellow Cars" which were used to connect the central part of the city with closer in and more densely populated communities.

San Francisco was also an area quite active with electromotive railways and continues to be today with it's vintage streetcars still in large use. The transportation needs in San Francisco were somewhat different than in both north Texas and Los Angeles. Cable cars were the first answer to the steep hills and of course are still popular and in use today. Urban electrified streetcars in San Francisco proper today are one of the primary means by which commuters get to work. These electric streetcars also take thousands of tourists annually to Fishermans Wharf. San Francisco is no doubt one of the best mass transit cities in the U.S.

Electric street car

Just as in the case of Dallas and San Francisco, the entire Bay Area is home to a modern electric railway system that connects much of the metropolitan area. The California Bay Area is home to BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) which is the number one commuter method outside of the automobile.

 The natural geography of northern California limits highway construction to a degree so an electric mass transit system that can take you to downtown San Francisco from most outlying communities helped make the entire area grow. The BART system is powered by a third electrified rail which eliminates the overhead line problem. The train reaches San Francisco from Oakland via a tunnel under the Bay. It's a very efficient system that was built in the 1960's and has grown it's route substantially. The public domain photo below shows the interior of a modern BART car.

BART car interior

Dallas Texas now has a modern light rail system called DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transit). This electric railroad system currently has about 72 miles of track and is adding additional mileage regularly. The DART system uses an overhead wire power source.

The routes are divided by the Red Line, Blue Line and Green Line with others on the way. Daily ridership is estimated at well over 75,000 people.

There are also branch lines that connect to downtown Fort Worth as well as to the DFW Airport. The two downtown areas of Dallas and Fort Worth had not been connected with rail service since the 1930's with the exception of Amtrak's daily Texas Eagle service which is part of Amtrak's Chicago to San Antonio route.

In 1996 DART entered an agreement with the Fort Worth Transit Authority creating the TRE which now connects the two cities. The TRE is estimated to have a daily ridership of over 10,000 people. As the Dallas and Fort Worth Texas region continues to grow, expect the further expansion of it's electric light rail system.

North Texas Traction Company Car Number 25

Museums to Add to Your Trip Planner

In addition to the Interurban Rail Museum in Plano Texas north of Dallas, there are two other electric railway museums (among many others in the country) which make excellent weekend or vacation side trips.

The Seal Beach California Red Car Museum is located aboard Car number 1734. This is a fully restored Pacific Electric Railway Red Car. The exhibit is located at the corner of Main and Electric. Seal Beach is in the westernmost corner of Orange County. Major highways in Seal Beach are Pacific Coast Highway (Highway 1) on the coast connecting the beach cities, the San Diego Freeway (I-405) connecting with all other major freeways in Southern California, and the Garden Grove Freeway (SR22).

There is also the Orange Empire Railway Museum located in Perris California. This railway museum was established in 1956 at the Pinacate Station as the Orange Empire Trolley Museum. The address is 2201 South A Street. Perris is located in Riverside County.

If in downtown Fort Worth Texas, stop by at the Intermodal Transportation Center and view a 100 year old electric trolley car on permanent display outside. This was the North Texas Traction Company car Number 25 which connected Dallas to Fort Worth in the first part of the 1900's.

(Photos of BART interior and electric converter are in the public domain. Other photos are from author's private collection. Article is copyright Western Trips)

Remembering the Shawnee Trail

Shawnee Trail bronze sculpture

The city of Frisco Texas, a bustling and growing suburb north of Dallas, has an interesting park that honors the famous Shawnee Trail. Western Trips had the opportunity to visit this unique memorial park which is filled with beautiful bronze sculptures and walking trails you'll enjoy visiting.

The Shawnee Trail

Quite a bit of information has been written about the great cattle trails of Texas. The Chisholm Trail which ran from south Texas up to the Kansas rail heads of Abilene and Wichita. The Great Western Trail (sometimes referred to as the Texas Trail) which started in south Texas and with various branches even extended to the Canadian border to the north. There was also the famous Goodnight-Loving Trail, much further west, that traveled from west Texas into New Mexico and then north into Colorado.

The Shawnee Trail stands out as being the earliest and the easternmost of the Texas Longhorn cattle trails. Cattle was said to have been taken up the Shawnee Trail as early as the 1840's which would have been just several years after the region won it's independence from Mexico in 1836. The great cattle trails mentioned above primarily came into being just after the Civil War when there was an over abundance of Texas cattle. The Shawnee Trail came into existence just before the Civil War and passed through the towns of Austin, Waco and Dallas. Earlier trails generally went through the Fort Worth area to the west.

Shawnee Trail cowboy sculpture

The Shawnee Trail collected cattle brought in from the east and west of it's main route and herded this cattle northward across the Red River and through eastern Oklahoma which was then Indian Territory. Various branch trails then went toward rail heads and stock yards in Kansas City, Independence, MO, St. Louis and Sedalia.

