Great Plains Transportation Museum

09/08/2024

Come hear the original Santa Fe Band!! They are celebrating their 100th year in existence this year! Not to mention, Wichita Union Station turns 110 and Kansas Operation Lifesaver turns 50!

In celebration of KS OL's 50th we are partnering with the Wichita's Historic Union Station (110 years), the Great Plains Transportation Museum to bring you a FREE hour long concert by the Topeka Santa Fe Band as they celebrate their 100th year; Sunday, September 8th: 4:00 at the Wichita Union Station Plaza! Bring a lawn chair!

09/07/2024

Who's excited for Kansas Railfest tomorrow? Volunteers put in a lot of work for the festivities and it looks like the weather is going to be spectacular! Guest locomotive from the K&O Railroad, scavenger hunt, model trains, face painting, good food, and so much more!

08/14/2024

Our steam engine, AT&SF 3768, is resting in the same area that the Santa Fe Alco PA is pictured on the Douglas Street Overpass!

March 1948 - In this photo is the Alco PA 71 locomotive with the "Ranger" from Galveston-Chicago at Union Station. Photo: Ross Grenard.

07/29/2024

Significant progress has been made around the museum! Locomotive 316 "Dorothy" has had her fuel tank and main reservoirs removed for certain brake line replacements. This also allows us to inspect the fuel tank, main reservoir tanks, and provides us with great access to the traction motors for maintenance. This weekend our Santa Fe box car and Dorothy were moved for power washing. And boy did that reveal on how truly dirty these two pieces of equipment were. Chunks of grease bigger than one's hand came flying off and more letting exposed itself on the boxcar. One of our volunteers, David Olson, got to tackle the undercarriage of Dorothy! We think he needs a shower! Other volunteers involved include Austin Allmond, and Steve Sleva.

07/22/2024

Happy Birthday Wichita!! 🎉🥳

Happy birthday, Wichita! Today we celebrate the 154th year of our great city. Wichita was officially "born" on July 21, 1870, just three months after Sedgwick County was established. Spread a little extra love around town today by exploring our beautiful city and shopping locally!

07/17/2024

Check out this deal with our friends at the Wichita Toy Train Museum!

The Wichita Toy Train Club is a 501c3 non-for-profit organization of model train operators and colle

07/04/2024

Happy Independence Day!! 🇺🇲

05/05/2024

On a modern locomotive, the bell is stationary and the clapper hits the side of the bell via compressed air. On our Plymouth Locomotive the bell ringer moved the whole bell with the yoke included. Patented in February of 1921 by Viloco Railway Equipment Company the Viloco Vacuum Bellringer (as the company spelled it) was used to ring our bell on the Plymouth. The bell ringer was in bad shape and full of pitting and rust from years of outside weather. Most of the components were seized together. Volunteers David Olson and Austin Allmond took on the task of restoring the bell ringer. The cylinder of the bell ringer has been cleaned out and honed. New rings and valves were manufactured to replace the broken ones. Some broken cast pieces were welded back together using a forge. Hopefully in the near future we will have a working bell ringer with the correct bell install on our historic Plymouth Locomotive!

04/27/2024

As we mark the end of National Volunteer Week, the GPTM wishes to acknowledge the tireless efforts of our volunteers. Whether part of the restoration team, a docent keeping history alive, or our treasurer that keeps our lights on, our volunteers are truly the best!!

04/17/2024

04/04/2024

We are super excited and thankful to be able to offer a painting from railroad artist John Winfield to aid in the restoration of our FP45 #93!

Prints can be purchased here:
https://www.gptm.us/santafe93-store

Railroad artist John Winfield has created a new painting to help raise funds for the cosmetic restoration of Santa Fe FP45 93 at the Great Plains Transportation Museum.

03/12/2024

01/10/2024

Due to extreme temperatures predicted on Saturday, January 13th, the museum will be closed for the safety of our visitors and volunteers. Thanks for your understanding.

01/03/2024

One of our volunteers finished a restoration of a Western Railroad Supply Co. (WRRS) Electric Switch Lamp. The electric lamp replaced maintenance intensive kerosene switch lamps that had the be topped off with kerosene and lit every night. Electric lighting for switch lamps became common in the 1890s-1900s along heavily used routes. However, kerosene lamps were common into the 1950s along lightly used routes and in many rail yards.

09/25/2023

Hot off the press! Help us restore Santa Fe Locomotive #93!

Built by the Electro-Motive Division (EMD) of General Motors Corporation, 93 was donated by BNSF Railway in June 1999.

09/15/2023

Don't forget to attend the GPTM's annual Kansas Railfest this Saturday! Things are starting to take shape! The Kansas & Oklahoma Railroad delivered one of their locomotives for display this weekend.

Starting at 10am, K&O will conduct a "Locomotive Load Test" on their GP-38-3 Locomotive WAMX #3832 every hour until 3pm. Load tests will last just a couple of minutes. Shout-out and special thanks to the K&O and Watco for their continued support of Kansas Railfest!

05/26/2023

Fun Fact Friday: "Wichita grew because the railroad connected the town with other places...A sign was placed where people first entered the town. It read: 'Everything goes in Wichita.
Leave your revolvers at police headquarters and get a check.
Carrying concealed weapons strictly forbidden.'"

(Source: The Story of Wichita by Carol Brunner Rutledge, 1979.)

📸 Great Plains Transportation Museum, The Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railway