Category Archives: Dallas Day Trips

Museum of the American Railroad In Frisco

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Museum of the American Railroad

People come to see Rexy, the huge Tyrannosaurus Rex sculpture inside the Frisco Public Library. But have you noticed the multi-ton monsters behind the library? They are the engines and railcars that belong to the Museum of the American Railroad.

Museum of the American Railroad History

The 1963 State Fair of Texas served as the catalyst for the museum, with a modest exhibit showcasing an old steam engine and Pullman sleeping car. The collection expanded and became a staple of the State Fair until, in 1986, a permanent Museum of the American Railroad opened.

Most folks are used to visiting museums inside the confines of four walls. The behemoth exhibits for this museum reside outside … on tracks. Three acres at Fair Park were not enough to accommodate the museum’s growing inventory of rolling stock. In 2011, the Museum of the American Railroad accepted an offer from the City of Frisco for a 12.5-acre site and relocated north.

How to Visit the Museum of the American Railroad

The Museum of the American Railroad is a work in progress. The museum envisions a future with fabricated sheds to protect its collection from the punishing Texas sun, and more of its rolling stock refurbished. Today the museum’s inventory numbers over 70 pieces of steam, diesel, passenger, and freight equipment. All this rail stock is housed behind the Frisco Discovery Center on track in a fenced enclosure.

Because of safety and liability issues, no self-guided tours of the outdoor exhibit are allowed. Instead, guided tours are offered three times a day from Wednesday through Saturday. Tours are led by knowledgeable docents with a passion for railroad history. The outdoor tours involve walking about a mile, and closed-toe shoes are recommended. This is not a tour for little kids (children under eight). But if you are a train buff or interested in the history of rail, these tours and the docents are fantastic.

Museum Educational Outreach

The museum publishes a guide of topics and offers instruction onboard some of its refurbished railcars. School and community groups can tailor a program to fit their needs. Through Collin College, I experienced one such program about Pullman and the Pullman Porters. It was a fascinating look at Pullman and the town created in Illinois for workers building the iconic railcars. Equally captivating were stories of the Pullman Porters and their impact on the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Learning history while sitting in an actual Pullman dining car was incredible!

TrainTopia

Train enthusiasts of all ages will enjoy TrainTopia. Located inside the Frisco Discovery Center, this model railroad will take you on a tour with life-like scenes of 1960’s downtown Dallas, Palo Duro canyon, and other Southwest areas.

Hard to imagine, but Steve Sanders built this incredible working G-gauge miniature railroad in his garage! After Sanders died, the ensemble was donated to the museum. With a large donation, the Museum of the American Railroad moved the model train display in its entirety to its permanent location at the Discovery Center.

Be sure to grab a clipboard and see if you can find all the items on your scavenger hunt. This version of I Spy is a great hit with the youngsters. See who can be first to find the ‘the men playing checkers’ or ‘the 2 John Wayne posters.’ The detail and breadth of TrainTopia is phenomenal!

When You Go

The Museum of the American Railroad (8004 North Dallas Parkway, Frisco) conducts guided tours Wednesday through Saturday at 9am, 11am and 1pm. Reservations and tickets can be purchased online. TrainTopia model train exhibit is open Wednesday through Saturday 10am to 5pm and on Sundays 1-5pm. TrainTopia is located inside the Frisco Discovery Center and also serves as the meet up location for those taking the outdoor train tour. Tickets can be purchased for the guided outdoor train tour and TrainTopia individually, or the two experiences, outdoor and model railroad, can be purchased as a combination ticket. There are no dining facilities at the museum, however, multiple restaurants can be found nearby. Free parking is available in the Frisco Discovery Center lot.

Dallas Museum of Art Impressionist Exhibit

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The Impressionist Revolution: From Monet to Matisse is on view at the Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) now until November 3. Dubbing the Impressionist artists as renegades, the exhibit celebrates the 150th anniversary of their first Paris exhibition in 1874.