The biggest trouble on the Shawnee Trail occurred in the early 1850's when the Longhorn tick disease affected local cattle on it's way north to market. As an example, farmers in Kansas actually formed armed groups to prevent the Texas Longhorns from entering their area. Some cattle did get through and many others were turned back. The armed vigilantes stampeded the herds and in some cases there were people killed. It was a violent encounter for a long time.

During the Civil War the trail was barely used. Texas cattle could not be driven to the north and this was the major reason there was such a surplus of cattle immediately when the Civil War ended. 

Frisco Texas and the Shawnee Trail

When you visit Frisco Texas today, the main north to south artery running through this very large suburb is Preston Road. This road is named after a military outpost on the Red River, Fort Preston, whose name was in honor of a Captain William C. Preston, a Texas Revolution veteran.

Shawnee Trail memorial, Frisco, TX

The Shawnee Trail coming out of Dallas traveled northward generally along what today is Preston Road. This Shawnee Trail route was also responsible for bringing the earliest settlers to what is today Frisco.

The first town to pop up here was named Lebanon, a general gathering place for cowboys and ranchers bringing cattle north. Today, what was Lebanon is a part of Frisco and was just one of the several names adopted by this settlement before it finally was named Frisco.

Frisco and the Railroad

As mentioned above, new Texas trails to the west after the Civil War generally replaced the Shawnee Trail. What came next however would be a tremendous catalyst to the settlement's growth. This was the railroad, a major factor for the creation of many towns and cities all over the U.S.

Frisco Texas ended up adopting the name of the railroad that built tracks through it. This was the St. Louis, San Francisco and Texas Railway Company, commonly referred to as the Frisco System. The Frisco Railway had expanded to the south through Indian Territory to the Red River and then to the south beyond in an effort to tap into the Texas cattle market. Prior to this, the settlement was first named Emerson after a McKinney Texas banker. The story is that the banker promised to open a bank in the town if it was named after him. When the railroad came to town the name was changed.

Shawnee Cattle Drive wall

Visiting Frisco Texas

Today, Frisco Texas is a massive community and one of the fastest growing in the entire Dallas area. Two very interesting stops in Frisco that you may want to visit are the sites that celebrates the historic Shawnee Trail and the Frisco Heritage Museum.

The Shawnee Trail site is a seven acre park with walking and jogging trails. The centerpiece of this site is a three walled area with fascinating western sculptures all around it. The bronze sculptures depict an 1800's trail drive. A good deal of information about the old cattle drives is etched into the concrete walkways. It's a perfect stop for the entire family if you're traveling through the area. The site is located just on the west of  Parkwood Boulevard north of the Stonebriar Mall.

Another fun stop you'll want to make is the Frisco Heritage Museum just a few miles north of the Shawnee Trail site. Here you'll be able to walk through the entire history of Frisco and see plenty of great exhibits of the old Frisco Railroad as well as some rare artifacts and photos from other historic railroads. Restored historic structures from Frisco have been moved to the museum outdoor area. This indoor and outdoor museum offers a fun learning experience for the entire family. The museum which opened in 2008 is located at 6455 Page Street. 

Below are links to additional Western Trips photo articles regarding other sites of interest in the greater Dallas Texas area... 

Electric Railroad Museum 

Santa Fe Railroad Dining Car China/ Frisco Heritage Museum  

Perot Museum of Nature and Science 

A Walking Tour of Historic Gonzales Texas

Steam engine exhibit at Frisco Heritage Museum

A big thing that is happening in 2013 for the Frisco Heritage Museum involves The Museum of the American Railroad which was located near downtown Dallas. While the museum was running out of space, Frisco not only offered plenty of space but was also growing tremendously. The decision was made to move the Dallas museum's collection up to Frisco which of course would be a major undertaking. As of this writing some of the rolling stock from The Museum of the American Railroad has been relocated to Frisco. Work has been ongoing and when it's completed it will be one of the finest historic railroad displays in the country.


Both the Shawnee Trail site with it's bronze sculptures and the Frisco Heritage Museum with it's 18,000 foot display area are fun low cost ways to learn about how the town of Frisco Texas was established and named.

(Article and photos copyright 2013 Western Trips)



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Railways in Texas / The Katy Railway

When reading about the history of trains, the Katy Railroad left a lasting mark in Texas. If you are familiar with the Houston area you know that a suburb is named Katy. Katy Texas took it's name from this railroad. Another interesting fact is that Houston's Katy Freeway follows the old route of this very busy railway.

The history of trains can be very interesting to explore because the railways at one time were the lifeblood of the nation. Before the trucking industry blossomed with the construction of the Interstate highways, trains were the primary way to ship goods. A town that was fortunate enough the snag a railroad line was truly a fortunate town. Railroads in Texas were critical especially when you consider the size of the state and the number of towns and large cities within it's borders.

The Historic Katy

The Katy Railroad was a train company that connected Missouri to Texas. In fact, the very first railway to enter Texas from the north was the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad, often referred to as the MKT. The railroad was also often called the K-T. This was it's stock exchange symbol and was also the way it was called the Katy. The Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad was incorporated in 1870 and bought the southern branch of the Union Pacific Railroad which consisted of 182 miles of track. The MKT also acquired several other small railroads at the same time. The Union Pacific had gained approval for access into Texas in 1865. This was all a part of the massive railway expansion that took place all over the midwest and west after the Civil War ended.

