The Railside Caboose Museum located in downtown Wilmore will have its last opening for the year during Old-Fashioned Christmas on Dec. 6 and 7.
The Railside Caboose Museum works as an exhibit showcasing local history, a model train display and other train related items.
The museum was originally donated to the city of Wilmore in 1993 by the Norfolk Southern Foundation. The Norfolk Southern Corporation is a major American freight transportation company that operates a large rail network, primarily in the eastern United States. The foundation works as the charitable arm of the corporation, which includes being tasked with distributing all of the caboose systems that were no longer in service.
Over the years, since its donation, there have been many curators of the museum. Ken Rickard has served as the museum’s current curator, with 11 years of service.
While he was originally Asbury’s electrician for years, after his retirement from full-time jobs, he stepped into this role.
“I like to watch trains,” said Rickard.
His enjoyment of trains, and his expertise on local history, drew the attention from others who thought that he would be a perfect fit after the retirement of the last curator, Cecil.
“And they said, ‘Hey, would you ever be interested in taking over the caboose,’ and I said, ‘Well, I’m not doing anything Saturday morning, so sure,” said Rickard.
During his 11 years working at the museum, there have been a number of items donated that relate to Wilmore’s history and trains. Some of the donations include information regarding the Cincinnati railroad and polaroid cameras.
“It’s grown a lot more than just Saturday mornings overtime,” said Rickard. “Now, I inherit posters and things in here with no indication of who wrote it, no citations.”
The most popular attraction inside the caboose is the model railroad. While the railroad itself does not necessarily resemble Wilmore, it includes notable things such as the railroad crosses and mini local business signs. There has been a lot of historical information and items donated to the museum, but Lexington business Berkshire trains supports and donates the museum through giving Rickard model cars among other model items.
While the love of watching trains drew Rickard into becoming the curator, he finds that the people are his favorite aspect of his job.
“You know, a lot of people just walk around and never really look at anything,” explained Rickard. “I like the people who look around, and you know, look at the posters and read it. It makes the work seem worth it.”
Despite the last opening until the spring happening during Old-Fashioned Christmas, the curator has plans for the museum’s future.
“It’s one of the few places I can think of where you can, without a lot of effort, go to get a lot of local history information,” said Rickard. “We are working on a historical center in the Municipal building.”
Through this collaboration, Rickard hopes that more of the historical information can be readily available for people to use. Rather than be limited to Saturdays or various seasonal events at the caboose, he hopes that the historical center will open more of a space for people to access information on local history.
“We are all products of our history, whether it be our family history, our local history, national history or international history,” said Rickard. “It’s kind of like when you play cards and you’re dealt a hand. You don’t complain that you didn’t get a good hand, you play whatever hand you have.”
Whether students are curious about the caboose sitting on the outskirts of downtown, or are wondering about the local history of Wilmore, the caboose museum provides the opportunity to explore an attraction that is more than just a railside decoration.
Photo courtesy of Alanna May.