Monet to Matisse

If some of the art looks familiar, it’s because the DMA has drawn on its own collection for the exhibit. And while the paintings may not be the most noteworthy, each of the major artists are represented. I had no idea the DMA had so many Impressionist paintings. There are some beautiful Renoirs and more than a handful of Monet and Degas. Four rooms are filled primarily with paintings. Visitors see the Impressionist movement’s beginning and how, as years passed, Impressionism spawned other styles such as Fauvism.

The exhibit includes works by Mary Cassatt and Berthe Morisot. While both women bucked convention to work as artists, they were confined to compositions acceptable for their gender. Cassatt is known for her mother and child paintings, and Morisot for her depictions of domestic life.

Impressionist Revolution is a wonderful exhibit for anyone wanting to learn more about art. I especially enjoyed the detailed wall panels that explain Impressionism and provide visitors with interesting factoids. For example: the innovation of paint in metal tubes allowed artists to leave their studios and paint en plein air (outdoors).

Art Beyond Sight

The DMA is an Art Beyond Sight partner. Scattered throughout the Impressionist Revolution gallery, are several tactile stations. The exhibited painting is described briefly in braille, with a tactile relief version. The DMA can also provide special tours arranged in advance for visually impaired visitors. What a fabulous way to increase art accessibility.

When You Go

DMA is located at 1717 North Harwood in Dallas. The museum is open Wednesday through Sunday. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The museum is free, though there is a cost for visiting special exhibits like Impressionist Revolution. Onsite parking is available for $20.

Chaparral Trail & Farmersville

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If you want a longer walk to stretch your legs, I suggest the Chaparral Trail. The section between Farmersville and Merit provides mountain bikers and hikers five-miles of improved trail surface through rural farmland and township.

Chaparral Trail

Sponsors boast about the trail’s multipurpose use for hikers, bikers, and yes, horses, though I’ve yet to encounter an equestrian on the path. The historic Onion Shed in Farmersville serves as the western-most trailhead. A city park and large adjacent lot offer parking, picnic, and restroom facilities, along with easy trail access. The town of Farmersville maintains the first five miles of Chaparral Trail. The level pathway is paved for 2.5 miles and then becomes crushed gravel for the final miles. The paved surface makes it an easy trail for families with small children and strollers.

The path crosses streets through town, skirts schools and parks, and traverses past East Texas farms. I enjoy that change of scenery and its easy ambiance. Walking the Chaparral Trail seems like a stroll through time to catch a glimpse of rural Texas before super highways and urban creep. I appreciate the length of trail, too. If you want a ten-mile hike, then trek the entire distance to Merit and then retrace your steps back to Farmersville. If you’d prefer a shorter walk, you can do that, too.

Northeast Texas Trail System

The Farmersville to Merit path is part of the ambitious Northeast Texas Trail system. The 130-mile project follows the unused routes of the Union Pacific and Chaparral railroads. When complete, it will connect Farmersville in the west, to Paris, and finally to New Boston in the east.

Rail Banking

In the 1980s, a law allowed railroads to ‘bank’ unused rail lines through lease, sale, or donation. This left old rail right-away intact for use as trail systems. Three private agencies banked the 130 miles now known as Northeast Texas Trail. One of the three, Chaparral Rails to Trails, banked the section from Farmersville to Paris. In total, the three banking entities control unused rail line connecting 19 rural towns.

It gets complicated, but many of the small towns along the route obtained quit claim deeds from the banking entities for sections near their municipalities. For example, the City of Farmersville quit claimed the land between it and the Collin County line. That’s the part of the system I’m most familiar with. On my hikes, it’s apparent the trail draws both out-of-town visitors and local residents.

Northeast Texas Trails Coalition

Through grants and donations, bit-by-bit, the 130-mile trail system has been maintained and improved. Still there are sections that are barely passable … it’s an ambitious project to keep up a 130-mile trail. Perhaps the most difficult challenge is repair of the old railroad trestle bridges. The Northeast Texas Trails Coalition (NTTC) maintains a website and Facebook page to help people navigate through all trail sections. Maps delineate trail conditions and cautions in town-to-town segments. You can also query NTTC on their Facebook page to get updated information from Rail Stewards. The group is working with the Texas Legislature for funding and are exploring options to designate the trail system as a state park.