Fort Worth & Denver steam locomotive

The MKT reached Denison Texas just south of the Oklahoma border, then Indian Territory, with regular train service in December 1872. Eventually the Katy laid track in Texas to serve Dallas, Fort Worth, Waco, San Antonio, Houston, Galveston, and Wichita Falls. Being the first railroad to reach Texas from the north, the MKt took advantage of this by advertising itself as "The Gateway to Texas". Anytime you explore the history of one railroad, you usually find out that it was filled with mergers, acquisitions, name changes and charters awarded by state governments. The Katy was no exception. In the case of the Katy, the railway did not become officially incorporated in the state of Texas until the year 1891. Prior to that it operated in the state under various subsidiary companies. Another interesting fact about the history of the railway was that it never received any land grants from Texas.

Katy Railroad route map

During the first decade of the Katy Railroad operations, a lot changed as far as ownership. This was the era of railroad mergers and acquisitions. Almost like a game of chess. The Katy was bought by Wall Street's Jay Gould in 1880 who then turned around and leased it to his Missouri Pacific Railway Company. During the time Jay Gould owned the Katy it kept expanding it's line in Texas. Several smaller lines were acquired and the Katy Railroad expanded it's service to Dallas, Fort Worth, and Waco. It continued to make it's way eventually to San Antonio and Houston.Gould also picked up the Dallas and Wichita Railway in 1881 and by the year 1882 the Katy had over 600 miles of track in Texas. Again, railroad history is a story of ever changing ownership and the history of this train company is a perfect example. The Katy Railway route map shown above illustrates all of the different routes that eventually spread into parts of west Texas. Acquisitions of smaller railroads added many more towns and cities. To the south the railroad reached down to San Antonio and Galveston.

The Staged Crash of Locomotives

Some people may have read about one of the most strange publicity stunts ever involving a railroad. While lines like to Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe were busy promoting towns such as Santa Fe New Mexico with the hospitality genius, Fred Harvey, the Katy decided it would get a lot of publicity by crashing two large trains together. Indeed it did. Reportedly there were some 40,000 people in attendance to witness this event on September 15, 1896. To jazz things up a bit, one engine was painted in red and the other in a bright green. The trains rode around Texas for about a month before the event to help stir up publicity.

Katy train collision in Crush Texas

Unfortunately, it was reported that four people died as a result of a boiler explosion and flying debris. The police were there to keep people back at a safe distance but it appears they weren't held back enough. The trains crashed each going about 45 MPH. The public domain photo at right is of the crash. The flying debris shown is about what you would expect in this type of collision. The place where this explosive event occurred was named Crush Texas (temporarily). The site was three miles south of the town of West Texas, in the Waco area south of Dallas. To guarantee a large crowd, the railroad offered spectators from anywhere in the state of Texas train rides to the crash site for two dollars.

As a side note, the temporary site was named "Crush Texas" after a man named William George Crush. Crush was the general passenger agent of the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad and was the one who came up this idea. After the train wreck, William Crush was fired from the Katy and when it appeared that no public fallout would occur he was amazingly hired back the very next day. In fact, songs were written regarding the train collision which remarkably confirmed the publicity value of this event regardless that four people lost their lives. Music composer, Scott Joplin, wrote a piano piece titled "The Great Crush Collision March".

In line with a large number of railroad mergers in the 1980's, the Katy Railroad was acquired by the Union Pacific Railroad in 1988. Then on December 1, 1989 the Katy was merged into the MoPac, and the MKT is now part of the Union Pacific Railroad system.

Another Western Trips article with photos you'll find interesting is the story of the Doodlebug Locomotive in Belen New Mexico.

See our photo article on our Trips Into History site, Texas Railroads / The Frisco Texas Special.

Learn More About the Texas Railroads

There are several places where you can see and learn more about this historic Texas Railroad. One is the Wichita Falls Railroad Museum in Wichita Falls Texas. Included in their exhibits is a MKT diesel electric switch engine. Also, two  Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad cabooses. There is also an excellent railroad musedum in a Dallas Texas suburb. The Museum of the American Railroad collects artifacts and archival material from the railroad industry to exhibit and interpret their significance in American life. When you're in the Houston or Galveston area you may want to make a stop at the Galveston Railroad Museum. This museum has one of the largest restored railroad collections in the southwest, and is known to be one of the five largest in the country. These museums will offer the visitor a very good time line of Texas railroad history.

(Photos of Katy logo and  FW& D steam engine are from author's private collection. Route map and photo of Crush Texas train crash are in the public domain)

The 100 Year Old Interurban Trolley / Fort Worth TX

In downtown Fort Worth Texas, among the modern Amtrak trains that pass through the Intermodal Transportation Center daily is a 100 year old trolley that tells a big story of the Cow Town's past.

