Frisco Depot open for Iron Horse Festival

Volunteers at the Moark Regional Railroad Museum invite everyone to learn about railroad history and see many improvements during the 11th annual Iron Horse Festival in Downtown Poplar Bluff from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.

Located in the historic 1928 Frisco Depot across Fifth Street from the Black River Coliseum, the museum features 148 years of railroad history in Poplar Bluff, Southeast Missouri and Northeast Arkansas. Admission is free, but donations to maintain the museum are greatly appreciated.

During the museum’s 29th year, volunteers have:

• Painted the railroad switching equipment, signal tower and a whistle sign.

• Completed work on the 16-foot English train layout donated by retired missionary Richard Brosseau and his wife, HaeJa, of Silva.

• Added landscaping along the Moran Street parking lot and completed other beautification projects..

• Displayed a new 16-page Southeast Missouri railroad history written by Jim Gattis of Springfield, Missouri.

• Installed two new air conditioners.

A steam operated car and calliope, owned by A. J. White of Poplar Bluff, will be displayed during the festival.

The 110th anniversary of the Iron Mountain train station is being observed during this year’s Iron Horse Festival. The Iron Mountain operated from 1872 to 1917 when it merged with the Missouri Pacific. MoPac merged with Union Pacific in 1982.

Volunteers with the Poplar Bluff Historic Depot Restoration Corporation have restored the original waiting room in the Iron Mountain station. It may be viewed by the public Saturday.

Residents can visit the museum to see many photos and historical information about the railroad which sparked Poplar Bluff’s growth in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

The Iron Mountain station is a stop on the Texas Eagle Amtrak route from Chicago to San Antonio.

A Missouri Pacific caboose will not be open to the public Saturday because it is undergoing renovation, but visitors can walk around two cabooses and the Union Pacific mail/baggage car.

Visitors are encouraged to wear a mask and try to stay six feet apart as much as possible. Volunteers ask visitors to please sign in when they enter the museum. Visitors can also view an overhead train in the main exhibit room, read about the railroad ferry on the Mississippi River while in the reading room, view the model railroad merchandise in the Train Shop, watch three trains on the 33-foot American layout and exit the south room where the English layout is located. The south room also has banners with dates and photos of Iron Mountain, Missouri Pacific and Union Pacific railroads.

Museum visitors during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2019, totaled 1,600 from 20 states, 51 Missouri cities and 20 Arkansas cities. Visitors still totaled 1,250 during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, even though the museum was closed 12 Saturdays due to the coronavirus. These visitors came from 16 states, 62 cities in Missouri, 14 cities in Arkansas and 6 countries(China, England, France, Estonia, Italy and Ukraine).

Regular museum hours are 1-4 p.m. on Saturdays except Christmas weekend. New members and volunteers are welcomed.