Farmersville

I have a confession to make. Often my hike on the Chaparral Trail is an excuse. I love the little town of Farmersville. With brick and limestone storefronts spanning eighty years of architectural styles, the town exudes charm. Use a little imagination and you can picture classic Studebakers and old Ford trucks parked on the diagonal outside Dyer Drugstore instead of today’s Hondas and Toyotas. Like many small Texas towns, there are vacant storefronts, however, in Farmersville you sense the possibility of rebirth. The Odd Fellows Lodge built in 1899 has been restored and is now home to Fiber Circle Yarns. A realtor, a physician’s office, and an engineering firm have taken up residence in other restored downtown properties. Throughout the historic area, you will find eclectic antique stores.

Farmersville delivers on a collection of small antique malls, you know the type, big buildings partitioned into smaller stalls filled with a multitude of collectables and junktiques. Country Roads Trading Post (110 McKinney Street) has 50 smaller vendors with an assortment of goods from handmade lavender soap to 1940s kitchenware. I found some particularly well-priced treasures there. Main Street Antiques & More (103 S Main Street) is a smorgasbord of china, crystal, depression-era glass, and more.

When You Go

Farmersville is located off US Route 380 between McKinney and Greenville. The Chaparral trail head is near the old Onion Shed. Farmersville Visitors Center is located at 201 S Main Street, though hours vary. A self-paced walking tour of historic Farmersville buildings can be downloaded before you go.  

Post Oak Creek Fossil Hunting

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Fossil Hunting at Post Oak Creek in Sherman, Texas

Post Oak Creek in Sherman teams with fossils waiting to be discovered. Most trek to the rural creek in search of shark teeth. For me, I’m content to gather any type of fossil. Summer, despite the heat, is a prime time to visit. The creek water level is low, exposing sandbars and allowing hunters the opportunity to walk miles up and down the stream bed.

Abundance of shells

In geological time, the formation exposed at Post Oak Creek is from the late Cretaceous period, some 90 to 66 million years ago. At that time, an inland sea covered the area. Seawater rose and receded with events like the formation of the Rocky Mountains.

Sedimentary rock embedded with fossil shells

Walking in Post Oak Creek, I literally reached into the water and retrieved millions-year-old shells. No digging or much hunting required. Fossil shells, mostly oyster, layer the sedimentary rock lining sections of the stream’s bank, exposed over years of erosion. If you want to find a fossil, Post Oak Creek is the spot.

Shark tooth prospectors

Oyster shells abound throughout the creek area, but most visitors search for more elusive finds like shark teeth and the even rarer mastodon bone or tooth fragment. Shark’s teeth range in size from a quarter to dime, and their shape reminds me of a fat capital letter-T. Sharks have been swimming in oceans for 400 million years, and some of the teeth found at Post Oak are from now extinct Cretalamna and Petaldus species.

To successfully hunt teeth, you need simple tools and patience. It’s a little like panning for gold. Scoop up some stream gravel, place it in a sieve, and then sluice the sieve around in the water to rinse out clay and dirt. From there, you can examine the remaining rocks for fossil treasures. A garden trowel or small hand shovel works well for the digging. The day I visited, people used all sorts of things for sieves including box screens and vegetable colanders. In fact, one clever family used plastic hamburger baskets – the red ones with the side slats — as sieves.

Other Post Oak finds

In addition to fossils, the careful scavenger may find other artifacts like arrowheads, more recent bone from mammals, and old pottery and glass. Through the years, the town of Sherman was home to many different factories. One lucky hunter found an old 1890 bottle from the now defunct Sherman Bottling Works.