Car Number 25

This particular trolley on display traveled between Dallas and Fort Worth Texas from 1924 to 1935. Service between these two cities started in 1902. Passenger rail travel has been important to the towns of north Texas both big and small. This historic streetcar was part of that history.

All of us are fortunate that all of the old electric railway cars from the early 1900's were not destroyed. Some have been restored to their original grandeur.

On permanent display at Fort Worth's Intermodal Transportation Center since 2001, this trolley was taken over and restored in 1995 by the Fort Worth Transportation Authority. and has been on permanent display the Intermodal Transportation Center at 1001 Jones Street in downtown Fort Worth Texas.

From Mules to Electricity

The first streetcar appeared in Fort Worth in 1876 when the Texas and Pacific Railroad came to town. Fort Worth experienced such a boom at that time that the trolley system was a necessity. People had to have a way to get from the train station to the central square. Until the year 1880 all streetcars were pulled by mules.

The first electric rail line grew out of the Fort Worth Trolley System that began service in 1890. The old electric cars look more like traditional train cars but were powered by an electrical motor like a trolley.In 1924 these trains were updated with bright red colors and new upholstery.

North Texas Traction Company car

The trolley car featured in this article, Number 25, was operated by the North Texas Traction Company. The trolley car was built by the St. Louis Car Company. After it's restoration the car was delivered to the Intermodal Transportation Center where it remains on display. Restoration included new paint and polished wood. The Number 25 was built as a motorcar which meant that it carried passengers as well as a trailer car in the rear. This particular car, the Number 25 carried passengers between Dallas and Fort Worth from 1913 to 1934.

The Crimson Limited

The Crimson Limited series of train cars began in 1924 and due mostly to the competition with the automobile. The North Texas Traction Company promoted the theory that it's mass transportation system was needed for community development.

  Express service was offered which meant that there were no local stops between the two cities. These were the cars with refurbished interiors to add comfort to travel. The number 25 Limited Express features two types of chairs...the Salounge Chair and the Parlor Chair. Quite different than the earliest trolley cars.

Interestingly enough, you might find the interior of cars like Number 25 a bit different than you would expect. Included inside was a kitchen with range, refrigerator and cabinets.The Number 25 was operated as a limited train without stops between the two big cities.

Speed and Comfort

What was offered by the Crimson Limited was speed and comfort. This was a necessity when competing with the automobile. No traffic jams and interior refinements were the rule. The rail line between the two cities was 35 miles long.

Schedules of the Crimson Limited

The times below will give you an idea of how often these historic trolley trains ran between Fort Worth and Dallas.

The trolley left Fort Worth daily at 10:30A, 2:30P and 6:30 P. Dallas departures were at 8:30A, 12:30P and 4:30P.

The Year 1934

Big changes for the interurban railway between Fort Worth and Dallas Texas occurred in 1934.

The right away that the rail line enjoyed was about to be turned over to the automobile. In other words, the right of way was to become a highway. What was proposed by officials was that a super highway would be built between the two large cities.

Crimson Limited electric rail car

What To Do With the Rolling Stock?

When the demise of the Fort Worth to Dallas express rail line was realized, rolling stock was either hauled off and used for storage or became diners. All of us has seen one of these trolley diners at one time or another. The plan was to eventually sell off these cars if and when a buyer could be found. The railroad ties would be taken up and sold for firewood. The market for steel rails was not healthy so these were essentially put into storage waiting for better times. In the case of car Number 25 shown in this article, it was taken to a farm at Eagle Mountain Lake north of Fort Worth

Some of the cars taken out of service were actually made into houses by adding a new roof and siding. This would have all occurred during the years of the Great Depression.

Below are additional Western Trips photo articles you may enjoy ...

The Interurban Railway Museum

Northern Electric Railroad in California

Restored seating in Car 25

Trolley Car Displays in North Texas

In addition to the display of car Number 25 at the Fort Worth Intermodal Transportation Center there is an excellent trolley railcar museum located in Plano Texas, a northern Dallas suburb.

The Interurban Railway Museum in Plano Texas has done a terrific job of explaining just how these electric railroads operated before the automobile caused their decline. The rail museum has an array of exhibits that explain just how these railroads operated. The Interurban Railway Museum is located at 901 E. 15th Street in downtown Plano Texas about five blocks east of US Hwy 75. Located just in front of the museum building is a fully restored Texas Electric railway car. The exhibits are very in depth and paint a very interesting picture of what it was like to not only operate the system but also to ride on it.

(Article and photos copyright 2013 Western Trips)

Homes in the 1800s

Western Trips takes a photo tour of homes in the 1800's from the state of Texas. One such unique setting featuring historic Texas homes is Chestnut Square Historic Village. This excellent venue features homes from McKinney Texas that span the years 1854 to 1918. Chestnut Square is a museum village. McKinney's Chestnut Square is a collection of six historic homes, a replica of a one-room school house, a chapel and store all on 2.5 acres just south of the downtown McKinney square.

