PARRISH — Board a vintage railroad car from the mid-20th century, hear that lonesome whistle blow and chug down the track through the Florida backwoods — all in time to get home by dinner.
The Florida Railroad Museum’s diesel-powered passenger train operates on a portion of Manatee County’s first rail line, an approximately 6-mile track between Parrish and the former community of Willow that was built by the Seaboard Air Line Railroad in the early 1900s. Following the merger of the Seaboard with the Atlantic Coast Line in 1967, the line was abandoned in 1986 before being recreated by train enthusiasts as a museum.
At the station ticket booth and gift shop, visitors can enjoy a model railroad display while awaiting boarding instructions from conductors in period attire who direct you to passenger cars offering outdoor seating or air-conditioned indoor seating.
Once all are aboard, the engineer in his striped cap — a volunteer member of the museum — blows the whistle and the wheels begin turning on the Willow Express.
While underway, volunteers offer historical perspectives, like the way conductors used to call out the original four destinations of the rail line, Wimauma, Willow, Parrish and Ellenton (“Why mama, will I perish before I get to Ellenton?”).
After a couple of group railroad songs, the chatter dies down and the rhythmic rocking of the rails lulls you into a state of relaxation.
By the time you get to Willow, you’re ready to stretch your legs and explore the museum in the recreated Seaboard Air Line train station. In the yard, several steam and diesel locomotives are on display, some open for exploration along with passenger cars and cabooses. Many were once owned by the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. One refurbished passenger train hauled elephants around North America for 25 years.
The train has a locomotive at each end, so that when it re-boards passengers at Willow for the return trip to Parrish, the train doesn’t have to turn around. The 13-mile round trip takes about 1.5 hours.
The museum offers several special events beyond weekend train rides.
The Willow Bar-B-Que Cookout on Saturday, June 27 at 5:30 p.m. will feature a buffet picnic at the Willow stop.
Cab rides are available for those who would like to sit with the engineer for the entire trip and enjoy the view from the front of the train. You can also rent the locomotive and drive it yourself under the engineer’s supervision.
An Old West Train Robbery is scheduled for the weekend of Sept. 12-13, with trips at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
The Florida Railroad Museum is located at 12210 83rd St. E. in Parrish. Ticket office hours are Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 941-776-0906 or visit https://www.frrm.org/.
Cindy Lane is a staff writer for the Tampa Bay Beacons. She can be reached at clane@tbnweekly.com.