South Travis Street Bridge

Post Oak Creek meanders through south Sherman, but getting to the creek itself can be a challenge. The easiest access is at the Travis Street Bridge. Here you can park on the road shoulder and use a short trail down to the stream. The address, 2400 South Travis Street, Sherman, works well for directions in most mapping programs. The creek flows under US 75, and some fossil hunters recommend the access road near the interstate as another egress. My recommendation is to stick to South Travis Street. It’s true, this area is well-picked over from scores of visitors, however, just hike up or down stream to get to less congested hunting grounds.

When you go

Be weather aware. In the height of summer, creek levels are low, however, strong rains fill the creek rapidly and can create a dangerous flash flood situation. This is not a park. No restrooms. It’s good ol’ Texas-styled boondocks. Come prepared with hat, bug spray, sunscreen, and lots of water on hot days.

I wore wading boots, in part, to protect myself from water snakes. I confess, I was the only one in the crowd in my galoshes. Still be watchful and alert for snakes. Wear clothes you don’t mind getting wet and dirty. A hand trowel and sieve is all you need to hunt shark teeth, though I also recommend bringing lots of baggies for storing your finds. I found a gallon bucket worked well for lugging around my equipment and for storing larger finds. If you don’t mind carrying it, a small camp stool can be useful for sitting in the creek while you search the gravel for treasures.

After you come home

The website Your Fossil Adventure has a page dedicated to Post Oak Creek. Here you’ll find pictures identifying the fossils typical to the location. Also, if you aren’t sure what you have, the Facebook page Texas Fossil Hunting is wonderful. Post a picture of your find and ask for help identifying it.

Roses and Tigers inTyler

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This weekend, Tyler celebrates its 83rd Rose Festival with a parade, rose show, arts and crafts fair, and guided rose garden tours. If you visit Tyler, be sure to stop by the Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge and support this nonprofit that provides a home to rescued big cats.

Tyler and roses

Nicknamed the Rose Capital, Tyler’s agricultural industry shifted from growing peaches to roses in the 1920s. By World War II, Tyler grew over half of the rosebushes sold in the United States. Tyler’s market share has decreased to about 15 percent, however, roses remain a major, area industry. Each October, Tyler celebrates its rose history with the Texas Rose Festival. The Tyler Rose Museum, open year round, tells the region’s story with rose festival memorabilia, video, and a computerized catalog of 250 rose varieties.

Tyler Municipal Rose Garden

The garden is at its height during the month of October. You’ll find 500 different rose varieties with fanciful names like Cinderella’s Song, Summer Wind, and Freckles. The rose garden contains over 38,000 rose bushes. I also recommend visiting in early spring when the garden is ablaze with blooming azalea displays in pink, salmon, magenta and red.

Tiger Creek

Located just outside Tyler, Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge’s stated purpose is “to provide rescue and rehabilitation to big cats that have been abused, neglected, or displaced.” The tiger-creek-800x800refuge spans 150 acres and houses over 40 big cats from tiger to bobcat. Several of the cats were victims of the exotic pet trade of the 1990s. Some cats were relocated when other refuges closed. And many of the cats have physical problems, like Babs. A bobcat, Babs is blind, most probably due to poor nutrition when he was kept as a pet.

Each big cat has its own story. There is a tiger rescued from a man who abused her and had her fight dogs when she was a cub. The tiger, Sierra, was once owned by Michael Jackson. Then there is Tin Cup, a mountain lion. A farmer’s dog brought the cub (the size of a tin cup) to a farmhouse porch in New Mexico. Efforts to locate Tin Cup’s mother failed, so the farmer contacted Tiger Creek. Tin Cup, a handsome, playful, and photogenic cat, is my family’s favorite.

When you go

The Texas Rose Festival is October 13 through 16. Most events are free. Both the Tyler Rose Museum (420 Rose Park Drive) and the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden (624 North Broadway) are open year round.

Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge (17552 FM 14) is open most days. While more expensive, I strongly recommend the guided tour, or the combo tour. The docents are extremely knowledgeable about the cats and their stories.