Dulaney Cottage

Each one of these living exhibits tell a story about daily life in frontier Texas. Tours of these McKinney Texas homes and buildings dating from the 1850s offer visitors to the Chestnut Square preservation area a chance to gain a better understanding of pioneer life in Collin County Texas.

McKinney Texas

McKinney is located in Collin County Texas, about 32 miles north/northeast of downtown Dallas. The town site was founded in 1849 when a local settler, William Davis, donated 120 acres for that purpose. McKinney Texas was incorporated in 1859.

McKinney was a bustling commercial center during it's first 125 years and became the county seat. The second large commercial center in Collin County was Plano Texas, about 10 miles south. McKinney's population grew steadily over it's first several decades. In 1848 there were about thirty-five people in McKinney. In 1912 there were almost five thousand.

A big event for McKinney was in 1872 when the Houston and Texas Central Railway reached the growing town. In 1881 the MKT Railroad, known as the Katy Railroad, also had tracks into McKinney. From 1908 to 1948 the Texas Electric Railroad, running from Denison to Dallas and Waco, served McKinney. The electric railroad made transportation to the major areas south very easy to reach and helped McKinney grow even more. With the prosperity in McKinney, fine homes were built by successful pioneers and these now comprise the Chestnut Square Historic Village.

Dulaney House and Museum

We are all very fortunate that these pioneer homes and buildings collected together at Chestnut Square were saved from the explosive growth McKinney experienced. Often times, structures like these were razed and their history lost. McKinney has done an excellent job in both their restoration and presentation of these vintage homes and their artifacts. 

The Dulaney Cottage

Built in 1875 by Joseph E. Dulaney, this little Victorian cottage displays the careful detailing that builders put into the homes of newly prosperous McKinney Texas families who were just recovering from the rigors of the Civil War. The rooms have been carefully furnished with furniture from the Civil War era that is authentic for the period in which the home was built, and every piece of furniture contained in the cottage is from Collin County families.

The Dulaney House

Constructed in 1916 for Mrs. Joseph Dulaney, the home is used by the Heritage Guild for meetings, luncheons, and private parties. The home was constructed in a prairie style two story architecture with a wrap around porch. The home features a collection of furnishings and artifacts, as well as the era clothing dating from the 1860's through the 1920's. The home is marvelously furnished and is a living museum.

Johnson House

Johnson House

The John H.Johnson House, built in the early 1870's in the "Folk Victorian" architectural style, the home was occupied continuously by the descendants of Mr. Johnson until the Heritage Guild in McKinney acquired the home for restoration in 1987. A well known political figure who had a distinguished career in the Texas Legislature and Senate, Johnson also served as Captain in the Confederate Army and authored the Texas Homestead Law. The Texas Homestead Law refers to the special protection given to the home of a family or a single adult from the owner's creditors, the right of occupancy given to a surviving spouse, minor children, and unmarried children of a deceased owner, and favorable tax treatment accorded to the owner

The Taylor House

The Taylor House was built in 1863 in a simple box type architecture. The home was purchased by Armstead J. Taylor at a public auction in 1868. The house was well located for use as an inn and accommodated passengers on the stage lines. When the H&TC Railroad came to McKinney in 1872, the drummers, arriving by train to call on local merchants, found the inn an ideal "bed and breakfast" house at 25¢ a night, and out of this the name "Two-Bit Taylor Inn" came into local use.

Taylor House

Events at Chestnut Square in McKinney Texas

Aside from the fact that visiting the collection of homes and buildings make for a wonderful weekend family trip, many events are held there during the year. Many of the activities are held on the weekends. Don't be surprised to see a blacksmith at work during one your visits. Craft shows are just one of the fun events held. Look for the popular Farmer's market held on Saturdays.

You'll find volunteer docents who are very knowledgeable about the history of each home and building.

Two additional Western Trips photo articles you'll enjoy are the Texas Electric Railway of the early 1900's and the Victorian Farm House at the Heritage Farmstead Museum in Plano Texas, a north Dallas suburb.

Along the Square in Downtown McKinney

Visiting McKinney's Town Square 

Historic downtown McKinney Texas is just two blocks north of the Chestnut Square historic buildings site. Be sure to add this to your north Texas trip planner. McKinney has one of the oldest authentic downtowns of any Texas city.

McKinney Main Street at the town square offers a fine collection of retail, art galleries, restaurants and office structures with the old Collin County Courthouse in the middle of town square. McKinney was designated an official Urban Main Street City by the Texas Historic Commission in 2003. The Texas Main Street program has been instrumental in helping Texas cities revitalize their downtown and neighborhood commercial districts.

If your Texas vacation plans include spending time in north Texas, a side trip to historic McKinney and the Chestnut Square Historic Village is a great addition to your road trip planner.
 

(Photos from author's collection)

Railroad Museums

Whenever you visit the western United States you're going to have many opportunities to visit railroad museums. Many are located in old historic train depots and others are in dedicated railroad museum buildings. Western Trips has visited several of these very interesting museums and we wish to share some of the fine displays we've come across.

CTC System on display in Tucson AZ

Some of the fascinating displays at several of these museums are of vintage railroad equipment. This was vital equipment for an expanding railroad system and equipment manufactured before the digital age although during it's time the equipment was considered state of the art.

Before the advent of today's Advanced Train Control System there were structures or sometimes called towers which housed a system of gears and switches that were used to keep trains on the right track and avoid disastrous collisions.

Railroad Control Panel Exhibits

If your road trip plans happen to take you to Tucson Arizona, you may want to stop by and see the switching control panel exhibit on display inside the Tucson Amtrak train station. The control panel shown above and to the right was manufactured by the Union Switch and Signal which was a division of the Westinghouse Air Brake Company.

 It is an old Southern Pacific Railroad Dispatcher's CTC Console. The "CTC" stands for Centralized Traffic Control. The exhibit shown here is a relay based CTC. Centralized traffic control for railroads began in 1927 with the New York Central Railroad. The CTC like the one shown here controlled railroad interlockings and the traffic flows in Tucson Arizona.

This CTC display and other old railroad artifacts are inside the Tucson Arizona train station in the Old Town area of the city. Also, the Southern Arizona Transportation Museum is also located in Old Town Tucson adjacent to the train station. The museum address is 414 N. Toole Ave. Tucson, AZ.

Railroad switch lantern lamp

Railroad Lamps and Lanterns

There was a time that railroad safety relied on the use of lanterns and lamps. This was the time before digital traffic control and GPS. This was also a time after semaphores were used to control rail traffic. Semaphores came into being during the 1860's. As far as the lamps were concerned, the color of the light pretty much told the story. Railroad lamps and lanterns communicated signals at night between trains and stations. Without a signal system set in place there is essentially no way for a railroad to operate.

Railroad lamps and lanterns came in a variety of styles. The lamp shown in this article is a color light switch signal lamp. This is entirely different than the single light railroad lantern where the positioning and or movement of the lantern itself  by the railroad man conveys a command.

Signal lamp and lantern styles and uses

The color light railroad lamps would be positioned at various points along the rail track. These were meant to be in fixed positions and not hand held. The lamps function was to tell the condition of the track ahead of the train. To give you an idea of how many different railroad lamps and lanterns there were and are, these include classification lamps, train order lamps, bridge lamps, marker lamps, and switch lamps.

A switch lamp's position was mechanically linked with the position of the railroad switch, so that the lamp automatically indicated which way the switch was aligned. The accurate position of the lamp was essential for a train to pass safely. The kerosene fuel for the lamp had to be refilled regularly by nearby railroad employees. Although kerosene lamps were still used into the 1950's, electric lighting for these lamps became common in the 1890s-1900s especially along very busy routes.

The diagram above shows some of types of railroad signaling and devices. A fine museum with a great collection of vintage railroad equipment is found in Frisco Texas, a northern Dallas suburb.  The Frisco Heritage Museum in Frisco Texas is a good addition to your Dallas or northern Texas trip planner. Part of the railroad collection at the Frisco Heritage Museum are china dining sets that were used on the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad in their Fred Harvey dining cars.

Links to four additional Western Trips photo articles you'll enjoy are the famous Santa Fe Railroad Super Chief, the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad historic dining cars, a trip on Amtrak's Coast Starlight which operates between Los Angeles and Seattle. and Railroad Square in Santa Rosa CA

NM Rail Runner model train in Belen Harvey House Museum

The San Francisco Chief

The San Francisco Chief was a named train of the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad.

One of the best places to learn more about this train and the AT & SF Railroad is at the Harvey House Museum in Belen New Mexico. Belen is Spanish for "Bethlehem".

The museum is also home to the Valencia County Historical Society and the Belen Model Railroad Club which has an amazing model train display filling several rooms in the rear of the museum. If you're a model railroader then a stop at the Belen Harvey House Museum is a must stop if traveling near Albuquerque. Belen is located about thirty-six miles south of Albuquerque on Interstate 25.

The San Francisco Chief began operations in July of 1954. The route was the longest passenger itinerary offered at 2,554 miles between Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area. The route ran between Chicago and Amarillo Texas where connections could be made. Connections from Amarillo could be made to Lubbock and from Clovis New Mexico to Houston, New Orleans and Dallas/Fort Worth Texas.

Harvey Girls living quarters exhibit in Belen NM

From Clovis New Mexico the route followed the Belen Cut-Off straight across New Mexico to Belen, Gallup and then to Ash Fork Arizona, west of Flagstaff. At Ash Fork connections could be made to Prescott and Phoenix to the south. The town of Ash Fork was originally established as a siding for the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad during the late 1800's, later to be operated by the AT & SF. From Ash Fork Arizona it was west to Barstow California in the Mojave Desert and then up to Oakland California via Bakersfield, Fresno and Stockton California.

The Harvey House Museum in Belen is a great stop to add to your New Mexico vacation planner. In addition to this excellent museum, the Belen rail yards today are serve as the largest BNSF inspection yard on the southern transcontinental corridor linking Southern California and Chicago. When you visit the Harvey House Museum which faces the BNSF rail yard you'll see quite a lot of rail traffic. It's estimated that about 100 trains per day pass through the Belen rail yards. The BNSF operation today in Belen extends almost three miles in length.

In addition to the above named railroad museums, some very good books on the subject of old railroad operations and equipment include Walking Old Railways by author Christopher Somerville and History of the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railway by author Keith L. Bryant Jr. 

(Photos from author's private collection)

Heard Museum McKinney

Heard Museum McKinney main building

The Heard Museum in McKinney is a museum and much more. Located in the Dallas suburb of McKinney Texas, the Heard facility there is named the Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary. When you speak about a museum, the Heard facility is really a beautiful sanctuary just outside the city limits. You'll want to be certain to take your camera, a lunch and plenty of bottled water because there are so many walking and hiking trails to enjoy.The Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary is one of the best places in the Dallas Texas area for a fun, educational and low cost family outing.

Bessie Heard of McKinney Texas 

When you visit the Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary in McKinney Texas you're realizing the dream of Miss Bessie Heard. Bessie loved trees and her first civic endeavor in McKinney Texas was a tree planting project that visitors to the city today can still view. Interestingly enough, born in 1886 Miss Bessie Heard was of the age of eighty years when she made the decision to establish a place in north Texas so that all future generations could enjoy nature.

Boardwalk along the Wood Duck Trail

The Heard Museum McKinney opened in 1967 and was an instant hit. The museum today boasts an annual visitor count of over 100,000 people. The museum's goal is education, conservation and preservation. What you'll see today at the Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary is a haven for more than 240 species of birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians. You'll also have the opportunity to explore about 150 species of wildflowers. Also offered at the Heard are night hikes as well as adult nature education classes. Exhibits at the Heard Museum provide valuable learning opportunities for the more than 20,000 students who visit each year

The Trails at the Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary

Western Trips was fortunate to visit this venue and enjoyed several of the fine hiking trails. Your hike at the Heard is essentially a hike through nature. The Heard is located in a pretty setting that offers guided nature walks and other activities on a regular basis.

The Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary will offer you over 6.5 miles of self-guided and interpreted nature trails that wind though the diverse habitats of their 289 acre wildlife sanctuary. There are eight trails in all. 

Interpretive display along the trail

The trails at the Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary are open whenever the museum is open. One of the fun and interesting trails Western Trips was able to walk was the Bluestem Trail. Here is a one mile round trip loop trail which the museum states offers the best views of the prairie. 

Another fun walking trail we enjoyed is the Wood Duck Trail. This trail is one mile long which offers the best views of the wetlands environment. The Wood Duck Trail travels along both an overland trail and a boardwalk trail. 


 
Indoor and Outdoor Exhibits

One of the unique things about visiting the Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary is that in addition to the fun walking and hiking trails is the fact that exhibits are explored both inside the museum building and outside. Outside includes even an amphitheater which is the venue for special exhibits scheduled throughout the year.

Outside you can walk through the wildlife exhibit called "Animals of the World". Here you can view a collection of animals that change from time to time. Some animals on exhibit at the Heard are loaned to the museum for a specified period. The exhibit is set up to teach visitors about the animals and the role they play on earth. 

Animals of the World exhibit

Another very interesting and unique exhibit outside of the main museum building is the "Native Texas Butterfly Garden". Enter the butterfly house and walk among a wide variety of Texas butterflies. The Butterfly Garden is planted with host plants that naturally attract a wide range of butterflies. It's also a great place to take some very unique pictures.

The Heard Museum's indoor exhibits offer a fine interactive environment where visitors can discover, enjoy and experience various aspects of the Texas natural environment. As an example of interactive opportunities for children are Main exhibits at the museum change from time to time which means you can visit the museum grounds several times and see something new each time. As an example, as of this writing the Heard Museum is exhibiting Texas venomous snakes, rocks, minerals and fossils, seashells and marine life, North Texas ecosystems, a children's fossil dig, and a  marine room among even more  Included among past exhibits at the Heard have included the theme of dinosaurs. 

The Heard Museum also offers a gift shop with fun and educational items that are perfect for children and go along with the museum's theme of nature education.

Links below are to two additional Western Trips photo articles relating to more fun family stops around the greater Dallas Texas area. They include;

Texas Electric Railroad Museum 

Perot Museum of Nature and Science

Butterfly House

Visiting the Heard Natural Science & Wildlife Sanctuary

Make sure to plan ahead for both museum hours and any special events and exhibitions scheduled. 

The museum is located at 1 Nature Place , McKinney Texas. McKinney is located about thirty miles north/northeast of downtown Dallas. For all information about hours and current exhibits as well as detailed directions on how to get there from various parts of the Dallas Metroplex see website www.heardmuseum.org

The Heard Natural Wildlife Sanctuary is a terrific day trip while in the Dallas Texas area. The Heard McKinney offers a perfect family outing opportunity.  

(Photos are from author's private collection)


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Texas Train Rides / Heartland Flyer

Western Trips highlights railroads in Texas. One passenger railroad route that is a lot of fun and even educational to ride connects Texas with the state of Oklahoma. The Heartland Flyer connects Oklahoma City and Fort Worth Texas. The Heartland Flyer operates 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Service on this route began in 1999 after a twenty year absence of rail service between Oklahoma City and Texas.

Heartland Flyer

The Heartland Flyer

The Heartland Flyer is operated by Amtrak and  operates as a regular train as well as an excursion train between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth.

 In addition to this, the Heartland Flyer in Fort Worth Texas also connects to the Texas Eagle, Amtrak's long distance train service between Chicago Illinois and San Antonio Texas. Arriving in Fort Worth from Oklahoma City, a passenger can connect to the Texas Eagle and then in San Antonio connect to Amtrak's Sunset Limited which offers long distance service between New Orleans Louisiana and Los Angeles California. The Heartland Flyer therefore can be part of a fun family excursion trip or a means for those in Oklahoma to connect to Amtrak's national cross country system. The Heartland Flyer is usually made up of two refurbished Superliner Coaches and a Superliner II Coach/Cafe Car. The Superliners are the two level rail cars.

Fun Excursions on the Heartland Flyer

For travelers wishing to take a sightseeing trip to Oklahoma City from north Texas there are plenty of great historic sites and museums to visit. As part of the Trails & Rails program, on certain dates National Park Service guides from the Chickasaw National Recreation Area are onboard the Heartland Flyer between Oklahoma City and Ft. Worth. Trails & Rails is a partnership program between the National Park Service and Amtrak. The Trails and Rails program provides rail passengers with educational opportunities that highlight an appreciation of a selected region's natural and cultural heritage.

Heartland Flyer Station, Ardmore OK

Heartland Flyer passengers will be introduced to the rich cultural heritage of Oklahoma and Texas, the storied history of the area, the geological story of the region and descriptions of the Oklahoma and Texas landscape including it's animals and plants. The historic role of the railroad in the area is also discussed. All of this is provided by volunteer tour guides. Obviously, the Heartland Flyers Trails and Rails program makes a great fun and educational family outing.

Chickasaw National Recreation Area is in south central Oklahoma, between Dallas, Texas and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the area where the Heartland Flyer operates. The museum collection at the Chickasaw National Recreation Area includes historic objects and archival material directly associated with the park and the early settlement of the town of Sulphur Springs.

The Chickasaw National Recreation Area museum is located about 95 miles south of Oklahoma City and about 15 miles north of Ardmore Oklahoma in the town of Sulpher.

Amtrak's Heartland Flyer

The Rail Route

Much of the 206 mile rail route of today's Heartland Flyer follows the old Chicago-Houston "Lone Star" rail route. 

The Lone Star was an Amtrak train that served the cities of Chicago, Kansas City, Oklahoma City, Fort Worth and Houston with intermediate stops in between. For three years stating in 1971, the train was named the "Texas Chief." This was the same name used while the line was operated by the Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad. At the request of the AT & SF, the name was changed to the Lone Star. There was another earlier Lone Star train. That one was operated by the St. Louis Southwestern Railway and ran between Memphis Tennessee and Dallas Texas. That service was discontinued in 1952.

The Lone Star, operated by Amtrak since 1974, discontinued service in 1979 due to budget cuts.

Two additional Western Trips photo articles you'll enjoy are Texas' Historic Katy Railway and the Frisco Railroad and Santa Fe Dining Car China. The Frisco ran from St. Louis Missouri to San Antonio Texas over this same route.

Ardmore Oklahoma

The Heartland Flyer and Fun Sites to See in Oklahoma City and Fort Worth

One excellent venue is the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. The museum is located at 1700 N.E. 63rd Street, Oklahoma City OK. See western and military collections of uniforms, firearms, saddles, rodeo exhibits, a full frontier town exhibit and much more.

The Fort Worth Stockyards has been a top Texas attraction for many years. Located on the west side of Fort Worth, the Fort Worth Stockyards features restaurants, the Stockyards Museum, the Cowtown Coliseum, the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame, an old time photo parlor, a vintage steam locomotive and train that runs between Grapevine Texas and the Stockyards, a stable and much more.

The Greater Southwest Historical Museum- Located in Ardmore Oklahoma, this museum  collects, preserves, and interprets the social, cultural, and economic history of South-Central Oklahoma, with special emphasis on Ardmore and Carter County. Their collection includes everything from an early electric car to one of the earliest examples of a steam pumper fire engine.

National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame-  Located at 1720 Gendy Street in the Cultural District of Fort Worth, the museum is within walking distance of the Will Rogers Memorial Center and the Museum of Science and History. Among the many exhibits in this 33,000 square foot facility are information, photos and artifacts regarding the cowgirls place in western history. You may also want to try riding a bronc. The bronc at the museum is a life size model modified from training bulls used by rodeo riders.

(Photos from author's private collection)